Kincaid's "Annie John"

Paper Summary:

This paper examines the book, "Annie John", by Jamaica Kincaid, the story of a girl growing up on the island of Antigua. In particular, it looks at the ways that Annie John's need to leave the island is related to her rejection of the traditional gender expectations placed on her by both family and friends. It also discusses how the mother-daughter relationship described in "Annie John" can be seen as a paradigm of the relationship between the powerful and the powerless.

From the Paper:

"As Annie grows older, she begins to question the cultural beliefs of her island world. In school she at school she intuitively rebels against authority. What is most frightening for Annie however is that her mother begins to see Annie as a young lady, instead of the little girl she once was; an object of unconditional love and adoration. Her mother now seems to become her adversary. When she finishes her, Annie decides to leave Antigua and her family, but not without hint of sadness, especially for the mother she formerly knew and never stops mourning. "For I could not be sure," she surmises, "whether for the rest of my life I would be able to tell when it was really my mother and when it was really her shadow standing between me and the rest of the world" (p.107)."

More papers on Kincaid's "Annie John":

• Analytical Essay # 34578 : "Annie John"
• Book Review # 73784 : "Annie John"
• Book Review # 99645 : "Annie John"

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