The Roger Mais Collection, 1925-1955
Roger Mais (1905-1955) is recognised as one of the region’s early post-colonial literary figures. Mais’ influence as a literary and political personality extended beyond Jamaica. His legacy lies in the large quantity of unpublished material that was found after his untimely death.
He was the quintessential anti-colonial activist whose contribution included literary, political, artistic and journalistic output. His collection covers over 20 years of activism and chronicles the birth and development of the anti-colonial, nationalist struggles of the colonised against the coloniser which led to political independence, the creation of a literary tradition and the birth of an artistic movement.
Mais has been described as «a colonial writer grappling with his art, without the benefit of a literary tradition of his own» (Morris 1981). His activism was manifested through his literary and journalistic writing. His imprisonment for seditious libel in 1944 made him a hero of the anti-colonial struggle in Jamaica. Mais published just three novels, all of which are considered classics of Caribbean literature. The bulk of his unpublished material is located in the Roger Mais Collection.
The Roger Mais Collection was inscribed in the Memory of the World, Regional Register for Latin America and the Caribbean in 2014.