Jamaica Kincaid's Lucy

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Lucy was written by Jamaica Kincaid. The book was published in 1990 and is a fictional story written about a girl from the West Indies who comes to terms with her personality and her sexuality. This book also represents the coming of age of the main character, Lucy. William Wordsworth's poem "I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud" is referenced in this book.

[edit] Plot Summary

Lucy, a teenager from the West Indies comes to America as an au pair for a Caucasian family with four girls. She experiences problems at home which are typical for most teenagers. In order to liberate herself, she moves away and experiences a freedom she did not know she could have. She starts making her own money and starts buying things for herself.

Lucy makes new friends. She meets a guy named Hugh that she ends up sleeping with. In the park with the children one day, she meets a girl named Peggy. Mariah, the mother of the children, does not like Peggy because she smokes and curses but realizes that Lucy needs friends. Lucy also meets a guy named Paul who she becomes close to.

Lucy goes through changes throughout the book. As she grows into an adult, she realizes that the family she lives with is not as perfect as she thought. Small things start showing through and a suprise emerges. Lucy also comes to understand her sexuality as she experiments with women and men. She starts off angry but quiet and in the end is honest but more understanding.

There are a few things that are symbolic throughout the story including daffodils and water. These two things remind Lucy of her home and where she is now.