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Jamaica Kincaid

            The words, "Made in England" allowed Jamaica Kincaid to realize England's possession over her life. She expresses her indignant attitude of disgust toward England and how it is causing her to lose her identity.
             Kincaid begins the passage seeming very admirable toward England. However, this was done with bitter sarcasm. She uses imagery using words such as "sky blue", "yellow form", and "shadings of pink and green", to abstractly paint a picture of the map in the reader's mind. She uses the words "special jewel" to symbolize England. She criticizes the English by stating that only the English get to wear it. This made her feel inferior causing her to express her hatred against England later on in the passage. .
             Kincaid uses flashback when recalling the lists of endless English meals she has eaten. The infinite list of food emphasizes her parents desire to practice English customs instead of creating new and original traditions. Her father's attachment to the English hat demonstrates his obsession towards English culture. Even though the hat wasn't made for the island's climate, he continued to wear it with vanity.
             A hyperbole is used to show that to "draw a map of England" "was something far worse than a declaration of war." She feels "blessed" that she isn't able to draw a map of England because she does not want to be a part of it. She feels that those words are resulting in the "erasure" of her identity. She doesn't want to know how to draw the map because she isn't from there and feels no intimate connection to the country. Perhaps she is trying to declare her own independence from the country that has "conquered" her. .
             "Made in England" haunts Jamaica Kincaid in every aspect of her life. Adults, parents, and teachers emphasize that England is the source of all meaning and reality. However, by refusing to fall as a victim, she demands her independence. Instead, her inability to draw a proper "map of England" shows that she has not been "conquered.


Essays Related to Jamaica Kincaid

1. Girl by Jamaica Kincaid

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." ...

  • Word Count: 588
  • Approx Pages: 2
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

2. Jamaica Kincaid as the "Girl"

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. ...

  • Word Count: 893
  • Approx Pages: 4
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: High School

3. Girl by Jamaica Kincaid

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...

  • Word Count: 990
  • Approx Pages: 4

4. Jamaica Kincaid's "Girl": A Uniquely Crafted Look At A Woman's Place

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. ... In this way, Kincaid makes it evident that the mother is dominant and that there is no room for conversation; what the mother has to say is all that needs to be heard. ... The relationship...

  • Word Count: 1033
  • Approx Pages: 4
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

5. England to Kincaid

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. ...

  • Word Count: 628
  • Approx Pages: 3
  • Grade Level: High School

6. Girl by Jamaica Kincaid

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. Semicolons are used to separate advice but then at times the advice is repeated to add emphasis. The main theme in "Girl" is the dangers of fe...

  • Word Count: 917
  • Approx Pages: 4
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: High School

7. On Seeing England for the First Time

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. ...

  • Word Count: 778
  • Approx Pages: 3
  • Grade Level: High School

8. The Narrative Style of Jamaica Kincaid

The story being analyzed, for narration, in this paper is author Jamaica Kincaid's "Girl". ... Considering the past of the author, Jamaica Kincaid, the daughter in the story is likely to be a "village raised child", like the saying says "It takes a village to raise a child.... James Alexander, Kincaid confesses: In my first two books, I used to think I was writing about my mother and myself. ... Where, like Kincaid said, the narration is between the powerful and powerless narrator. ... Ultimately, we, the audience, can clearly see the narration style of Jamaica K...

  • Word Count: 1351
  • Approx Pages: 5
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: High School

9. The Caribbean and Polynesia

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 ...

  • Word Count: 502
  • Approx Pages: 2
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

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