Waiting for Jamaica Kincaid’s Nobel Prize

The one hundred and thirteenth Nobel Prize in Literature was awarded today. Unlike in previous years, I was particularly nervous about this year’s prize. The last time WE won a Nobel Prize in Literature was almost twenty years ago and WE have only won this prestigious prize twice in its history – Derek Walcott in 1992 and V.S. Naipaul in 2001. Suffice to say, when … Continue reading Waiting for Jamaica Kincaid’s Nobel Prize

The Power of the Adolescent Girl

by KEISHEL A. WILLIAMS Recently I was rereading Jamaica Kincaid’s “Girl” and discussing it with a group of college Freshmen.  For those unfamiliar, “Girl” is a powerful prose where the protagonist is listing a series of duties and responsibilities to her daughter, with the understanding that should she be able to do those things adequately, only then she would be considered a woman. The essay was … Continue reading The Power of the Adolescent Girl