Jean Constance D'Costa (born 13 January 1937) is a Jamaican children's novelist,

linguist Linguistics is the scientific study of language. The areas of linguistic analysis are syntax (rules governing the structure of sentences), semantics (meaning), Morphology (linguistics), morphology (structure of words), phonetics (speech sounds ...

, and professor emeritus. Her novels have been praised for their use of both

Jamaican Creole Jamaican Patois (; locally rendered Patwah and called Jamaican Creole by linguists) is an English-based creole language with influences from West African, Arawak, Spanish and other languages, spoken primarily in Jamaica and among the Jamaican ...

and Standard English.

Early life and education

Jean Constance Creary was born in St. Andrew, Jamaica, the youngest of three children to parents who were school teachers. Her father was also a

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a Protestant Christianity, Christian Christian tradition, tradition whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's brother ...

minister. They moved to the capital, Kingston in 1944, and then to St. James and Trelawny. She attended rural elementary schools, and then St. Hilda's High School in Brown's Town, St. Ann from 1949 to 1954 on a government merit scholarship. She earned another scholarship to pursue a bachelor's degree in English literature and language at University College of the West Indies (now UWI, Mona) from 1955 to 1958, and another scholarship for a master's degree in literature at

Oxford University The University of Oxford is a collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the second-oldest continuously operating u ...

Career

In 1962, after Oxford, she returned to teach

Old English Old English ( or , or ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the Early Middle Ages. It developed from the languages brought to Great Britain by Anglo-S ...

and linguistics at University College of the West Indies. She also served as a consultant to Jamaica's Ministry of Education on

education in Jamaica Education in Jamaica is primarily modeled on the British education system. The Human Rights Measurement Initiative (HRMI) finds that Jamaica is fulfilling only 70.0% of what it should be fulfilling for the right to education based on the countr ...

in the newly independent country, and served on various education committees. D'Costa continued her creative writing while teaching and consulting. Her two most popular novels, '' Sprat Morrison'' (1972) and '' Escape to Last Man Peak'' (1976), have been used in schools throughout Jamaica and the Caribbean region. Her novels are geared primarily towards children aged 11 to 13. She researched and wrote extensively on Jamaican creole

culture Culture ( ) is a concept that encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and Social norm, norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, Social norm, customs, capabilities, Attitude (psychology), attitudes ...

., and published handbooks for service agencies in Jamaica, including the Kingston office of the United States

Peace Corps The Peace Corps is an Independent agency of the U.S. government, independent agency and program of the United States government that trains and deploys volunteers to communities in partner countries around the world. It was established in Marc ...

. In 1980, D'Costa received a professorship at

Hamilton College Hamilton College is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Clinton, Oneida County, New York, Clinton, New York. It was established as the Hamilton-Oneida Academy in 1793 and received its c ...

where she stayed until 1998. She taught Old English, Caribbean literature, creative writing, and linguistics.

Themes

Writing for children on the cusp of teenhood, D'Costa addresses "their need to relate to actuality ... and their need to retain some of the comforting illusions of childhood". To satisfy the latter need, she draws from

Jamaican folklore Jamaican may refer to: * Something or someone of, from, or related to the country of Jamaica * Jamaicans, people from Jamaica * Jamaican English, a variety of English spoken in Jamaica * Jamaican Patois, an English-based creole language * Culture ...

and

oral tradition Oral tradition, or oral lore, is a form of human communication in which knowledge, art, ideas and culture are received, preserved, and transmitted orally from one generation to another.Jan Vansina, Vansina, Jan: ''Oral Tradition as History'' (19 ...

s for the plots, themes, and tone of her works. Prominent in Caribbean folklore are " duppy stories", in which ghosts or unsettled spirits return to haunt the land of the living. In her third novel, ''Voice in the Wind'', for example, D'Costa addresses children's perceptions about death and the supernatural. She also references the oral tales that were traditionally told "at wakes and nine-nights". D'Costa paints a vivid picture of historical and contemporary Jamaican countryside. D'Costa often uses Jamaican Creole for dialogue alongside Standard English. Her use of language, together with her understanding that her works are models for children's own literary attempts, makes her books natural subjects for classroom discussion. ''Sprat Morrison'' has been required reading in the "first grade" of Jamaican high schools since 1972, while ''Escape to Last Man Peak'' and ''Voice in the Wind'' are assigned by many teachers. Students have corresponded with D'Costa and she has accepted invitations to speak in schools. Her works have been lauded for preserving and conveying Jamaican speech rhythms and dialect.

Personal life

D'Costa retired from Hamilton College in 1998, with the title of professor

emeritus ''Emeritus/Emerita'' () is an honorary title granted to someone who retires from a position of distinction, most commonly an academic faculty position, but is allowed to continue using the previous title, as in "professor emeritus". In some c ...

. She married David D'Costa, a journalist, in 1967. They relocated to

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

in 1997.

Awards and recognition

*Children's Writers Award (Jamaican Reading Association, 1976) *Gertrude Flesh Bristol Award (Hamilton College, 1984) *Silver

Musgrave Medal The Musgrave Medal is an annual award by the Institute of Jamaica in recognition of achievement in art, science, and literature.Webster, Valerie J. (2000), ''Awards, Honors & Prizes, Volume 2'', Gale Group, , p. 447. Originally conceived in 1889 ...

(Institute of Jamaica, 1994) for contributions to children's literature and linguistics

Selected works

Novels and short stories

* * (with Hazel D. Campbell) * * * * * (2nd edition, 1990)

Anthologies

* (with Velma Pollard)

Books

* (with Barbara Lalla and Velma Pollard) * (with Barbara Lalla) * (with Barbara Lalla) *

Linguistic handbooks

* * * * (with Jack Berry)

References

External links

"Great read for children"
'' Jamaica Gleaner News'', 23 April 2006 {{DEFAULTSORT:D'Costa, Jean 1937 births Recipients of the Musgrave Medal Living people Women anthologists Jamaican women children's writers 20th-century Jamaican women writers 21st-century Jamaican women writers 20th-century Jamaican novelists 21st-century Jamaican novelists People from Saint Andrew Parish, Jamaica Jamaican women novelists