Empoword

Additional Readings 430 defensively inserts, “ but I don’t sing benna on Sundays at all, and never in Sunday school ” (128). In this instance, the mother does not acknowledge o respond to what the daughter has said, rather just continues on with her sporadic list of instructions (like a chant of “this is how you…” and “don’t…”). This illustration of the mother as a clear authoritative figure that is educating her child of the gender roles that are present (and that must be followed!) in their present society is a great representation of how these notions survive and are passed down from teachings of older generations. Concerning the structure of the poem “Girl”, I believe that Kincaid made the choice to make her poem into one large paragraph and use semicolons to separate the mother’s advice and commands (without ending the sentence) in order to convey that all of the items on the mother’s list are related in the sense that, when they are applied together, the sum of these actions and behaviors equals what societal and gender norms say it means to be a well-behaved woman. Having the poem structured this way also creates a sense of power for the mother figure because the discussion is extremely one-sided, and her unending breath creates the sense of urgency that she must get through everything she has to say, and she doesn’t even have time to stop and breath in between her lessons. For me, this urgency projects what I consider to be fear from the mother of what will happen to her daughter if she doesn’t learn these lessons or behave according to society. This fear is most likely rooted from her own negative personal experiences, as well as knowledge passed down from former generations. The mother does not want her daughter to be rejected from or reprimanded by society. So, although the mother is delivering her advice in such way that seems cruel and impersonal, I believe that it emphasizes her seriousness and strong belief for what she is saying. Finally, I propose that this informal structure is a method meant to contrast the insignificance that the mother feels about proper grammar (or even proper education) with the importance she feels towards having her daughter behave as a proper, well-trained woman. Works Cited Kincaid, Jamaica. “Girl.” The Norton Introduction to Literature , Portable 12 th edition, edited by Kelly J. Mays, Norton, 2017, pp. 127-129.