English Literature

The stories Girl by Jamaica Kincaid and The Woman Warrior by Maxine Hong Kingston share the same theme about the complexity of a woman. Both stories teaches that the more the world tries to dictate how a woman must act and react, the more the world complicates matters for her. This is because she is not a simple mechanical toy that one can simply input instructions on. A woman is human. She thinks and she feels she gets hurt and she inflicts pain. She is never predictable. As a matter of fact, a balloon of mystery embodies her soul. No one can really accurately fathom who she really is. Although she may seem complacent and dutiful trying to be in parallel with what the society requires of her she may just be putting on a faade. A womans soul is deep and her mind is so broad that mankind tries so hard to deny her strength.

    The aforementioned theme shared by the stories of Kincaid and Kingston was developed using different attacks. Kincaids Girl was a relatively short story. Its a story in the form of a monologue of a mother. The mother in the story was talking about the things that her daughter must do and the numerous things she wanted her to keep in mind. Of course, since it is a monologue, the only character in the story is the mother. The mothers characterization where fully developed by the implication of her monologue. Whereas Kingstons The Woman Warrior has a character that narrates the story, a main protagonist and of course, antagonists. Although there was not much dialogue, the effective narration gave a clear mental picture of the characters. In terms of the story setting, Kincaid was more playful with her story. Basically Girl is set in a rural area. It is safe to say that the Girl being talked to and about in the story is a typical country girl from the modern era. On the other hand, Kingston was generally typical in her setting as well as in the development of her storys plot. The Woman Warrior is set in a province in China but the narrator is in the United States.

    Kincaid was more adventurous in style but Kingstons symbolism and imagery were deeper. As a reader goes through story of The Woman Warrior, hell be able to mentally visualize the scenes envisioned by the author. Kingstons play of words was very effective and poetic. She managed to clearly imply Chinese philosophies and customs through her seemingly effortless narration of the story. Her choice of words was excellent. The story was easy to understand.

    Both stories have their own set of strengths and weaknesses. But by carefully comparing them on their efficiency in illustrating and relating the theme, The Woman Warrior reigns supreme. Kincaids Girl was fun to read. It is short and it some how tickles. It had a light approach on the theme. It is something extraordinary. Kincaid must be commended because she did an excellent job in writing such a truthful monologue that captures and delivers reality. Nevertheless, theme-wise, The Woman Warrior has the better illustration of the theme. It dealt with the theme extensively. It makes a reader stare and think about the matters being raised in the story. Its style may be typical but the development of its theme is extraordinarily good.