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, "" 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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