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.”