Girl
by Jamaica Kincaid
Writing Workshop
Workshop Title: Expectations
Step 1
Ask your students, “Do you feel like you have unfair expectations placed upon you? Why? By whom?” Briefly discuss.
Step 2
Read “Girl” by Jamaica Kincaid. When you’re done, discuss the relationship between the mother and the daughter. What is it like? And why is it like that?
Step 3
Say, “List all of the undue burdens, pressures, expectations placed upon you (or another group of people) into a tidy list. Then try to organize them by common themes or categories.” Then give your students a few minutes to brainstorm.
Step 4
Ask your students to compose a poem similar in sentiment to “Girl” in which they convey all of the burdens, pressures, and expectations placed upon them (or another group of people).
Step 5
When the students are done, have them share their responses with one another.
Analytical Lesson
Area of Focus: Syntax
Step 1
If your students are not aware of how the “structure’ of a poem affects its meaning – particularly the syntactical elements – review the introductory lesson.
Step 2
Ask your students if they ever feel like they have “expectations” placed upon them. What are those expectations? And who is placing these expectations on them?
Step 3
Show your students the following video of Jamaica Kincaid’s recital of her piece, “Girl.” As they are watching, ask your students to pay particular attention to the syntax and how it impacts the tone of the piece. When the performance is over, briefly discuss.
Step 4
Have your students open the following document and go over the instructions with them. In this assignment, your students are going to identify the syntactical patterns and how they contribute to an interpretation of the work as a whole. When you’ve gone over the directions, give them time to work.
Step 5
When your students are done, ask them to share their insights with the rest of the class.
*This lesson is part of a larger poetry unit, an “Introduction to Poetry.” To access the full unit, click on the following link.
Essay Materials
Lesson Details
Lesson Info
Focus
- Structure (Syntax)
Themes
- Body / Body Image
- Children / Youth
- Community / Culture
- Family
- Gender / Gender Identity / Gender Expression / Sexism
- History
- Parenting
Literary Tags
- Diction
- Selection of Detail
- Structure
- Structure (Syntax)
- Tone
Content Warning
- Sexism and Misogyny