| Summary: | <div>Siden slaveriets ophør midt i 1800-tallet har Caribien været præget af en stærk migrationstradition. Forskere har påvist, at denne tradition har fået næring afhistorier om den succesrige returmigrant, som rig på penge og materielle goder vender tilbage efter år i udlandet. I denne artikel argumenterer jeg for, at disse historier indskriver sig i et 'mandligt' narrativ, der primært fokuserer på muligheden for at opnå social og økonomisk mobilitet gennem migration. Gennem en analyse af livshistorieinterviews med kvindelige returmigranter på den vestindiskeø Nevis viser jeg, at der parallelt med det mandlige narrativ findes et komplementært 'kvindeligt' narrativ, som omhandler den gode slægtning, der udvandrer for at hjælpe familien i hjemlandet ved forsendelser af penge, tøj og andre materiellegoder. Denne migrant kan derfor vende tilbage som et højt respekteret familiemedlem til trods for de beskedne materielle ressourcer, vedkommende selv besidder. Selv om de to narrativer knytter sig til henholdsvis mænd og kvinder, drager både mandlige og kvindelige migranter på dem, afhængigt af deres særligeerfaringer i udlandet og de specifikke aspekter af deres liv de beretter om. Analysen peger på, at narrativerne ikke er faktuelle redegørelser for migrantforløb, men snarere kulturelt specifikke måder hvorpå migranter skaber mening ogsammenhæng i deres liv. Ikke desto mindre er narrativerne med til at præge de forventninger og erfaringer, der knytter sig til migration, og de spiller derfor en vigtig rolle i de migrationsprocesser, der rent faktisk finder sted.</div><div><br /></div><div><div><br /></div><div>Migration Narratives:</div><div>Stories of the good Relative among Caribbean Women</div><div><br /></div><div>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</div><div>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.</div><div>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 </div><div>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, while the two</div><div>narratives of return are gendered, individuals may draw on both, depending on their particular experiences abroad and the specific aspects of their life story they are recounting. The narratives therefore should not be viewed as factual accounts</div><div>of migration, but rather as culturally specific modes of representation that give meaning and purpose to individual lives. Nevertheless, the narratives shape individuals’</div><div>understandings and practices of migration, and they therefore play an important role in actual migration processes.</div></div>
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