From left: Governor of the Central Bank of Barbados, Dr. DeLisle Worrell; winner of the Prime Minister's Award, Dr. Lance Bannister; overall winner, Dr. Karen Lord; third-placed competitor, Heather Barker and Mrs. Worrell pose for the media after the conclusion of the Frank Collymore Literary Endowment 12th Annual Awards Ceremony.
Four rewarded for literary work
1/11/2010
By Erica Lazare
‘Collies’ were awarded to the four winners of the Central Bank of Barbados-sponsored Frank Collymore Literary Endowment Competition, at its 12th Annual Awards Ceremony Saturday night at the Grand Salle, Tom Adams Financial Centre in Bridgetown.
Budding young writer and the first, first-placed winner to win the award twice, Dr. Karen Lord took the top prize of $10 000 for her scientific themed manuscript entitled: ‘The Best of All Possible Worlds”. Second place and $7 000 dollars went to regular entrant, Glenville Lovell for his play, “Sodom”, while former journalist and first time entrant Heather Barker, received $3 000 dollars after being adjudged third for her collection of short stories titled “The Millipede Eats the Mongoose”.
Accomplished published author, Dr. Lance Bannister was selected for the coveted Prime Minister’s Award, which recognises originality in work focused on Barbadian culture. All of the winners were presented with mahogany trophies and read excerpts of their work to the audience.
In the feature address, novelist and poet Dr. The Hon. George Lamming, emphasised that a study of the uses of literature through the period of 1847-1947 showed that works produced by the colonial power such as Shakespeare, were “put to use in softening the imperial element of colonialism” and that it has contributed to the lack of cultural identity in this region.
Proclaiming that “the act of reading is metaphorically speaking, an act of eating”, thus insisting that the book is a kind of food that influences in the way we shape our thoughts, reality and relate to society, Lamming cited the importance of the inclusion of literature in our lives.
“Literature is not about literature. Literature is about the most serious predicament engagement with the realities of daily life,” he explained.
During his speech, he made reference to the works of several Caribbean authors whose work has defined a large part of the regional literature in light of our similar independences. Jamaican, Mervyn Morris, Barbadians Kamau Brathwaite and A.J. Vaughn and St. Lucian, Derek Walcott were highly regarded in his address, especially for their work in “indigenising” the themes of their subject matter.
“Shakepeare has got to us but the literature of Africa has not and until this happens no one can say what is the true meaning of Africa for Caribbean peoples. It is precisely this dilemma that has fertilised the imagination in some of the writing.”
Governor of the Central Bank of Barbados, Dr. DeLisle Worrell in his address to the patrons, proclaimed that Caribbean literature is “alive and well” and that he will continue the commitment to its cause that was started by his predecessors. He also stated that he was delighted by the continuing emergence of new writing and burgeoning talent since the appearance of the landmark Oxford Book of Caribbean Short Stories and Poetry in 1999 and 2005, respectively.
