Caribbean Narratives of Terminal Illness: Theoretical, Practical, and Ethical Considerations for Medical Education

First-person accounts of grieving from Caribbean perspectives provide important narrative knowledge; however, they are seldom categorized as narratives of illness and remain underrepresented in medical humanities curricula. This paper analyses two autobiographical works by Caribbean writers caring for dying family members, My Brother by Jamaica Kincaid, and The Zea Mexican Diary by Kamau Brathwaite. Both narratives reveal literary elements characteristic of pathographies (Hawkins, 1999). A distinctive Caribbean aesthetic sensibility, an elegiac dimension rooted in African heritage, underlies both narratives. Drawing from narrative theory, I demonstrate how Kincaid and Brathwaite illustrate myths that depart from Western cultural models. Medical students who develop skills in interpreting Caribbean stories should be better able to appreciate the experiences of patients and their families, identify cultural considerations, and anticipate communication problems encountered in clinical practice. Uniquely positioned to stimulate ethical reflection on patient care, Caribbean narratives about dying warrant inclusion in medical education.