lBook Review Lucy
Jamaica Kincaid's novel, Lucy, is a first-person narrative of a young woman coming toAmerica from Antigua and does not latch onto anything in its path. Lucy herself absorbsonly small details of her new home, never trying to take in the place as a whole, notlooking beyond what is in front of her and truly tries to forget her past. Her first day inAmerica she reacts only to a few new experiences, i.e.,., her first elevator ride and foodfrom the refrigerator. She was taken out of school and forced to come to America towork and help support her family. Her life here in America is filled with explorations,especially in friendships and sexual encounters, however, her past and the life she leftbehind in Antigua haunts her. The constant letters, which remain unopened, that shereceives from her mother, is a constant reminder of what she left behind upon her arrivalhere in the states. Lucy was very depressed when she was forced to come to Americabecause she wanted to continue her education in the University in order to become ateacher and have power. I believe that her ambition for power dealt with the way she feltabout the political rule of the English over Antigua. She wanted to break free and
In other words, there were black leaders during this timeperiod who tried to create equality here in America for the blacks with the hopes that theblack folks would be judged based upon their intelligence and accomplishments ratherthan their race. Arriving in Americagave her the opportunity to be able to look at her past and realize that if she would havegone to England she would have been possessed and remained a servant. If weconsider the time period in which Kincaid arrived to the states roughly around 1966,segregation, discrimination and inequality was still at its absolute height. The white man willmost likely have a much easier time receiving this particular job offer. However, the question which isvery mind boggling to Kincaid is, what if her ancestors hadn't been enslaved, what wouldshe have become today? This is an internal struggle, a deep struggle which is entirelylead and provoked within Kincaid occurs in an attempt to find herself. The black man arrives from Africaand the white man is from England. And despite the fact that Lucy never opens any of the letters her mother sendsher until one of them is hand delivered by Maude, we the audience can see the type ofpower in which Lucy's mother has over Lucy. Can geography, or the region from which a person originates from hinder them orhelp them in succeeding in the type of lifestyle in which they have? This is a verythought provoking question considering the fact that one may think that, suppose twopeople apply for a job, a white man and a black man. Most immigrants seem to struggle with the usual identity crisis because of theirconfusion within living in "two different worlds", two different cultures. Later on she studied photography at the New School andattended Franconia College in New Hampshire. However, Kincaid realizes that she could never lose her true identity as Elaine PotterRichardson, but she wanted to write about Antigua and in order to do so she had todisguise herself. In a recentinterview with Jamaica Kincaid she explains what life might have been like if she were awhite woman stating that white women seemed to have "a life denied to her" and "theyseemed rather privileged and had all the things I couldn't have. Therefore, another way in which she can be seen"running" from being possessed again by her mother is through her sexual promiscuity, inwhich her mother always warned her about and how the reader obtains a sense that Lucydoes not latch or allow herself to become someone's possession.
Common topics in this essay:
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Acceptance Essays
