Jamaica Kincaid's Girl

The object of examining gender roles is to answer the question why should women and men be equal and "Are there populations in which men and women are absolutely equal? Are there societies in which women dominate men?" (Gender 238) By understanding the culture in which this piece of literature is written, the gender roles and the rules of behavior for a woman, then the relationships between genders can be realized. The general myth about women and their gender role in the American society is that the mother works in the home and supports her man in every way. For each relationship, the people in that relationship must decide the particular roles that they will play. In the literary work "Girl", Kincaid shows clearly that the woman's role in this work was to serve the family and to work mainly in the house. The mother writing this story tells her daughter that "this is how you iron your father's khaki shirt so that it doesn't have a crease" (Kincaid 489). In this marriage, it is understood that the wife is to do the laundry for the husband. Today's society does not always provide these clear roles since many women work a full time job and the house chores are a responsibility for both to handle. Though the woman is still mainly held responsible for the home. There should be a constant search for equality in gender roles. Kincaid explains how the man is working to bring home the money and the wife supports

In Kincaid’s story “Girl” there are many lines that show that the mother want to teach her daughter how to grow into a woman. A woman who has the knowledge of how to run a home and take care of herself. In the story she tells her daughter the many ways to do laundry and take care of the clothes: “Wash the white clothes on Monday and put them on the stone heap;wash the color

Jamaica Kincaid composed a short story called “Girl” and the brief narrative is about a stern mother teaching her young daughter life lessons as she is becoming a mature adolescent. The story is a laundry list of “women’s responsibilities”, such as doing household duties, knowing how to be nice to people you do and do not like and learning how to be a respectable individual in the Caribbean community. The mother is concerned that her daughter is on the urge of being promiscuous, so her next option is to warn her daughter not to take the road of converting into a wild child. Scolding her daughter beforehand about the bad things in life can affect how she lives for the rest of her life. In the Caribbean culture, women are expected to keep the

One of the themes of the essay is mastering the art of housekeeping and cooking. In this culture, clean clothing, a clean house, and a well-fed family prove to the community that a woman is respectable. With this understanding, the mother focuses her instruction on how the daughter should live her life in order to garner the community’s respect. Her advice is specific and varied, covering topics such as how to launder and repair clothing, how to cook food for the family, how to act in public, how to treat other people, and how to treat a man. Her advice teaches the girl how to present herself in situations in which she might be judged. Gaining the community’s respect is paramount to survival and the key attracting a man. The mother does not mention applying to college or following a career path. It is obvious that none of those options are open to her. From a cultural perspective, her path is set, and she has no other choice.

Jamaica Kincaid’s text provides an uncomfortable, one sided discussion between mother and daughter. Portraying the grand rules that a mother sets up for her daughter, which she must obey in order to be accepted in the society. A narrative that connects womanhood in a way a woman must portray herself to the world.

The story “Girl” by Jamaica Kincaid is about a mother and daughter relationship. In the story it’s a one-sided conversation between the narrator and her mother with the mother doing all the talking In the story. The mother was talking to the daughter, telling her how to act and the way she needed to carry herself. She gave her a list of things that she expected from her daughter in all aspects of her life, how to clean, how she needed to play, and other stuff. And as the story got deeper

The setting of the story affects the relationship of the characters as well, because the mother, who is influenced by her own life experiences in Antigua, wants to dictate a way of life for her daughter. She also reinforces the gender roles of society as a means to protect her daughter from the dangers of sexuality. Kincaid, express this when the mother says, “On Sunday try to walk like a lady and not like the slut you are so bet on becoming; don’t sing benna in Sunday school; you mustn’t speak to wharf-rat boys, not even to give directions” (Shreve &Niguyen, 2006, p. 183). The mother is not giving her daughter a reason why she should not sing benna or talk to the boys; rather, she only gives her daughter orders. The daughter only speaks twice in the story, which shows the power the mother has over her daughter in order to command her life. In one way or another this affects their relationship because the daughter is never allowed to express her own feelings or be sincere to her mother. This lack of expression and confidence can

The two texts “Girl” by Jamaica Kincaid and “If” by Rudyard Kipling have a similar topic of parents giving advice to their children, and a similar theme of your parents will always be there to give you advice.

    Jamaica Kincaid’s story "Girl" allows readers a glimpse into the strict, demanding manner in which parents reared their children almost twenty years ago. Through Kincaid’s careful structuring of "Girl," readers capture the commanding tone of the story. The relationship between the mother and the girl also reeks of empowerment and distance, as best seen through the girl’s short-lived speech in the story. Most important, "Girl" shows readers how particular the lessons taught to the children two decades ago were.

In contemporary literary studies there is an abundant amount of literary theories and criticism that can be evaluated when analyzing any type of literary work. In Jamaica Kincaid’s Girl the literary theory regarding feminism and other feminist evaluations can be utilized to understand the themes, motives, imagery and other noteworthy elements included in Girl. The feminist theory contains a major breakdown on the feminist perspective and the development of gender in literature throughout the nineteenth century and so forth. Using works from Judith Butler and Helene Cixous, Girl exemplifies the feminist theory through the characteristics discovered through these criticisms and provides readers with a better understanding of the short story.

Kincaid’s short story “Girl” demonstrated that society continues to force their stereotypes on children. Jamaica Kincaid effectively spotlights some of the struggles of women in society, particularly with parents. The numerous headings and thoughts that the mother provides for her girl are unfair of females in the community (Kincaid 137). Those are the struggles female face day by day from other personas. For example, by showing that the little girl should not play marbles like a kid (Kincaid 138), the mother promptly demonstrates that there are a few things that females can't do –

The mother distributes a long list of advice to her daughter to teach her how to properly run a household and live respectably. The mother’s instructions suggest that community plays a large role in Antiguans’ lives and that social standing within the community bears a great deal of weight.

Jamaica Kincaid, author of “Girl,” displays the unfair treatment of young women in Antiguan society. In the poem, a girl is receiving a lecture on how to be a woman. She is not encouraged to be herself or to gain an education. In fact, the mother continuously refers to her as a slut, “the slut I know you are so bent on becoming“ (Kincaid 1146) The role of the Antiguan woman is that of homemaker. Berleant-Schiller suggests, “the domestic domain of women is sometimes implicitly regarded as inferior” (Berleant-Schiller 254). Women in Antiguan society are taught extensively how to prepare meals and set tables. Where and how an Antiguan family eat indicates their social standing (Berleant-Schiller 259). Kincaid identifies the importance of the meal place through the use of repetition.

A mother has various jobs, such as being our doctors, therapist, our superheros, biggest supporters and most importantly, our teachers. They teach us almost everything from our ABC’s and 123’s to driving and managing money. Jamaica Kincaid wrote a short story of a conversation between old fashioned mother and daughter. The mother wants to share all of her knowledge and wisdom with her daughter, so she will grow up to become an exceptional young lady.. The advice that she gives her is like the advice that our mothers gives us growing up, but is definitely an older version. The important things that the mother wants her daughter to know are how to maintain a household, how to act like a lady and how to deal with other people.

In Jamaica Kincaid’s, ‘Girl’, the lead character which is assumed to be a mother , gives the daughter advice that she wants her to follow, about how to live as a respectable adult woman. The mother is unnamed and the daughter is assumed to be the “girl.” The mother is attempting to train her adolescent daughter to learn appropriate cultural customs and gives practical, sexual and social advice to the girl. The story reveals a woman’s role, significance and expectations in society and the intense relationship between mother and daughter. The setting is on a Caribbean island and the culture of transmitting knowledge learnt from past generations is being expressed here where the mother is conveying to the teenage girl; “Wash the white clothes on Monday and put them on the stone heap; wash the color clothes on Tuesday and put them on the clothesline to dry.”