Rum

 

Rum is one of the most common products made in the Caribbean thanks to the plentiful sugarcane grown on the islands; as such, it has become both a staple of trade and culture. In “Passport to Paradise” it represents sinful indulgence as well as the inequity between Eugenio and his wife Eloise.

Eloise is the picture of the perfect wife: “She loved her man, her healthy children, and her clean house; she was blessed with the strength and the courage to work. For her, that was what happiness really meant.” (274). She has no indulgences, no flaws—this is in stark contrast to her husband, who “loved her very much, but he was also a man with a craving.” (274).

Even Eugenio’s death by a bottle during a drinking binge turned brawl seems to punish Eloise; she becomes severely depressed and suffers from fear that her husband’s soul will be condemned; she is determined she must find a way to save it. Ironically, she would sell her only valuable possession to ‘secure’ his passage to heaven—a ring that Eugenio had given her at the beginning of their relationship.

Where Eugenio after a life of labor felt his work was done, Eloise cared for their crops, children, and her husband, and seemed to reap far less of the wealth than Eugenio. She falls into the trope of the Madonna whose loyalty and faith saved the soul of a sinner, “even if she had to give hers to the devil in exchange.” (275).