The story being analyzed, for narration, in this paper is author Jamaica Kincaid's "Girl". The simplest way to understand narration is to read a story and understand the way it was being told. This story, "Girl", is basically a set of instructions from a mother to her daughter. But, the way the instructions are given is what makes the story. In fact, it does not make a story it makes a tirade, a rant. By definition, a tirade is a long, violent, angry speech. In this story, which is not much of a story, tirading is exactly what the mother is doing. The mother is giving a long, angry speech to the daughter about how to, essentially, act like her. The directions are given to the daughter in a demanding way and the daughter only interjects to say something twice. Even after the daughter says what she says, the mother does not acknowledge it and continues to give her instructions. .
The story is very interesting because there is no action, of any sort, being performed by any of the characters in this story. The story is just orders given from mother to daughter. And the daughter is a hidden figure; everything about the daughter is suppressed. The audience does not know anything, such as what she wants, how she thinks, her interest, etc. Nobody knows. So, the audience may take what the mother says as accurate and fact. In actuality, there could be two narrators for this one story. The mother, who is physically speaking and giving the directions, and the daughter, who is receiving and interpreting the directions given. We, as the readers, are getting the story from the daughter's point of view, hence the daughter is the protagonist of the story because she is the main person in this story. .
From the mother's narration and point of view, the mother believes she can save and protect her daughter from living an unkempt and disrespected life. This is understandable because no mother wants their daughter, or any child for that matter, to end up living in worse circumstances than they were brought up in.
The words, "Made in England" allowed Jamaica Kincaid to realize England's possession over her life. ... Kincaid begins the passage seeming very admirable toward England. ... Kincaid uses flashback when recalling the lists of endless English meals she has eaten. ... "Made in England" haunts Jamaica Kincaid in every aspect of her life. ...
Feminist writer, Jamaica Kincaid, puts the mother-daughter relationship under a microscope in her prose poem "Girl"-- she examines the societal pressure, deep rooted prejudice, and double standard, which force a mother to cut the corners of her daughter's being as she shapes her way into womanhood. ... Jamaica Kincaid examines the sources of such conflicts in the coming of age which stem from societal/environmental pressures to prejudice and double standard in her prose poem, "Girl." ...
Jamaica Kincaid's short story, "Girl" is unique in that while it clearly lacks a precise plot, it delivers a message as clearly as more traditionally crafted pieces of fiction. ... Through strict limitations of style, tone, and point of view, Jamaica Kincaid delivers a somber story of the relationship between a mother and a daughter and the relationship of women and the society that engulfs them. ... The style in which the story is written furthers its critical, no-nonsense approach to a woman's place in the world. ... The relationship between the mother and the daughter is also r...
Jamaica Kincaid as the "Girl" Jamaica Kincaid's short story "Girl" is simply a story that involves a mother and daughter in a seemingly one-way conversation. ... Kincaid must have been thinking about her own experience as a young girl. The mother in Kincaid's story seems to be very cautious and protective of her daughter. ... This relates to the type of relationship Kincaid and her mother had. During her high school and college years, Kincaid broke all contact with her mother. ...
Since Jamaica Kincaid's story "Girl" was written in 1978, the role that women play in society has profoundly changed. ... Kincaid takes advantage of the use of single sentences when portraying the mother giving her daughter advice. ... In one instance she tells her daughter, "this is how a man bullies you; this is how to love a man" (Kincaid). ... As the story progresses, however, she begins to limit her by telling her things that she cannot do: "don't sing benna in Sunday school; you mustn't speak to wharf-rat boys, not even to give directions; don...
Jamaica Kincaid wrote "Girl" in 1978. "Girl" is a story about a young female, a girl, getting advice from an older woman in a long single sentence narrative. ... This fact further amplifies the power and truth of Kincaid's story. ...
England, to Jamaica Kincaid, was a land that inspired awe, mystery, and had a sense of wonder surrounding it. ... When Kincaid's teacher puts a map up for the class to see, Kincaid views it as "a very special jewel." ... Kincaid goes on to discuss the items which were manufactured in England. ... In this paragraph, Kincaid's anti-English sentiment begins to be seen. ... Kincaid's anti-English sentiment rises in the third and fourth paragraphs. ...
In Jamaica Kincaid's essay "On Seeing England for the First Time," Kincaid expresses her viewpoint on England's authority over her homeland, the Caribbean island of Antigua. Kincaid has strong resentment towards England. ... Kincaid, however views the map of England differently. ... Kincaid tells us that England was what everybody longed to be. ... For Kincaid, England and its customs bring about negative emotions. ...
The Caribbean and Polynesia Reading the compendium with colonial texts (Jamaica Kincaid and Haunani Trask) did two things to me: It gave me knowledge of something I didn't know anything about before, and it made me feel uneasy. Jamaica Kincaid's text A small place takes the reader on a trip to her native country. ... This is also where Kincaid lets the reader begin, but soon she lays out small hints that this paradise certainly has its snakes, and that I, the reader, is a potential one. ... It's amazing how Kincaid manages to enhance all the things that her country is ...
