I would first like to clarify that the title that I have chosen for this essay is both a mixture of irony and the truth. For starters, the whole purpose of this short story is how a mother teaches her daughter the do’s and don’ts of being a woman and giving her both the wisdom and the help on keeping a house and a family one day. This could be seen in this small excerpt of the story,"Girl"(122) “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; don’t walk bare-head in the hot sun; cook pumpkin fritters in very hot sweet oil;” The rest of the short story follows the same concept as the mother continues to teach the daughter. But besides household chores, she also tells her how to catch fish and make herbal medicine, either to help your health or “to help your life”. She also tells her daughter about relationships as well as behaving in different situations. Thought for some it might seem crude when her mother calls her a slut, at the end of the day she just really wants what’s the best for her. After all, that’s what every single mother wants.
Something to take into consideration is the time that this short story was written. Though the story was published during June 26, 1978, the author, Jamaica Kincaid, was born in 1949 and lived during the 50s and 60s, a time where women were basically objects for men or as the term goes, “trophy wife”. The advice and teachings that her mother offers her are that in which she could be the woman of the house and take care of her family.
Something I find very interesting is the title of this short story. You see, the title can be seen in a few ways. First, it could be the way the mom refers to the girl, an example of this is “Girl, wash the white clothes on Monday and put them on the stone heap.” compared to the original sentence from Girl (122) which is “Wash the white clothes on Monday and put them on the stone heap.” Second, it could be about the word girl itself. The definition of girl is, “a female child” or a young or relatively young woman. The character who the mother talks to can fall in either of these definitions or in both, as she can either be a child or a young woman when she’s being told these lessons by her mother. Another way of seeing it is that she’s being told all these lessons from a young age and they continue to be taught until she’s close on becoming a woman, and with this, I bring my third point, the story is called girl because compared to her mother that’s what she is. She’s an innocent and naïve girl who’s about to enter womanhood yet she hasn’t, hence her mom warning her of not becoming a slut and acting more ladylike.
Girl was an excellent short story where it tackles both social issues as well as the role of the traditional woman, especially housewives. The short story also shows us a glimpse to the past as it was a sort of “tradition” for mothers to teach their daughters on how to be ladylike and being housewives by doing chores and taking care of your family. The way that the mother gives all these lessons to her daughter across the story, is so that she could be ready for a life of family and commitment, even including one lesson that is all about the relationship between wife and spouse, saying that you can love a man as much as you want but if he doesn’t love you back you can and must move on. Overall, though sometimes some advice in the story was a bit harsh and she called her names a few times, mothers only want the best for her daughters.
Works Cited
Pittmann, Cynthia. Reflection on "Girl". By Kincaid, Jamaica.
“Girl.” Dictionary.com, Dictionary.com, www.dictionary.com/browse/girl.
Kincaid, Jamaica. "Girl" 1978
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