Annie John is a fictional novel inspired by true events written by Jamaica Kincaid. The novel follows the life of a girl named Annie John as she grows up in Antigua. Throughout the book, Annie struggles to conform to the cultural standards of her community. He also has difficulty with his relationship with his mother, because as he grows up they become more and more distant. He forms relationships with different characters to make up for the loss of the relationship with his mother. Throughout the book, Annie rejects almost everything that is standard in Antiguan culture and begins to form her own identity. He begins to evolve into the world and struggles with the concept that he may not belong in Antigua. Kincaid uses Annie's rebellion as a way to show personal growth. We say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay In Annie John by Jamaica Kincaid, Kincaid uses Annie's rejection of her mother, her relationship with Gwen, Antiguan culture, and heteronormative standards to illustrate that rejection can lead to learning, growth, and 'independence. Annie gains a sense of independence through rejecting her mother's relationship. Bloom's literature “Glossing Over Annie John's Rebellion,” Annie, “deliberately avoiding and depriving herself of a female role model, fixing her mother as a traitor, transforms herself into an exciting and desirable subject who obeys and disobeys at will.” Annie creates an image of her mother as an evil figure to distance herself from the relationship, so she can become an independent woman, who makes her own rules. Thomas Cassidy writes of Annie's reaction to her mother's rejection, writing, “This realization leads Annie to “act out” more, and in ways that her mother often cannot bear. To some extent, Annie initially wants to be able to misbehave, but she also wants to receive the maternal approval she needs. However, as her mother increasingly withdraws her approval, Annie asserts her own personality, even as the loss she feels from her mother's lack of support remains painful, and she and her mother become more attentive and wary of each other. other". Annie's relationship with her mother becomes more strained as the book progresses. Annie uses bad behavior as a way to push her mother away and gain her own sense of identity. Verna Ena George writes: “Her propensity to behave totally contrary to her mother's expectations, her dreams of loss and revenge, of destroying or being destroyed by her mother, lead to a period of illness. In this period of hibernation Annie rebuilds herself." Throughout the book, Annie does everything she can to defy her mother's expectations of her. For this reason she succumbed to an illness that left her bedridden for months. During this time, Annie realizes what she wants and realizes that the life her mother leads is not what she wants. Bloom's Literature writes of Kincaid's message on family rejection: “Kincaid indicates that the formation of the individual begins with a necessary separation of the child from the mother, a postpartum trauma that replicates the cutting of the umbilical cord. Separation from an adoring family leaves Annie feeling like "someone was tearing me apart." Kincaid's writings show us that she believes that independence comes from rejecting family expectations to create a person's way of thinking. This can help build a person's identity that is different from that of their parents. As the novel progresses, Annie's mother begins to reject her and she goes from a loving mother to a strict and bitter parent. Annie sees it andhe begins to reject his mother's expectations of him and begins to establish his own. She tries to do almost everything the opposite of what her mother tells her to do. The tension in their relationship also allows Annie to grow and create a new identity. Kincaid uses Annie's relationship with her mother to suggest that children must become independent from their parents to create their own identity. Annie's rejection of her relationship with Gwen after she begins to behave in the typical manner of Antiguan women represents that she will continue to push away any sense of cultural conformity. Keith E Byerman of John Hopkins University Press writes: "He gives up his friendship with Gwen, a girl who represents everything that is acceptable in society, to pursue a relationship with the Red Girl, who is dirty, ragged, ignorant and tomboyish. She does so partly because she finds this difference from her life fascinating. She is intrigued by the smell, feel, and behavior of such a rebellious child.” Toward the end of the book, Annie realizes that Gwen will agree with her cultural expectations of the island. When he realizes this, he begins to distance himself from Gwen and pursue a relationship with the Red Girl, which represents Annie's rejection of his relationship with Gwen her rejection of cultural standards. Byerman writes of Gwen's development over the course of the book writing, "Gwen has become the successfully integrated Antiguan woman, but for [Annie John] this is not a virtue." Although Gwen and Annie had a relationship that defied cultural norms, Gwen ultimately decides to conform to cultural expectations. Since Annie refused to accept them, she begins to push Gwen away. Kincaid writes about Gwen at the end of the book, writing, “By now she had degenerated into utter stupidity, she could hardly complete a sentence without giving a few giggles. In addition to giggling, she had developed other schoolgirl traits that she didn't have when she was actually a student." Kincaid explains that Gwen has become like every other culture girl. Annie has taken various measures to distance herself from the culture as much as possible, which leads to Gwen's rejection. Kincaid writes about the beginning of the end of Annie's relationship with Gwen, writing, “Gwen and I promised to love each other forever, but the words rang hollow. And when we looked at each other we couldn't hold our gaze." This is where Annie and Gwen knew they were drifting apart. Gwen had started acting like a typical Antiguan girl does, which alarms Annie, who begins to walk away. The fact that Gwen behaves this way causes Annie to begin to resent her. Gwen's development in the book represents the typical developmental journey of an Antiguan girl. At the beginning of the relationship, Annie believes that Gwen will defy standards like Annie, but as the book progresses, she learns that this is false. When Annie sees that Gwen is conforming to cultural standards, she begins to push her away. Even though he technically still had a relationship with Gwen, he begins one with the Red Girl which symbolizes the rebellion. Kincaid wrote this to symbolize that Annie will always try to distance herself from cultural norms. Annie's rejection of Antiguan culture represents the fact that she refuses to blindly accept any cultural standards and begins to grow up and create her own. Keith E Byerman writes of Antiguan standards for a girl saying, "This is the model of the true Antiguan girl: obedient, self-effacing, hard-working, and loyal, the very opposite of Annie John, the lying marble." Byerman is saying that Annie John is the complete opposite of the typical Antiguan girl, which shows her rejection of Antiguan culture. Brook Bouson explainshow Annie's behavior connects to Antiguan culture writing, "Annie's misbehavior and carelessness are also a form of rebellion against coercion and colonial forced mind control." Bouson suggests that Annie rejects the culture of a colonial land by behaving badly. Annie uses this bad behavior to form her standards of herself. Jan Hall explains how Annie's parents represent culture and a colonized society by writing: “In a larger context, Annie rebels against her parents, and particularly her mother because they represent the status quo of a stable, colonized society. Annie resists training and preparing her mother for marriage and adulthood, to continue the same, predictable life under British rule in Antigua.” The author suggests that Kincaid uses Annie's resistance to the "status quo", especially towards her parents, to pave her way into adulthood. Annie's rejection of culture allows her to branch out and form her own identity. The plot of the entire book is wrapped around the idea that Annie rejects almost all Antiguan standards. She does this to form her own identity because she wants to be different from everyone else. As she rejects the culture, she learns to create her own standards for herself. As she grows up, she realizes that Antigua is not where she feels she belongs, which prompts her to leave by the end of the book. Through this point, Kincaid suggests that to find yourself you need to reject the status quo and establish your own expectations and standards. Annie John's rejection of heteronormative standards suggests that to gain a sense of identity one must look beyond the "status quo." Bloom's literature "Glossing Over Annie John's Rebellion", explains how Annie rejects the social norms of a woman's role in domestic writing, "Refusing to be a pretty object for a woman to admire for the community, or even the help of mother at home, she builds herself against cultural gain through subterfuge. She will not and cannot give up desire and self-determination.” Since Annie is a woman, she is expected to take care of the house and be the typical woman antiguana to admire on the island. Annie realizes that this is not how she wants to live the rest of her life, so she rejects him, forming a new way of thinking that is opposite to typical standards. Bloom's Literature writes about how Annie continues to reject heteronormative standards until the end of the book writing, “After the separation, Annie's mother proudly tells her: Of course, you are a young woman now, and we will not be surprised if in due course you write to say that one day soon you will get married. Annie replies dryly: "How absurd!". Until the end of the book, Annie continues to reject the standard that she must marry. She learns that she enjoys being independent and continues to refuse to conform to the heteronormative standards she has been taught throughout her life. “Glossing Over Annie John’s Rebellion” also writes about how Annie rejects expectations of her as a woman by saying, “she buttons up her developing persona to hide the discrepancy of her physical, cultural, and psychic subject positions. With this self-imposed outsider status, Annie John rejects the maternal definition or rather reshapes the sense of pride in her own terms.” Annie tries to hide her rebellion when she can. She still rejects most standards of women during that time and creates her own standards that she can be proud of. Please note: this is just an example. Get a custom paper from our expert writers now. Get a Custom Essay Annie's Inability to Conform.