Jamaica Kincaid's Girl
ENWR 106-16
Hoeflinger
25 Feb 2014
Girl
What makes a woman? Femininity and masculinity have long been defined and divided along gender lines that were never meant to be crossed; a man or woman who does not fit the archetypical picture of their strict gender-biased boundaries is shunned and stereotyped. A woman who does not embody the perception of the perfect wife and mother, especially in the 1950s-60s, would have been considered unladylike. In Jamaica Kincaid’s “Girl”, the matters of womanhood and femininity are expressed as a mother teaches her daughter the rules and restrictions that come along with being a lady, especially those that will help her to be accepted in society.
Though this story came out in 1978, it is very likely that …show more content…
The idea of the perfect lady is that of a woman who can perform household tasks as her husband works to provide income for the family. As the mother explains, the role of a woman is to cook and clean in order to please her husband as he returns from a hard day at work. She stresses that a lady does not keep poor company or dress down. She always takes care of her man, whether that means nursing him when he is sick, feeding him well, or just being the perfect mother to his children. A lady can keep her head in public, even in company she doesn’t care for, as indicated when the mother says “…this is how you smile to someone you don’t like too much” (56). The idea behind this is that women, and we know this too be true even in our current society, can harbor resentment to other women for great lengths of time, yet can remain in polite …show more content…
To the reader, this can be a bit overwhelming. A deeper investigation suggests that Kincaid intended the story to read quickly, as if it were a checklist of things that must be done and remembered. The pauses that are being taken, when the daughter is asking questions, break up the story in an abrupt way that may signify the growth of the daughter. Perhaps this is indicating that this is not the mother instructing her over a short period of time, but over several years, as the daughter matures into an adult. This theory would also explain how towards the end of the story, the mother speaks of spitting in the air, a practice that would previously have been forbidden by the rules of womanhood (56). It is perhaps the mother joking around because now the daughter would have known better.
One other interesting theory is that the girl Kincaid is referring to is actually herself, and that it is her mother teaching her how to act like a lady in their society. Kincaid grew up in Antigua during the time the country was governed by England. Kincaid is well known for her non-fiction stories and novels about Antigua, and it is very likely that “Girl” is a callback to her own childhood experiences (55-56). She was born in 1949, right on the cusp of the housewife movement of the 50s, and at that time, Antigua was under British rule, so they would have been forced to act the English
Hoeflinger
25 Feb 2014
Girl
What makes a woman? Femininity and masculinity have long been defined and divided along gender lines that were never meant to be crossed; a man or woman who does not fit the archetypical picture of their strict gender-biased boundaries is shunned and stereotyped. A woman who does not embody the perception of the perfect wife and mother, especially in the 1950s-60s, would have been considered unladylike. In Jamaica Kincaid’s “Girl”, the matters of womanhood and femininity are expressed as a mother teaches her daughter the rules and restrictions that come along with being a lady, especially those that will help her to be accepted in society.
Though this story came out in 1978, it is very likely that …show more content…
The idea of the perfect lady is that of a woman who can perform household tasks as her husband works to provide income for the family. As the mother explains, the role of a woman is to cook and clean in order to please her husband as he returns from a hard day at work. She stresses that a lady does not keep poor company or dress down. She always takes care of her man, whether that means nursing him when he is sick, feeding him well, or just being the perfect mother to his children. A lady can keep her head in public, even in company she doesn’t care for, as indicated when the mother says “…this is how you smile to someone you don’t like too much” (56). The idea behind this is that women, and we know this too be true even in our current society, can harbor resentment to other women for great lengths of time, yet can remain in polite …show more content…
To the reader, this can be a bit overwhelming. A deeper investigation suggests that Kincaid intended the story to read quickly, as if it were a checklist of things that must be done and remembered. The pauses that are being taken, when the daughter is asking questions, break up the story in an abrupt way that may signify the growth of the daughter. Perhaps this is indicating that this is not the mother instructing her over a short period of time, but over several years, as the daughter matures into an adult. This theory would also explain how towards the end of the story, the mother speaks of spitting in the air, a practice that would previously have been forbidden by the rules of womanhood (56). It is perhaps the mother joking around because now the daughter would have known better.
One other interesting theory is that the girl Kincaid is referring to is actually herself, and that it is her mother teaching her how to act like a lady in their society. Kincaid grew up in Antigua during the time the country was governed by England. Kincaid is well known for her non-fiction stories and novels about Antigua, and it is very likely that “Girl” is a callback to her own childhood experiences (55-56). She was born in 1949, right on the cusp of the housewife movement of the 50s, and at that time, Antigua was under British rule, so they would have been forced to act the English