Charles Rhyne:: In The Atlantic Sound, you say of Liverpool, "It is disquieting to be in a place where history is so physically present, yet so glaringly absent from people's consciousness." Do you feel the same way about Charleston?
Caryl Phillips:: Yes, I do. History is, of course, a story. However, the dominant narrative in Charleston seems particularly distorted to accommodate certain uncomfortable 'facts'. Such as the degree to which Charleston was important, not only in the south, but in the United States as a place to import and 'season' slaves. There is no real attempt on the part of the city to acknowledge, commemorate, and pay due respects to the African labor and intelligence, which contributed to the founding of this most beautiful of cities.
CR:: Your experiences in America, Europe, Africa and the Caribbean give you a unique view of Charleston. What is your opinion of the city?
CP:: A city with a defective sense of its own history. But this hardly makes it unique. I find it shocking that so much of Charleston’s true, complex, hybrid history is hidden behind a slick, neatly-presented facade. It's a history of loss and defeat, yet it is presented as though to admit such a thing would result in the pillars of the city tumbling to the ground. In racial terms, Charleston is still in a state of denial about the true facts of her history. Many people, black and white, appear to be attempting to rectify this, but there is much work to be done.
CR:: What can be done to help speed this process?
CP:: Dialogue, followed by action. Begin in the school system. Look at how history and literature are taught. I have faith in young people, but they need to be guided and exposed to ideas, books, and people that will challenge the status quo.
CR:: What is your opinion of the NAACP boycott of South Carolina?
CP:: Don't really know. Except, the NAACP are hardly the most radical of groups. If they feel it is worth boycotting South Carolina, that tells me something.
CR:: In The Atlantic Sound, you don’t seem sold on Pan-Africanism. What is your stance regarding it?
CP:: I have no stance on Pan-Africanism, as such. I empathize with the impulse behind the theory, but between theory and practice much is lost. Idle romanticism helps nobody.
CR:: You seem disappointed by many people’s opinions in The Atlantic Sound [Anti-Semitism, Dr. Ben Abdallah saying, “you people,” and Africans’ willingness to take money from African-Americans as tourists, not caring about the historical significance involved]. Is it possible for African-Americans to understand Africans and vice versa? Or are there too many societal differences now standing in the way? I'm sure this one topic could fill an entire conversation, but it seems to be an important theme of The Atlantic Sound.
CP:: This is a very big question, as you clearly understand. Suffice to say, there are many, many different Africas. Some Africans feel a more intense relationship with African-Americans than others. This is particularly the case in West Africa because of the slave trade. Is it possible to understand? Yes, it is. But it requires effort and overcoming the notion, that because of a shared history and the same color skin, that everything is 'cool'.
CR:: Where did you get the detailed information regarding John Ocansey and his journey, and how did it affect your writing? This section of the book seems more reserved in tone, as if you were writing it with Ocansey's voice in mind.
CP:: Ocansey wrote a book, which is long out of print. I read it, and became familiar with his voice. Also, I wanted to ease my voice into the main narrative of the book. I didn't want to announce myself too early.
CR:: The majority of The Atlantic Sound is written in the present tense, stylistically separating your travels from historical accounts. Why did you choose this format?
CP:: I didn't want the narrative to feel over-freighted with historical detail. It wasn't difficult to move between past and present, or historical and contemporary, because that's what I've been doing in my last two novels, Crossing the River and The Nature of Blood.
CR:: What prompted you to write The Atlantic Sound? Was there a particular moment when the idea was born?
CP:: No real moment. I always have some notion of a subject, but between the notion and the book there's much transformation!
CR:: In writing it, were you searching for something personal along the way, and, if so, did you find it?
CP:: I'm always searching to simply understand. There are no real answers, only a better understanding. From writing The Atlantic Sound, I've gained a better understanding of the complexities of history, replete as it is with ironies and surprising stories of courage and loss.
CR:: Who are your literary and social influences, historical and modern?
CP:: This is a big question. There are many. I like courage and clarity in thought and action, even in the face of opposition. I am sure that Muhammed Ali is one of the great icons of the twentieth century. I am also sure that Tadeusz Borowski, a Polish writer who survived the Holocaust and then committed suicide is as big an influence on me as Ali.
CR:: Where do you consider home? Do you consider yourself an African, African-American, African-European, or do you just define yourself as you? I ask this question because there are so many people in your book attempting to define themselves [and others] geographically, racially, and culturally.
CP:: I'm certainly not any of the above categories. I'm a writer. I happen to be Caribbean by birth, British by citizenship, and American by residency. You're right, there are many people trying to define themselves in the book. Identity politics exercise a tight grip on our present-day consciousness.
CR:: What would you like readers of The Atlantic Sound to walk away with? What idea or issue would you most like to convey?
CP:: The idea that history is not as simple or simplistic as the manner in which it is presented. We are encouraged to view history as an extended interview with the 'winners'. Well, some of the so-called 'losers' have an equally valid, and important, point of view as well.
