Girl- gender analysis

After reading Girl by Jamaica Kincaid I decided to use the gender criticism theory. First of all the narrator which appears to be a woman sounds demanding, and quite harsh with the way she explains her directions. Although she’s demanding it’s helping whoever she is talking to, In order to be a proper female and not a “slut.” The main point of the poem is for the younger girl not to become the slut she is destined to be. There are both negative and positive impacts caused by the text in the poem. An example of the text affecting a young female in a positive way would be someone like Nica from The Flowers , that is because shes a responsible young lady always cleaning and making sure her apartment is kept clean so her parents will not yell at her when they get home after a long day at work. Nica isn’t a slut, just a unappreciated girl that does not have the opportunity to receive an education. On the other hand an example of the text affecting a young female in a negative way would be someone like Cindy again a main character from The Flowers, she’s a woman that is the complete opposite of Nica, because her house is always messy and doesn’t care how dirty it is. Cindy also cheats on her husband whenever Sonny goes over to hang out with her. Overall this poem is very powerful in a sense that the narrator will not let anyone weaker than her bring her down both mentally and physically.

  Even though I’m not a female I can relate to this poem because my mother and father are demanding individuals just like the narrator. Always telling me to clean my room, wash the dishes, cut the grass, etc. although they never threatened I would become a slut. The point of my parents being the way they were was for me to become a better kid and later a better more responsible man. It’s a parent’s job to make sure their children get ahead and become very successful as time goes on, so the narrator is doing the right thing by being demanding and very thorough with her “how to” instructions. Hopefully it’ll help the young girl make the right decision when it comes down to either being a respectable lady or “the slut she is destined to be.”

the flowers rough draft

The homeless man said “what the hell” (145). As he looked in his sack, a glass bottle inside broken, wetting the cement. Sonny instantly goes from fight to flight ready to take down any obstacle in his way. Some people say Sonny bullied the homeless man, other people might say he did the right thing by knocking him out but at the end of the day is Sonny’s reason for the stealing the old man’s wallet justifiable? In the novel The Flowers by Dagoberto Gilb the true answer will be clear and evident. I am writing this paper from the reader response perspective because as I was reading the novel I connected with Sonny and his experiences.

   Sonny is a young boy with serious anger issues that could hurt him big time as he gets older, for example he steals whenever he’s mad when really that’s not the way to react, because behavior of that sort could lead him to prison or possibly to an early death. Sonny has hatred against his step-father Cloyd, who is a Racist and alcoholic. Ultimately Sonny does not trust Cloyd along with many other people, however Sonny does spend lots of time with Pinkston and they become good friends. Both Pinkston and Sonny dislike Cloyd very much because of his racist ways, therefore team up and make sure Cloyd doesn’t disrespect Pinkston in any way possible. The main reason why Cloyd and Sonny don’t get along is because Sylvia is always out and about either shopping or “smelling of cocktails and cigarettes.” Honestly if all three of them spent more time together their relationship and friendship would function much better. The family doesn’t spend enough quality time, therefore causing them to go their separate ways by either drinking alcohol or hanging out in other places other than their own home.

   Sonny’s life would be completely different if more people showed affection towards him. In the novel there were only a couple people who genuinely cared for Sonny: Sylvia, Nica, and Pinkston were the core three whom cared about Sonny. Sonny’s mother Sylvia was a caring mother but had too many things going on at once, for example she would always end her conversations with Sonny abruptly if she remembered of something else more important she had to attend too. Sonny would notice the changes his mother was going through, for one she never talked to Sonny like she used to back at their old home, and ever since they both moved in with Cloyd she wouldn’t yell at him either. Was she in love with Cloyd, or was she too busy looking for a new man to pamper her?

   Sonny fell in love with the girl named Nica; she also lived in the Los Flores apartment complex. At first she started off quiet and shy, but eventually opens up and falls in love with Sonny as well, as she stated in the book “I wish you would go with me, because I love you Sonny” (249). Right before she got on the bus to go to Mexico she expressed her feelings to Sonny with hopes that he would change his mind and travel with her, but Sonny had other plans. I was extremely shocked when Sonny gave Nica all of the money he took from Cloyd, never expected him to do something so selfless. As soon as Sonny gave away the money my perspective of Sonny completely changed because it showed he had matured into a young adult.   

   Goofy was the name of Sonny’s beloved dog, best friend, and companion. Sadly he was given away to Cloyds son whom coincidentally is a taxidermist and has stuffed many of the animals Cloyd has hung on the wall. After Sylvia didn’t make Cloyd bring Goofy to live at the house with them, Sonny realizes it’s him against the world.

   Along with not being loved, Sonny doesn’t have the best influences around him a majority of the time and they tend to affect him negatively. For example, Ever since Sonny met Cindy he started smoking marijuana, drinking wine, and even had sex a few times. Cloyd was also a negative influence on Sonny because he was always drinking heavily around him, and became more and more vulgar as time passed. The Albino man Pinkston was one of Sonny’s friends he could genuinely talk too. Sonny trusted Pink in a weird sort of way but they were always having good talks and would always seem to end awkwardly. Back then no one had really heard about Albino individuals almost as if they were a rare species. Pink gave Sonny a Bel Air in return for a favor, for Sonny to keep his ears open just in case Cloyd said anything negative about Pink. Pink and Sonny have a good friendship because they both don’t like Cloyd very much, as Pink stated “Blue-eyed devil wanna kill him some niggerboys, now you listen to me. He gonna use them guns you understand, might not be today or even next week. But he gonna. You be careful” (234). Cloyd would have definitely used his guns if he had an opportunity to do so; he was just biting at the chops, itching to take a shot at someone of a different race. I like the fact that Sonny appears to be completely against racism, when his step-father is a racist. There too is an example of Cloyd having a negative influence on Sonny.  

  Sonny’s lack of love in his life forces him to have a short fuse when it comes to verbal or physical altercations. Defensive right away, wanting to either hit someone or steal something is the way Sonny coped with his anger. Living a life like that could lead to many serious consequences, but can the short fuse and thievery attitude be genetics and run in his family? Or is Sonny in an environment that causes him to act out in such a way that could lead to an early death. At times Sonny liked the attention the twins gave him when he would be telling the stories of his late night sexual encounters with Cindy, or how he would steal the magazines from the mail box, even how he busted the sickies windshield when he crept up on Sonny. The twins look up to Sonny like a rare kind of guy because he does lots of interesting things not many 15 year olds do. I related to Sonny a lot all throughout the book because I have been through some of the same experiences as Sonny. For example, we both got started smoking and drinking the same way, while hanging out with an older girl who was “lonely.” Sonny chose to stop talking to his girl, and my mom forced me to stop talking to mine. So all throughout the novel I compared how my life could’ve been to how it is today, that helped me understand and visualize everything much easier.

  Sonny clearly didn’t like being around a lot of people, he liked to do his own thing rather than being with a group of people. If he did want some company he would have invited the twins to the bowling alley instead of going there alone almost every day, and the twins definitely would’ve gone bowling because it’s not like they would have anything better to do, yet Sonny chose to bowl alone. The Alley cats bowling alley was a crucial place in the novel because that was where Sonny spent a lot of his alone time whenever he wanted to get away from the problems going on in his home. The bowling alley was also the place where some racially motivated attacks took place. The Zuniga’s never did anything wrong and never refused business to anyone, and yet people still chose to break the windows of the alley. The Zuniga’s would be extremely nervous about serving someone of a different color, for example there were two black men looking to get a good meal at the alley one lonely night, but the Zuniga’s were skeptical until Sonny decided to break the ice and help them make the right food choice which was a Mexican cheeseburger.

  Sonnny learned the true meaning of a hard earned dollar when he was working around the apartments making sure Los Flores was always in tip top shape. Although Cloyd would only pay him sometimes, Sonny managed to find Cloyds money stashed in an envelope and decided he wouldn’t fuss about not being paid anymore since he had plenty of money for himself. Stealing the money from right under Cloyds nose was a very ballsy move on Sonny’s part because the chances of getting caught were high, but he managed to take the money without any difficulty.   

 Subsequently, Sonny choosing to alienate himself from the people he is surrounded by played a crucial role in the novel because that was where all the problems originated from. Whenever there was a problem he would choose to alienate himself and spend some time on his own. Sonny’s changes and decision to stay behind at the end of the novel rather than leave with Nica really shows how he matured, and felt the sense of responsibility to stay behind to help his mother. Even when you feel alone in what seems to be a sea of strangers, you are simply presented with an opportunity to make a new life while living in the same place. If I was in Sonny’s shoes I would have done the same thing by helping Nica get away from her father who didn’t appreciate all she did for the family. The novel shows that people come and go but the ones that stick around are worth having.

The Flowers...

 Sonny is a cool kid, he has a good head on his shoulders. Its a different story when he gets mad though because once he feels someone is trying to invade his space he becomes defensive, not willing to back down from a challenge whether its his step father, or a homeless man on the street. I can relate to Sonny because in the community I live in I have friends that have gone through the same experiences as Sonny. I have also had my share of crazy experiences just like Sonny. what I like the most about him, is when he closes his eyes he goes to a whole different place, I have been trying to conquer that for some time now but always seem to fall asleep. But the same exact way Sonny describes it is the way I would like to let my mind be freed even if it was just for 10 minutes.
  A lot of the influences Sonny has in his life arent influencing him in a positive way, for example Cindy gets him high on marijuana a few times, and gives him wine to drink as well. Although Sonny doesnt seem to see it as her being a bad influence, its more of she's lonely, so he will keep her company. The first real girlfriend I had was a bit of a bad influence on me as well because we would do the same things Sonny and Cindy did since she was four years older than me, i didnt know better i would go along with whatever she would do or ask me to do. And just like Sonny i would tell my friends all about it the next day at school during lunch. Cloyd also influences Sonny in a negative way at times because he drinks excessively around him, and acts like a mad drunk whenever Sylvia isnt home. In a way Cloyd is also a good influence on Sonny because he is teaching him the value of a hard earned dollar even though he only pays him on occasion.
 The reason Sonny is always stealing money is because whenever he gets mad at whoever is around him, or if the person around him is drunk he starts looking around to see if there are any extra dollars laying around. I wasnt shocked when Sonny took Cloyds money filled envelope because he had been eyeing it for quite some time. It takes alot of courage to take that much money from someone you live with. I wouldnt have taken the money from Cloyd solely because what if he were to find out, then what? there arent many people roaming around the house checking his drawers, so it wouldve only left three suspects; Sylvia, Sonny, and Bud. Good thing he didnt find out.

Pink?

Pink is a good guy, but is he living in the wrong neighborhood? at first it seemed as if Pink was living the good life selling cars illegally out of the apartment driveway, but later we find out he is an Albino. Back in the day not many people knew exactly what Albino was exactly. An Albino is someone who is born with white skin,  white hair, sometimes red eyes, and cant stand out in the sun for too long. Pink is African American living in predominantly white neighborhood, but no one talks to him so all the tenants assume he's white. The tenants are judging a book by its cover. Right from the get go there was something strange about Pink, i didnt know whether it was just the way he acted or if he was on drugs, but little by little the pieces of the puzzle were becoming clearer and clearer. Pink is a tweaker, the drug was just barely beginning to blossom into the Monster it is today. Iam hoping Pink doesnt introduce Sonny to the drug because that would really mess up Sonny's life and pretty much be a waste of talent, becuase all young kids have a talent and its up to them to find it, we will see if Sonny indeed has a talent of his own. Although Sonny smokes a bit of marijuana it is all good because at times weed allows people to think freely, or even allows for people to get rid of the stress going on at home. I thought it was a bit humerous when Sonny goes home high and feels his mom knows that he is high, sort of in a paranoid way. Generally that is the same way alot of high people react when they are high around someone they are not accustomed to being high around. I predict Pink getting into some sort of problem with Cloyd because as it is Cloyd doesnt like for Pink to be selling cars to black people out in front of the apartments because it will lead them to believe that they can live there along with Pink. So i believe Pink will eventually move out of the apartment.

Sonny?

  Sonny will try his hardest to learn how to speak French because Cloyd told him he will take him there one day. I dont believe Cloyd would really take Sonny to France, it was mainly to make it seem as if Cloyd is making an effort to spend quality time with Sonny. I feel that Sonny and Cloyd wont have the best relationship because of Cloyd's excessive drinking. Sonny states "Cloyd wwas already red-eyed, and he was wearing that hick smile I hated the most and swiriling that ice cube" (88). Sonny is the type of kid that likes to have his own space, which is why i think he likes to sneak out and walk around the town, or go to the bowling alley. Though it feels like he will get into his share of altercations whether its with his friends, parents, or random people on the street. He will not back down from anyone. His biological father probably had a short temper as well as a lengthy police record for robbery because once Sonny is mad all he feels like doing is taking the other person down physically or taking their money. Sonny is a good kid though, hard working and willing to please people and keep people feeling happy. Im curious to find out if Sonny will get a girlfriend or someone special in his life which he can talk to, becasuse its not good to keep everything bottled up inside when things arent going the right way. I think Sonny will keep stealing money throughout the book because it's something that comes easy to him in a sense that whenever he gets mad he feels the urge to steal the nearest few dollars he see's. I predict Sonny being a quiet kid that needs someone to love him, Sort of like a mother figure but not his mother because she is always occupied shopping, or getting pampered at the salon. So far its seems as if ever since they moved in with Cloyd, Sonny and his mother have a non existing relationship because they hardly talk, but when they do it only appears to be small talk. I dont sense the "love" between them so far in the book. Hopefully im wrong and they improve their relationship later in the book. So far really enjoying it and anxious to read it all the way through.

I am

i am...

Christian Camacho, A 20 year old college student working hard for a basketball scholarship. I'm majoring in criminal justice hoping to be a sheriff, or police officer someday. Eventually i will be a police chief, and ill be running a safe and successful city. my hobbies are playing basketball 24/7, going to professional sporting events, especially Raider games. I also enjoy pulling up next to a car at the stop light and turning the volume on my music very loud, loud enough to make the other drivers feel uncomfortable and roll their windows up. too bad rolling their windows up wont stop their car from shaking because of my subwoofer. im passionate about the game of basketball, i try to play perfect every time i step onto the court because that is my craft. this is my second year at gavilan, and i will transfer down to southern California this summer.

Character Description

To me Cloyd seemed like a cheesy guy right from the get go. At first it appeared all he wanted to do was seem like a good guy in order for sonny's mom to like him. she must have really been into what she was telling him. Cloyd said "she is one pretty Mexican gal" (88) which leads me to believe he is only with sonny's mother because of her looks. I think its a bit commical because sonny's mom doesnt know how to cook all that well, so she uses store bought salsa instead of making it from scratch. "have you seen one yet living on our street? have you seen one black living on any ten blocks around here?" (53) Cloyd appears to be racist against blacks as well, he seems to get enraged whenever he sees blacks walking on the block, or whenever Pink is selling his used cars to the blacks. both of these quotes show me that cloyd is not a good person i would want my child to grow up around, mainly because once he has a few drinks in him and his work boot shoe laces go untied anything can happen whether its good or bad.