Annie John

In this chapter, Kincaid heightens the tension between colonizer and colonized by using the scene of a history class to emphasize The Dangerous Effects of Oppression both over the centuries and in the narrative present. The very fact that Annie is awarded for her academic achievement with a copy of Roman Britain illustrates the school’s efforts to turn Annie and her Antiguan classmates into submissive and respectful members of the colony. The first-century Roman invasion of Britain has no relevance at all to Annie’s life, and its choice as a gift reflects the inherent belief of the school authorities that learning English history can only be a benefit and should be seen as a privilege. Furthermore, Annie’s history book about the West Indies reflects the colonizers’ view of history and paints Columbus as a noble hero rather than a ruthless conqueror in addition to crediting him with the “discovery” of an already inhabited island. The textbook does not present the lives and cultures of those people who inhabited the Caribbean before Columbus arrived, thereby effectively erasing them from “history.” Annie’s insouciant reflections indicate that unlike many others, she is unwilling to allow herself to be indoctrinated into this hero worship of Europe. Thus, the Red Girl’s influence continues.

Furthermore, Annie’s comments about Ruth’s ancestors highlight the tendency of British authorities to attempt to bury the continuation of oppressive practices in Antigua. Annie points out how, now, “it [is] all history, it [is] all in the past” (76), and she claims that everyone acts differently now. As a descendant of people who were enslaved, Annie claims that she and others are fully aware of the history of enslavement, but her apparent acceptance of the idea that people are no longer racist, elitist, or materialistic implies that in her relative youth, she has yet to fully apprehend the various ways in which she and her fellow Black Antiguans are still subjugated by white English Protestants. Her rumination on the fact that everyone shows new unity by celebrating the late Queen Victoria’s birthday together fails to question why she, an Antiguan who is descended from enslaved people, should deign to celebrate the deceased queen’s birthday at all. Further evidence of discrimination within her very classroom occurs when Miss Edward prefers Hilarene, a while girl, to Annie, as although Annie is the superior student, she actively rejects the English standards of behavior that Hilarene embodies. Thus, by insisting that racism and oppression are in the past, the English authorities in Antigua successfully convince many of Annie’s contemporaries that they are no longer living within a system of oppression.

Annie’s mother’s duplicity in tricking Annie into eating breadfruit is symbolized by her physical position as she admits the truth. To Annie, the view of her mother standing half in shade and half in sunshine reinforces the girl’s view that her mother has two distinct sides: the attentive and loving half opposed by the treacherous and dishonest half. Annie’s impression is also fueled by her resentment; although she initially hoped to receive her mother’s ministrations and kindness at home, she is met instead with little recognition and less kindness. Now, Annie compares her mother’s teeth to those of a crocodile, a reptilian image that parallels her previous view of her mother as serpent-like. Instead of appearing as something beautiful and decorative, even her mother’s teeth gleam like warnings of the cruelty of which Annie believes her mother to be capable. However, while the scene does illustrate the growing conflict between mother and daughter, it also stands as an indictment of the teenage Annie’s behavior rather than that of her mother. Trying to feed Annie the healthy breadfruit is not a terrible act; instead, it symbolically conveys her mother’s desire to help her grow strong, not her desire to deceive for the mere pleasure of it.

In an even more pointed use of symbolism, Kincaid references Paradise Lost, John Milton’s epic poem that fictionalizes humankind’s disobedience and expulsion from Eden as well as Satan’s descent into hell. As Annie is made to copy out part of this poem as punishment for her perceived transgressions at school, this allusion stretches beyond the scholastic setting to instead emphasize her sense of having once lived in a paradise that has been destroyed by her mother’s love for her father. Furthermore, the allusion to Lucifer’s fall from grace suggests that Annie’s mother is like God, that Annie’s father is humanity, and that Annie, herself, is Satan: the former favorite who tries to overthrow God for now favoring humans over angels. The symbolism is also fluid in application, for when Annie assigns her mother the role of the serpent, Annie herself becomes Eve: Satan’s hapless victim, cast out of paradise. If Annie’s mother is assigned the role of God within the metaphor, Annie then becomes Lucifer: unloved, rebellious, and eventually cast out of heaven.