Migrationsnarrativer: Fort llinger om den gode sl gtning blandt vestindiske kvinder

Siden slaveriets oph r midt i 1800-tallet har Caribien v ret pr get af en st rk migrationstradition. Forskere har p vist, at denne tradition har f et n ring afhistorier om den succesrige returmigrant, som rig p penge og materielle goder vender tilbage efter r i udlandet. I denne artikel argumenterer jeg for, at disse historier indskriver sig i et 'mandligt' narrativ, der prim rt fokuserer p muligheden for at opn social og konomisk mobilitet gennem migration. Gennem en analyse af livshistorieinterviews med kvindelige returmigranter p den vestindiske Nevis viser jeg, at der parallelt med det mandlige narrativ findes et komplement rt 'kvindeligt' narrativ, som omhandler den gode sl gtning, der udvandrer for at hj lpe familien i hjemlandet ved forsendelser af penge, t j og andre materiellegoder. Denne migrant kan derfor vende tilbage som et h jt respekteret familiemedlem til trods for de beskedne materielle ressourcer, vedkommende selv besidder. Selv om de to narrativer knytter sig til henholdsvis m nd og kvinder, drager b de mandlige og kvindelige migranter p dem, afh ngigt af deres s rligeerfaringer i udlandet og de specifikke aspekter af deres liv de beretter om. Analysen peger p , at narrativerne ikke er faktuelle redeg relser for migrantforl b, men snarere kulturelt specifikke m der hvorp migranter skaber mening ogsammenh ng i deres liv. Ikke desto mindre er narrativerne med til at pr ge de forventninger og erfaringer, der knytter sig til migration, og de spiller derfor en vigtig rolle i de migrationsprocesser, der rent faktisk finder sted. Migration Narratives: Stories of the good Relative among Caribbean Women Since the abolishment of slavery during the middle of the nineteenth century, the Caribbean has been characterized by a strong migration tradition. Research on Caribbean migration has shown that this tradition has been nourished by narratives of the successful return migrant, who moves back home rich in money and material goods. In this article I will argue that this is a ‘male’ narrative emphasizing the importance of achieving social and economic mobility through migration. Through life story interviews with female return migrants on the Caribbean island of Nevis, this article points to the existence of a complementary ‘female’ narrative revolving around the good relative who migrates to help the family left behind. In this narrative a successful return is not measured by material gain, but rather by the extent to which support has been sent to the family and the respect this engenders in the local community. The analysis shows that,