3.3.11: Jamaica Kincaid (1949- )
Girl Antiguan-American Contemporary Literature Jamaica Kincaid, whose original name is Elaine Potter Richardson, was born in Antigua in 1949. She is currently Professor of African and African-American Studies at Harvard University. She grew up in Antigua in poverty, and she had a troubled relationship with her mother, whom she believed neglected her in favor of her brothers. She has said that this relationship shaped her as a writer. As a teenager, she moved to New York city, where she began her career as a writer in her twenties publishing short stories in teen magazines but eventually publishing short fiction in The Village Voice , The Paris Review , and The New Yorker . While she has no college degree, Kincaid wrote for The New Yorker for nearly 20 years. Kincaid's work is often semi-autobiographical; she explores themes of race and gender, particularly in a neo-colonial setting. "Girl" was originally published in the New Yorker magazine in 1978. Written as a dispute between a mother and a daughter, it is a powerful illustration of the limits of a young woman's life in the Caribbean culture of the time. Consider while reading:
- Why is the story written in second person?
- What does the mother tell the young girl about her role as a woman?
- How does the tone change as the conversation progresses?
- How does this very short story reflect the author's experiences?
Written by Anita Turlington