Reading Notes Week 15: Kincaid, Part B

Jamaica Kincaid:

- 1949 to present
- Born as Elaine Cynthia Potter Richardson, changed her name to evade her family who did not support her writing and also as a reference to her heritage
- Contemporary writer known for her work about the immigrant experience and use of first person narration
- No one expected anything of her because she was a woman, she incorporates her feelings on that into her work
- Raised Methodist but her mother and grandmother practiced voodoo, to be in touch with their culture

Girl:
- One long sentence
- A mother giving her daughter a long list of rules about womanhood
- Rules include: don't look or act like a slut, how to wash clothes properly, eat food like a lady, don't talk to street boys, how to sow, how to sweep, how to bully men, how to love men, how to smile at people you like, how to smile at people you don't like, and how to make ends meet.
- Obviously commentary on all the expectations piled on women from the time they are young girls.

Gabriel Marquez:

- 1928 to 2014
- Known for mixing reality and fantasy, aka Magical Realism

Death Constant Beyond Love:

- Senator Onesimo Sanchez has a wife and six kids, and is running for reelection.
- He learns he has a terminal illness and only 6 months to live.
- He feels lonely knowing he will die soon, also he has few friends.
- A man named Nelson Farina is constantly asking a favor of him but he always declines.
- He becomes attracted to Nelson's daughter Laura and they are about to sleep together but he changes his mind. He decides to finally help Nelson.
- The public finds out he took Laura to bed and he loses his reputation, then dies.



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