Girl

Kincaid takes readers into the sacred space of knowledge shared among women. The speaker in Kincaid’s “Girl” details every aspect of the domestic sphere that women need to know to survive and in turn to help their family and society to survive as well. By sharing the helpful hints, tricks, and secrets of domestic life and womanhood, the mother indoctrinates her daughter into the community of women. The knowledge that the mother imparts to her daughter varies widely. For instance, one bit of advice that the mother gives to her daughter regarding textiles may seem rather mundane to readers: “when buying cotton to make yourself a nice blouse, be sure that it doesn’t have gum in it, because that way it won’t hold up well after a wash” (Lines 9-12). This instructional tidbit is straightforward and informational. On the other hand, some of the advice the mother imparts to her daughter is darker, such as instructions on how to induce an abortion: “this is how to make a good medicine to throw away a child before it even becomes a child” (Lines 46-48). The severity and heaviness of this advice balances with the next clause about how to properly catch a fish.