Introduction

Abstract

The introduction outlines the book’s goal: to develop, through an analysis of Jamaica’s system of donmanship, a new perspective on political authority. It argues that dons’ authority should be understood as shaped both in and beyond the state: their successful claims to authority involve embodying an outlaw persona that stands outside of the political establishment while also connecting strategically to state institutions. In addition, the chapter argues for understanding political authority not primarily through a focus on coercion, but rather through an emphasis on consent and consensus, and on how these are produced, reproduced, and occasionally contested in everyday urban life and through popular art. Political authority requires consent—it is the outcome of mutual recognition by rulers and ruled. In addition, the chapter highlights the role of sensorial consensus in making dons’ authority feel normal and natural.