Rick Moody's "Boys" and Jamaica Kincaid's "Girl" are both written I a stream-of-consciousness style of writing. They both offer an inside glimpse into the feelings of a parent as they watch their children grow into adulthood. While they are similar in style the point of view of the narrators differs greatly. In “Boys” the narrator is simple writing an account of what is happening in the life of the boys. There is no judgment or personal opinions expressed just a running tally of events in the boys’ lives. In “Girl” the narrator inputs her feelings about how her daughter is growing. It is an account of all the things the girl is doing wrong, and how she should go about fixing those mistakes. In some ways the poems collectively represent a strong
stereotype of forgiveness in regard to the behavior of boys. It is the mindset of, “boys will be boys”, but girls better be perfect. The poem “Boys” covers the entire life of the boys and shows various conflicts they both face in life. It allows us to see how those conflicts and life choices change the boys, and make them less twin like than they were as children. The poem “Girl” is more of a chore list than a life story. We do not get to see if the girl takes the mother’s advice or how the girl ends up in life. With “Girl” you also get a strong sense of disappointment on the part of the mother. She is not happy with the choices the daughter is making and is trying to correct them. With boys the parent is accepting of the boys’ behavior and seems to see it as an integral part of growing up.
¨If¨ by Rudyard Kipling and ¨Girl¨ by Jamaica Kincaid are both letters to a child written by their parents in the form of a poem. In the letters the parents set expectations the child is expected to follow in the future. They are very similar with some differences. The goal of this essay is to compare and contrast the two texts.
This week’s reflection is on a book titled Girls Like Us and it is authored by Rachel Lloyd. The cover also says “fighting for a world where girls not for sale”. After reading that title I had a feeling this book was going to be about girls being prostituted at a young age and after reading prologue I sadly realized I was right in my prediction.
In 1492, Christopher Columbus in his quest to validate his claim that the world was round and that it should belong to his Spanish patrons, the king and queen of Spain, set sail on his ship Santa Maria. He soon discovered the “New World”, which was new to him, but not to the Antiguans who lived there. Cultural imperialism was one of the most prominent means Western countries like Spain and Britain used to colonize other parts of the world at the beginning of the fifteenth century. The Cambridge dictionary defines cultural imperialism as one “culture of a large and powerful country, organization, etc. having a great influence on other less powerful country.”
Within every story or poem, there is always an interpretation made by the reader, whether right or wrong. In doing so, one must thoughtfully analyze all aspects of the story in order to make the most accurate assessment based on the literary elements the author has used. Compared and contrasted within the two short stories, “Girl” by Jamaica Kincaid, and John Updike’s “A&P,” the literary elements character and theme are made evident. These two elements are prominent in each of the differing stories yet similarities are found through each by studying the elements. The girls’ innocence and naivety as characters act as passages to show something superior, oppression in society shown towards women that is not equally shown towards men.
A Handbook to Literature says that the word "foil" literally means a "leaf" or a sheet "of bright metal placed under a piece of jewelry to increase its brilliance" ("Foil"). Thus when applied to literature, the term refers to "a character who makes a contrast with another, especially a minor character who helps set off a major character" (Barnett et al. 1331). For example, a foolish character may place a wise character's wisdom in a stronger light, or a cowardly character may make the hero's actions appear even more courageous. A foil is frequently an antagonist or confidant, but whoever the foil might be, the purpose is to illuminate one or more significant traits, attitudes or actions of a main character ("Foil" NTCE).
“Girl” written by Jamaica Kincaid is essentially a set of instructions given by an adult, who is assumed to be the mother of the girl, who is laying out the rules of womanhood, in Caribbean society, as expected by the daughter’s gender. These instructions set out by the mother are related to topics including household chores, manners, cooking, social conduct, and relationships. The reader may see these instructions as demanding, but these are a mother’s attempt, out of care for the daughter, to help the daughter to grow up properly. The daughter does not appear to have yet reached adolescence, however, her mother believes that her current behavior will lead her to a life of promiscuity. The mother postulates that her daughter can be saved from a life of promiscuity and ruin by having domestic knowledge that would, in turn also, empower her as a productive member in their community and the head of her future household. This is because the mother assumes that a woman’s reputation and respectability predisposes the quality of a woman’s life in the community.
In the short story, “Girl,” the narrator describes certain tasks a woman should be responsible for based on the narrator’s culture, time period, and social standing. This story also reflects the coming of age of this girl, her transition into a lady, and shows the age gap between the mother and the daughter. The mother has certain beliefs that she is trying to pass to her daughter for her well-being, but the daughter is confused by this regimented life style. The author, Jamaica Kincaid, uses various tones to show a second person point of view and repetition to demonstrate what these responsibilities felt like, how she had to behave based on her social standing, and how to follow traditional customs.
In the short stories, Boys and Girls by, Alice Munro and The Birth Mark by Nathaniel Hawthorne, each author has shown similarities of two young women who seem to change their appearance or personality to conform to the desires of strong male figures in their lives.
... overall themes, and the use of flashbacks. Both of the boys in these two poems reminisce on a past experience that they remember with their fathers. With both poems possessing strong sentimental tones, readers are shown how much of an impact a father can have on a child’s life. Clearly the two main characters experience very different past relationships with their fathers, but in the end they both come to realize the importance of having a father figure in their lives and how their experiences have impacted their futures.
The triumphant Olympians, in “The Boys in the Boat,” became the national heroes and felt proud of themselves in rest of their lives. Although there was a Great Depression and boys had economic difficulties and other living obstacles, eight rowers continued to win and championed in the 1936 Olympic games in Germany. According to Al Ulbrickson and his eight rowers, receiving praises, respects, and awards from what they earned from putting so much effort make them proud of themselves but they cannot be too arrogant and self-satisfied. Otherwise, they will feel too conceited and slack off from which will make them to lose.
In Alice Munro’s “Boys and Girls” she tells a story about a young girl’s resistance to womanhood in a society infested with gender roles and stereotypes. The story takes place in the 1940s on a fox farm outside of Jubilee, Ontario, Canada. During this time, women were viewed as second class citizens, but the narrator was not going to accept this position without a fight.
Women have come a long way from being allowed to speak only when spoken too, and virtually having no rights. Now women are the CEO’s of company’s and have all the same rights and their male counterparts. Sadly though in “Aunt Jennifer’s Tigers” and “Barbie Doll” there are two females who lack the freedom and power that many other women have today. Looking at the poems from a general standpoint, Aunt Jennifer and the “girlchild” (1), as she is called, share similarities. Both females are unhappy and living under someone else’s rule. At closer inspection the poems have different unique qualities such as the varying tones, and many symbols that bring them more life. The general consensus of each poem is that women do not have as much control of their lives as one may wish to believe.
Munro, Alice. "Boys and Girls." The Norton Introduction to Literature. Eds. Carl E. Bain, Jerome Beaty and J. Paul Hunter. 6th ed. New York: Norton, 1995.
In the short story “Girl,” Jamaica Kincaid portrays herself as a young African-American girl that is being taught the rights and wrongs of life by her single mother. Despite the accusations that her mother places upon her, the young girl has many other obstacles preventing her from having a better lifestyle. Throughout the story, Kincaid tells about her childhood through the life of the young African-American girl. In Jamaica Kincaid’s short story “Girl,” life for young African-American women was psychologically different than it is today.
Curiosity is the wick in the candle of learning and also the basis of education. Curiosity had killed the cat indeed, however the cat died nobly. Lives of Girls and Women is a novel written by Nobel Prize Literature winner, Alice Munro. This novel is about a young girl, Del Jordan, who lives on Flats Road, Ontario. The novel is divided into eight chapters; and each chapter refers to a new, unique event in Del's life. As an overall analysis of the book reveals that Del Jordan's intriguing curiosity has helped her throughout her life, and enabled her to gain further knowledge The character is often seen in scenarios where her attention is captivated, and through the process of learning she acquires information in order to her answers her questions about particular subjects. There are many examples in the book that discuss Del’s life, and how she managed to gain information, as well as learn different methods of learning along the way.