Language in Jamaica Kincaids Autobiography of My Mother...

Use of Language in The Autobiography of My Mother Language. It is the way words flow into sentences, which flow into paragraphs, which flow into novels. It is the ability of the author to create an intricate web of plot, emotion, symbolism, and relationships through only words. In The Autobiography of My Mother , Jamaica Kincaid uses language in a way that is very simplistic, yet highly effective. Her writing is direct and to the point. There is neither flowery wording not complex sentence structure. Without the distractions of overflowing language, the depth of Kincaids material comes through with particular effectiveness. It is the simplest of writing elements, that of repetition and opposition, that Kincaid uses to create a†¦show more content†¦Xuela is seen as she wants to be seen. There is no objectivity. The only way the reader comes to know and understand Xuela is through her own words and her descriptions of the world around her (Schine 5). Another distinctive aspect of Kincaids writing is the authors relentless use of repetition. It is hard to find even a single page of the novel that is not deeply woven with repetition. The phrases I know and I did not know constantly resonate throughout the novel. As Xuela comments on her father, That I was a burden to him, I know; that he did not know how to take care of me by himself, or how to clean his own clothes himself, I know (Kincaid 4). Xuela defines herself by what it is that she knows and what it is she does not know. For her, there is no median. Xuela says she would rather be all dead or all alive, but never half of one and half of the other (106). Those around her are either kind or unkind; they are native, or they are foreign; they are sensual, or they are repulsive. It is one way, or the other. There is no gray area. Kincaid uses the repetition to emphasize this polarizing characteristic of Xuela. However, it is the things that Xuela does not know that are truly definitive of her nature. She comments: At that moment there were so many things I did not know, not including the big thing I did not know, my mother. I did not know my father; I did not know where he was from or whom or what heShow MoreRelatedNegotiating Halls Caribbean Identity in Kincaids Annie John3215 Words   |  13 PagesCaribbean Identity in Kincaids Annie John In his article Negotiating Caribbean Identities, Stuart Hall attempts to relay to the reader the complications associated with assigning a single cultural identity to the Caribbean people. Even though the article is intended by the author to represent the Caribbean people as a splicing of a number of different cultures, the processes Hall highlights are noticeable on an individual scale in the main character of Jamaica Kincaids novel, Annie John. Annie