An Analysis of Girl by Jamaica Kincaid
Yeon Joo Seo
Profrssor Hotinceanu
English Culture Ⅱ
December 9, 2014
Girl
The short story “Girl" by Jamaica Kincaid is a story which a mother’s compassion represents the disempowerment, domestication of women in a patriarchal society and suppression of female sexuality.
A first prominent theme is the disempowerment of women in society. Her mother reaffirm the collective ideas that persistently restricts the behavior of her daughter and clearly define the “proper” feminine persona. Also, the Carib Indian population had been eliminated. Like her peers, Kincaid attended schools based on the British educational system. The children were taught to speak "proper" (Ira Mark Milne Editor, p.89) There are multiple times where she repeats her expected responsibilities and instructions, "this is how" and "don't and mustn't" to demonstrate that "this is how" demonstrates a guide or a tutorial on a certain "how to." The specific "how to" in this case is how to become a proper woman determined by social standards. Kincaid states, "this is how to sew on a button; this how to sew on a button; this is how to make a button hole for the button you have just sewed on; this is how you iron your father's khaki pants so that they don't have a crease" (12-17). By showing the "how to" a task importance of women. By using tasks such as making a button hole and ironing a man's shirt properly, it shows the female homemaking tasks that are important to being a proper women. Women were held on a short leash when it came to behavior. It is obvious that speaker in the short story speaks on behalf of society when she tells the girl how to act, how to do things, how to walk, how to smile etc that is to say repetition of "this is how" demonstrates that women have to comply with strict rules in performing the tasks of being the proper women.
A second prominent theme is the domestication of women in society. Here in this short story, we can find a conversation between mother and daughter. It
Profrssor Hotinceanu
English Culture Ⅱ
December 9, 2014
Girl
The short story “Girl" by Jamaica Kincaid is a story which a mother’s compassion represents the disempowerment, domestication of women in a patriarchal society and suppression of female sexuality.
A first prominent theme is the disempowerment of women in society. Her mother reaffirm the collective ideas that persistently restricts the behavior of her daughter and clearly define the “proper” feminine persona. Also, the Carib Indian population had been eliminated. Like her peers, Kincaid attended schools based on the British educational system. The children were taught to speak "proper" (Ira Mark Milne Editor, p.89) There are multiple times where she repeats her expected responsibilities and instructions, "this is how" and "don't and mustn't" to demonstrate that "this is how" demonstrates a guide or a tutorial on a certain "how to." The specific "how to" in this case is how to become a proper woman determined by social standards. Kincaid states, "this is how to sew on a button; this how to sew on a button; this is how to make a button hole for the button you have just sewed on; this is how you iron your father's khaki pants so that they don't have a crease" (12-17). By showing the "how to" a task importance of women. By using tasks such as making a button hole and ironing a man's shirt properly, it shows the female homemaking tasks that are important to being a proper women. Women were held on a short leash when it came to behavior. It is obvious that speaker in the short story speaks on behalf of society when she tells the girl how to act, how to do things, how to walk, how to smile etc that is to say repetition of "this is how" demonstrates that women have to comply with strict rules in performing the tasks of being the proper women.
A second prominent theme is the domestication of women in society. Here in this short story, we can find a conversation between mother and daughter. It