Nabeel's Short Story Blog

A new title that I would give to Toni Morrison’s “Recitatif” is “The Unwanted and Excluded”. I believe that this phrase is a sufficient title for the story because it accurately describes Twyla and Roberta’s lifelong journey that we observe. St. Bonny’s, where the pair live as children, essentially represents the theme of social alienation that is repeated throughout the story. Simply being at St. Bonny’s is a reminder to the girls that they are unwanted. Furthermore, Twyla and Roberta are outcasts within St. Bonny’s, an institution that is meant for "outcasts". The extreme exclusion that Twyla and Roberta experience in their childhood is a factor of the title “The Unwanted and Excluded”. The theme of exclusion follows Twyla and Roberta into their adult lives, as the girls find themselves on opposing sides of a protest over school integration much later in the story. Roberta says “they want to take my kids and send them out of the neighborhood.” She is objecting to school

Jamaica Kincaid’s “Girl” portrays several issues that can be seen in today’s society. The story consists of advice given by a mother to her daughter, scolding her at the same time. The mother tells her daughter how she will have to maintain a home of her own one day and lead a fulfilling life, while simultaneously calling her a “slut” and criticizing her promiscuity.  She scolds her daughter for incredibly simple, everyday things she observes such as the way she walks. This heavily relates to aspects of today’s society when it comes to female sexuality . The mother sees her daughter’s sexuality as dangerous, and as a gateway to a promiscuous life, the life that she fears. The mother’s constant emphasis on this theme shows how much she wants her daughter to realize that she needs to act in a certain way that will make her community respect her as opposed to shaming her. Today, there is a certain stigma associated with sexuality, particularly among adolescent females like