Legacies of Asian Indenture, Expressions of Caribbean Nationalism

This essay examines the literary representation of Chinese indenture in Cuba. By highlighting an indenture poetics in Cuban fiction, I argue that the legacies of Chinese indenture have traversed Cuban history and become a literary expression of Cuban nationalism. While exploring how this poetics enables Cuban writers to revalorize the role of indentured Chinese in Cuba’s nation-building and to rearticulate Cuba’s national narrative, I also caution against the possible fictional romanticization of the indenture experience. I conclude by suggesting that reclaiming Asian legacies in the Caribbean helps rethink the region’s history and envision its future.