Literary Analysis | Week 15

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Closed Reading
James Kincaid
Girl

I chose "Girl" By James Kincaid because it is one of my favorite pieces.
Starting off with the time period, "Girl" was written in 1978. I believe the time period has a big impact on the piece because the way mothers raise their daughters now is different.
Instead of teaching daughters to specifically be able to iron, cook, and clean they teach them to go out and work, or go to school and get a career. Of course girls should learn to cook and clean, etc. But in 1978, only girls had to do those things, whereas in 2018 both genders could be learning it.

Throughout this piece the mother is constantly reminding her daughter to be cautious about her clothes, and how she dresses so she doesn't become a slut.
Was the mother scared that her daughter was going to become one? That's what I kept thinking. I figured that if she had to constantly say "Like the slut your so bent on becoming" She must have thought her daughter was going to do that. While most mothers still believe in dressing modestly, most today wouldn't press their daughters about dressing "like a slut" because most mothers wouldn't say that to their daughters.

The mother also asked the girl if she sand benna on Sundays. It wasn't until a little later the girl thinks to herself "I don't sing benna on sundays" My first reaction was, "Does she sing benna on sundays and is just denying it?" Or "is her mother accusing her of singing benna on sundays and she really doesn't?" Either way the girl says she didn't but the mother kept reminding her not too.

Comments

  1. UnknownMay 6, 2018 at 6:31 PM

    Hi Megan, I thought this piece was super interesting! It really showed how different the times were back in 1978, which is surprising because it wasn’t all that long ago compared to some of the other pieces we’ve read. It’s crazy to see how much gender roles have changed and everything that was expected of a woman back then. Great job on your analysis!

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  2. Bobby MedinaMay 8, 2018 at 10:18 PM

    Hello Megan!
    I also did a analysis on this piece too and I thought this poem was very interesting. I feel like the daughter is trying to defend herself but the mother seems to ignore her and continues on. I feel like this is usually how kids are nowadays, we feel like we have to defend ourselves but usually our parents ignore our defenses and continue on with their lectures or scolding. I like this piece because I feel that even though gender roles may have changed today, many of us can still relate to this, especially kids seeing what the daughter has to go through. I also feel like the mother is making sure that the daughter grows up to be "socially acceptable" as she fears that no man would want a slut or someone who doesn't act like a proper lady, and she fears that her daughter will become one if she doesn't shape her right but its interesting to see that men don't seem to be held to the same standards that women are held to.

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  3. AnonymousMay 11, 2018 at 2:26 PM

    Hello Megan!
    I had the same kind of thought that you did at the end about the "benna singing". It alludes to the possibility that the girl does sing them, but either way, the mother is firm in her assessment. I also really like how you addressed the clothes. I think that even though it's talking about clothes, the deeper meaning that you found is what I agree with.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Caeli D.May 13, 2018 at 10:03 PM

    Hi there, Megan! I thought very similarly to you, so it was encouraging to read it. I like it when things are left open ended and left to interpretation and it was very interesting for me to hear your point of view, especially when you kind of thought the same in some instances! Great job, your work is always engaging to read and I can't wait to read more.

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