Erna Brodber Biography

Jamaican novelist and sociologist, born in the village of Woodside, Jamaica; she was educated at the University of the West Indies, where she joined the staff of the Institute of Social and Economic Research in 1975. Her early works as a sociologist include Abandonment of Children in Jamaica (1974) and A Study of Yards in the City of Kingston (1975). Her first novel, Jane and Louisa Will Come Home Soon (1980), which originated in her work on abnormal psychology, is strongly informed by the themes of displacement and alienation; stylistically, it combines strong elements of Jamaica's oral tradition with fluent use of stream of consciousness techniques. Myal (1988), more conventional in form, is a highly imaginative exploration of the tensions between the rationalism of modern culture and the persistence of a powerful cultural heritage. Another novel, Louisiana, appeared in 1994. Her other works include Perceptions of Caribbean Women: Towards a Documentation of Stereotypes (1982).