Annie John: Relationship between Mother and Daughter

From a young age, our interactions with our parents play an instrumental role in how we perceive ourselves and the world around us. The short story “Girl” by Jamaica Kincaid exhibits the relationship between an Antiguan mother and her daughter in a patriarchal society where the list of rules and regulations for women is exhaustive and almost never-ending. By analyzing the unique and often tense dynamic between the mother and daughter, “Girl” showcases the direct influence mothers have on their children, and how traditional and patriarchal customs can influence that relationship. The main themes are represented by the subjects the mother spends the most time on as well as the overall tone of the piece and how it relates to the mother-daughter

In many families, the relationship between a mother and her daughter is the closest relationship in the family. The bond a mother and daughter have can be similar to bonds between anyone else in the family, a mother’s and daughter’s relationship is different than anyone else’s in many ways.

With all this, Annie wouldn't know what the world would be like with out her mother.

A girl's communication and relationship with her mother are influential to her development and well-being. Communication between mother and daughter entails sending, receiving and comprehending each other intended message. According to Belgrave (2009), majority of girls report positive relationships with their mothers. Most girls learn from their mothers. This is because mothers teach and socialize with their daughters regarding any facet of her life, including behaving like a female, being a mother, caring for others. More importantly, mothers teach their daughters about sexuality and health (Tamis-Lemonda, Briggs, McClowry, & Snow, 2009). Mothers also teach their daughters how to make a decent living as well as how to achieve career and economic success.

This is set specifically during the time in the US where racism is thriving and was very hard for people of color to make a name for themselves. Therefore Maya Angelou could relay the hardship that those times really would have impacted on Annie Johnson’s life through the setting. To add on to Annie’s struggle, the author made her a woman because during the time this story is set in, if it were a man it would be easier for him to find work and support himself because in those days a lot of women did not work. So Annie pursuing through the hard times she was provided with in this setting really relays the idea of the theme of courage in the story.

In the poem, “Mothers and daughters”, she writes about the relationship of mothers and daughters. The speaker of the poem is mother and she is describing mothers’ relationship with their daughters. In the beginning of the poem, she gives insight of mothers and daughters share love with each other. They have close bonding and have a perfect relationship. Later, the mother describes the dark side of their relationship where they have conflicts with each other. “Mothers and daughters” is the poem which illustrates the complicated relationship between mothers and daughters as they share love with each other, but they have conflicts too.

Jamaica Kincaid’s Annie John talks of a young, developing girl and her relationships with those around her. The novel elaborates on Annie’s efforts to compensate for the attachment she once held for her mother. Her society implements strict expectations for women, consequently influencing her mother’s personality and actions. As she values attention highly, yet doesn’t receive an adequate amount from her mother, Annie struggles to maintain the same relationship with her. She looks for ways to “replace” her role, taking on an ambitious pursuit due to this. Annie establishes a connection with Gwen in order to gain affection and attention, resources which her mother provides less frequently as she tries to develop Annie’s own independence and womanly traits.

Although Zora Neale Hurston and Jamaica Kincaid lived in different times, thematically their writing had similar themes. If they had been contemporaries, they most certainly would have discussed their common experiences as black women who faced financial challenges and the racial divide that they experienced in their daily lives. Without a doubt, their writing was personally cathartic. Although in Kincaid’s writing, she addresses her issues with her mother head on, I have no doubt that Hurston’s stories were also influenced by her early family life.

The article, the book, and I, talk about how daughters feel their mothers don’t know them and that they don’t know their mothers. They talk about how a daughter listens to her mother, but there is a certain point in a young woman 's mind where they decide they want to see and explore new ideas. In conclusion, they all talk about the point in a daughter 's life where she and her mother don’t get along very well and the daughter tries to take charge of her life.

“i am a linguist” says Tannen and briefly explains what that means and how it better helps her explore the topic. She lets it be known that in fact she is someone's daughter but does not have one of her own. But because she is well past her adolescent years makes her just as credible if she were to have one. At first it may appear that this piece was written for women and girls who presumably have wondered why their relationship with their mothers or daughters were so complex. On the contrary it grabs the attention of both genders. All though not directly targeted to men and boys it could give them a better insight to the women relationship in their lives. Tannen says “... there is a special intensity to the mother-daughter relationship because talk,particularly talk about personal topics -- plays a larger more complex role in girls’ and women's social lives than in boys and men.” this does not dismiss the male , and Tannen does an acceptable job at engaging both

The mother in Girl is never directly described to the reader, but the amalgamation of lessons that she focuses on in Girl show that she is clearly occupied almost

As a child grows, extra care and attention is very essential in order to build the foundation of love and a strong bond. Especially, in today’s society,children are often judged by the act of their parents but in this memoir, written by Miss Jeannette Walls shows how unstainable and dysfunctional relationship Jeannette had with her parents but she still managed to use her tough upbringing for confidence and resourcefulness.

“Girl” provides a relationship between a mother and daughter. The story represents Kincaid in her youth years. A mother giving her daughter advices on becoming a “women.” Kincaid makes sure

The most common relationship problems are those between couples. Having intense feelings for another, being deeply or passionately in love with someone is sheer joy. However, when troubles arise, is can be devastating. Whether the relationship is strong because of passion, comfort or admirable qualities such as commitment towards each other, it leaves a feeling of disappointment when there is a disturbance that appears as a flaw in this perfect affair of the heart. Depending on what the problems are,

The daughter believed that, if she failed once, why try again? In contrast, the mother thinks that a person should keep trying until that person succeeds. The mother presupposes that any child can be a prodigy and is idealistic. On the other hand, the daughter is realistic and inoptimistic. The goal of this essay is to highlight the similarities and the differences between the narrator and her mother.