“Girl”

Jamaica Kincaid was a very powerful writer whose writings compel the readers to ponder gravely on the subject matter. Her works are slammed for its simplicity and anger. Kincaid’s strong piece, “Girl”, hinges on femininity in which the mother tries to nail into her daughter the values of responsibility as the latter is ascending in the first flush of youth.

“Girl” is so capsule that it ends in a blink but the impression it leaves on the readers’ minds is profound. The honest thoughts run in a single string which keeps the readers engripped throughout causing them anguish, frustration and frown on the sheer lopsidedness of the society.

The story blooms with the caustic and razor sharp advice of the mother to her daughter, who according to the former is hard bent upon becoming a ‘slut’. The way the mother conditions her child about things to do or not to do, make the write-up no less impactful.

No matter, the story was penned-down almost four decades back, but the matter can be fitted in the present scenario as well. The readers can relate themselves to the characters. The language used is simple, nothing ornate, yet the sense of isolation and detachment from emotions is tangible. Also, the words are stinging which leave the readers stifled.

In various households, girls are often castigated as how to live. Their very way of living is defined by the parents, especially the mother. No doubt, the prejudices are hidden in the roots of the society. The anonymous mother in “Girl” too speaks in a similar tone, thus dictating so-called sense of decorum to her teenage girl.

“…you must not speak to wharf-rat boys…this is how to make a good medicine to throw away a child before it becomes a child…” These lines depict how insecure the mother is about her child. Through her long unending breath, she is trying hard to reinforce her past experiences on her daughter. She expects her to have the strength of her mother…ironically the strength that came from experiences, not instructions!

In W.B. Yeats poetry, “A Prayer for My Daughter,” the poet thinks her daughter to be a plain slate on which he can scribble anything he wishes irrespective of the girl’s choices and desires. Throughout the poem, any number of things has been rubbed against the ‘bud’ that has just entered the world. And this is why, the poem is deemed offensive. Hence, it may be chalked-out that ‘Girl’ and ‘A…Daughter’, both raise a question on gender equality. For one thing or the other, the catapults are aimed at the ‘fair-sex’ only. In both pieces, it is the ‘girl’ who is subjected to so many conditioning. Why could it not be a boy? Why is it always the girl who has to suffer? Why are the morals of a girl challenged most of the time?

Think.

Think wisely.

Think sincerely.

Think impartially…to change the picture!