Vad betyder béké?

Glossary of Terms

Ajoupa
a type of thatched shelter or summer house, like Granbois. Beke
"white man" in Patois, usually considered derogatory. Calabash
a gourd-like fruit that grows on a tree native to tropical regions. Creole
a white person of European descent born in the Caribbean; OR a person of mixed black and European ancestry. The ambiguity of the term is especially important to the novella's multiplicity of interpretations. Doudou
a term of endearment; Christophine frequently uses it to refer to Antoinette. Glacis
the "paved roofed-in terrace" that runs the length of the house at Coulibri. It is one of Antoinette's mother's favorite places to walk and to dance. It is from the glacis that Mr. Mason confronts the mob. Obeah
a belief system and form of "black magic" similar to voodoo that is practiced in parts of the West Indies, South America, and Africa. Christophine is a practitioner of obeah. Patois
the regional dialect of French spoken in the Caribbean; it differs significantly from the European form of the language and thus Mr. Rochester cannot understand it. Soucriant
a blood-sucking, vampire-esque creature, typically a woman, who travels at night in the guise of a flame but looks like a normal human by day. Zombie
a wandering, soulless corpse said to be revived by witchcraft such as the obeah Christophine practices.