Motif Of Water In Jamaica Kincaids Annie John - 1389 Words

Motif of Water in Annie John Oceans are essential for our environment since they produce more than half of the oxygen in the atmosphere covering about seventy percent of the Earth. Without our vast oceans, humankind would be unable to survive. In Annie John, by Jamaica Kincaid, utilizes water as a motif to show the growth and develop of Annie, a young girl in the Caribbean. Learning how to properly balance the values of the colonial world and the native Caribbean culture, Obeah, Annie grows up through her mother’s parenting. Kincaid uses water as a tool of empowerment to Annie’s growth by curing, nurturing, and transforming her. Annie’s safe haven as a young child consists of baths in the ocean to help heal her from bodily aches. In the†¦show more content†¦Therefore, her subconscious shows the outside forces bring her down because it illustrates the colonized word trying to have her fully submit in their culture. Meanwhile, leaving her parents’ top body conveys to the reader that they only assist Annie to live within both distinct cultures, but do not guide her. Moreover, the confirmation shoes were Annie’s choice, even though her mother disapproved of them. Thus, she applies water to erase everything except any connection she feels in the picture. Annie’s actions help her release all her build up tension ultimately using water as a healing mechanism to clean any confliction she has with the outside world. Serving as an excellent source of healing Annie learns water also stimulates like a nurturing security. As a young child, Annie took unique baths that the local Obeah woman in the town advises her to take. Thus, Annie notes, â€Å"My mother and I often took a bath together... it was a special bath in which the barks and flowers of many different trees, together with all sorts of oils, were boiled in the same large caldron†¦ We took these baths after my mother had consulted with her obeah woman† (14). Annie and her mother had special intimate moments in taking natural baths that had barks and flowers which symbolize the peace and comfort with nature. Since her mother valued the Obeah woman advice, the baths symbolized a unique ritual between mother and child. The water showcases the mother’s values that