Parenting Advice In Jamaica Kincaid's Girl

“If” by Rudyard Kipling and “Girl” by Jamaica Kincaid are two short stories about children getting advice from their parents. In “If,” a boy is being told what to do to become a man. In “Girl,” a mother tells her daughter what she needs to do to be accepted as a women in Antigua. Although the topic and theme of these two stories are similar, the kinds of lists the parents are giving their children is different. Firstly, the topic of “If” and “Girl” is similar. The topic of “If” and “Girl” is a parent giving advice to their child. In “Girl,” it says, “This is how you iron your father’s khaki shirt so that it doesn’t have a crease.” This shows that the mother is showing the daughter what to do in life to be accepted. Furthermore, in “If,” on line 25, it says, “If you can talk with crowds and keep your be virtue.” This shows one of the many pieces of advice that the parent gives the son. These pieces of evidence are similar because both show some ways that the parent supplies advice for the daughter or son to learn from.
The theme of “If” and “Girl” is “The world might demand a lot of people.” In “Girl,” it says, “This is how to make ends meet.” This shows that the mother is trying to help prepare the daughter to be less overwhelmed when she went out into the real world. Further, in “If” on line 17, it says, “If you can make a heap of all your winnings.” This shows that the theme of these two stories is “The world might demand a lot of people” because to be a famous or well-known person in the world, there are a lot of things you have to do. In “If,” the evidence shows that you need to collect all of your winnings together, and only then can you be well-known. Only then will people pay attention to you. Overall, these two pieces of evidence are connected because they prove the theme of “If” and “Girl.” They prove that both “Girl” and “If” are based around the theme of “The world might demand a lot of