There are a number of different aspects that we could
comment on when we think about the title of this excellent text and how it relates to
the content. Firstly, "Girl" clearly indicates the receiver of the diatribe or advice
that the mother figure gives to her daughter. When we think of the word "girl," we think
of a young girl who is in need of advice and guidance from a mother figure. This
certainly would appear to be the case, as the text basically contains a non-stop flow of
suggestions from the mother to the daughter.
But at the
same time, the word "girl" can also be used as an insult to suggest that the woman is
much younger and more immature than she actually is. There is a sense in which the title
also captures this idea, as the mother, in seeking to give her daughter lots of advice,
actually appears to be incredibly insulting at times, such as when she interprets one of
the few things that her daughter says as sluttish behaviour that would make her a
"loose" woman:
...but what if the baker won't let me
feel the bread?; you mean to say that after all you are really going to be
the kind of woman who the baker won't let near the
bread?
The mother is trying
to teach her daughter sexual norms so that she will not be regarded as a slut. Her quick
response to an interjection made by her daughter that could have been uttered out of
frustration illustrates this more insulting and patronising meaning of the
title.
Lastly, you could argue that the title reflects a
lot about the relationship between the mother and daughter. The text contains a non-stop
list of suggestions that is seemingly without end, yet never does the mother give her
daughter any encouragement or soft words. It appears the title is relevant to the
relationship because the mother is not bringing up her daughter to be a woman in the way
that she would be. The non-stop criticism and advice keeps her daughter in the place of
being a "girl" rather than instilling her with self-confidence so that she can grow up
and be a woman.
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