Jamaica Kincaid’s “Girl”: A Uniquely Crafted Look At A Woman’s Place

It may be true that a clear plot is necessary for the development of a story and the development of the characters involved in the story. But sometimes, as evidenced in “Girl”, a plot itself is expendable. The mother is the speaker for the majority of the story, with the daughter interrupting for a brief two sentences. The mother’s laundry list of expectations and instructions stops only to allow the story to end. In this way, Kincaid makes it evident that the mother is dominant and that there i

s no room for conversation; what the mother has to say is all that needs to be heard. The mother’s long rant also leaves no room for the development of setting or of characters. This rather significant deviation from the formulaic, traditional style of storytelling where a plot is most always included does little to make “Girl’s” theme less paramount. In fact, it could be argued that the lack of plot makes “Girl” and its theme more poignant.

Through a story without a plot, much is revealed about women and mothers and daughters and girls and expectations. The fact that the story has a simple title with simple characters and lacks a clearly definable plot does much to enhance its significance. We are forced to take the text at face value without adulteration; we are not allowed to wonder what the characters are thinking or how they are affected by their past experiences or their current situation or the room they are standing in or the time period in which they are living or how the weather is outside. Normally, we are given these elements as clarification or as background for a character’s beliefs in a story. However, in “Girl” we are given nothing other than a strict ideology developed by the mother that Kincaid wants us to believe has been developed for women in general. The characters have no names, and the title of the story lacks any sort of depth or individuality, and therefore it is left to the reader to decide whether or not this story is truly individual to this mother and daughter of if perhaps

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