Tourism as a neo-colonial structure
In the first section of A Small Place, Kincaid employs the perspective of the tourist in order to demonstrate the inherent escapism in creating a distance from the realities of a visited place. Nadine Dolby dissects the theme of tourism in A Small Place and places Kincaid's depiction of tourism in a globalized context that justifies Kincaid's strong feelings toward it.[5] Dolby corroborates Kincaid's depiction of the tourist creating separation by "othering" the locale and the individuals that inhabit it. Furthermore, the tourist industry is linked to a global economic system that ultimately does not translate into benefits for the very Antiguans who enable it.
The tourist may experience the beauty on the surface of Antigua while being wholly ignorant of the actual political and social conditions that the Antiguan tourism industry epitomizes and reinforces.[6] Corinna McLeod points out the disenfranchising nature of the tourism industry in its reinforcement of an exploitative power structure. In effect, the industry recolonizes Antigua by placing locals at a disenfranchised and subservient position in a global economic system that ultimately does not serve them.[7]
Racism and legacies of colonialism
Kincaid and the other Antiguans are subject to continuous reminders of their colonial history. For instance, streets are named after the British who contributed to the slave trade. Also, Antigua’s main bank, the Barclays Bank, is representative of people profiting off slaves. The citizens’ yearly celebration of British holidays enforces their remembrance of the colonial rulers. While the English can distance themselves from the ramifications of slavery and colonization since Antigua is not their native homeland, they do not experience the same effects as the Antiguan citizens, who face pain and cruel reminders of the legacy of colonialism.
Poverty and Corruption
One of the biggest critiques Kincaid makes about Antigua as an independent state is the corruption of the Antiguan Government. The withdrawal of European colonization left Antigua in a state of poverty and corruption.[8] Kincaid’s frustration with the Antiguan government was made clear throughout the novel, specifically when she referenced a library as a symbol of her perpetual resentment towards colonization and decolonization. Not only a symbol of Kincaid’s perpetual resentment towards colonization and decolonization, but the library is arguably “the chief image of decline and corruption” for Kincaid. To her the island library was once a sacred space and a retreat away from the colonized world that plagued her homeland as a child. More importantly, the library acted as a sort of opening to the greater outside world away from the island.It was unfortunately destroyed by an earthquake in 1974, but after all these years has lacked any sort of reconstruction, only a sign posted that says "Repairs are Pending." This is likely because “the library provides the language and the texts by which Kincaid can learn how to attack the white world." Therefore Kincaid alludes to the reality that in the eyes of the corrupt government there should not exist any sort of tools, such as these library books, which could undermine their rule.[9]
In addition to this, Kincaid makes references towards illegal activities that the Antiguan Government was involved in such as drug smuggling, prostitution, and offshore bank accounts in Switzerland. In Kincaid’s novel, poverty and corruption are seen as products of Europe’s colonization and decolonization of Antigua.
According to academic Suzanne Gauch, while Kincaid acknowledges the racial justifications used by white colonists to institute oppressive policies during Antigua's colonial era, she also attempts to transcend the notions of an inescapable racialized past for Antigua. In doing so she attempts to shape readers’ view of Antigua by creating a sense of agency.[6]
