Abstract
This article considers errantry’s role in garnering a relational masculine identity in Earl Lovelace’s The Dragon Can’t Dance. In the novel, the protagonist’s, Aldrick’s, masculinity as well as his embodied, micro-movements take a wandering route as he searches for belonging. Aldrick begins in a hegemonic gendered position of power, later embraces hyper-masculinity, and then is driven to a non-hegemonic masculine position through incarceration. Through these three masculine spheres, either the Othering of women or non-hegemonic men occur at the hands of the protagonist or the protagonist experiences Othering directed towards him. The fluidity of gender positions provides a sense of errantry, as do Aldrick’s physical movements through his community. Drawing on masculinity studies broadly and Caribbean masculinity specifically, my research demonstrates that the protagonist’s masculinity evolves according to his environment and his communal needs. As he moves from Calvary Hill to Port of Spain during Carnival, and from the corner to prison, Aldrick’s masculine ideals, in particular the Othering treatment of women and non-hegemonic men, change. Each prior location provides a new understanding of his current Other and as his errantry increases his Othering diminishes. At the end, a relational masculinity that is flexible and responsive to plural environmental needs results from this embodied errantry.