Essay sur Annie John

Léa Diouf 1°L/S Discuss the ways in which Jamaica Kincaid explores Annie's relationship with her mother in the first two chapters In the first chapter of the book, Kincaid completely portrays the closeness between Annie and her mother while describing their activities: when they would go shopping for dresses or the market, bathing together... "How important I felt to be with my mother." (Page 15) In this scene, Annie is shopping with her mother who knows the market well in terms of nutritional products. Here, her mother is playing her role as a domestic educator: in other words, she's teaching her how to shop, get the best food, how to be a good wife and mother. The tone Annie uses during this moment is very likely to be admiration. Her mother, here, is pushing her down to a different path which is to become a good wife and mother. When Annie later becomes educated she realizes that she could go above than ending up like her mother, uneducated and a housewife. "My mother and I often took a bath together" (page 14) Annie here is illustrating the fact that she shares a strong physical bond with her mother. Generally speaking, water plays an important role: it symbolizes cleansing, a sense of purific...