Jamaica Kincaid Use Repetition In On Seeing England For The First Time

In the passage, “On Seeing England for the First Time,” (1981), Antiguan author Jamaica Kincaid demonstrates her hatred of colonization and how it leads to destruction of cultural identity. Kincaid utilizes various rhetorical strategies such as satire, repetition, and symbolism in a sarcastic, mocking tone to communicate her disgust towards England. She directs these strategies at imperialistic countries, specifically England, in order to prevent further destruction of culture and individuality; however, Kincaid also targets colonized people, challenging them to rebel against conformity and hold to their culture.
By satirizing the “greatness” and arrogance of England, Kincaid criticizes England’s imperialistic, choking grip on Antiguan culture. Kincaid displays this harsh criticism when she describes England as a “special jewel”, alluding to the Crown Jewels, to indicate the extent of the false impressions that were bestowed upon the young author (4). Kincaid includes a simile comparing England to Jerusalem, “the place you will go to when you die but only if you have been good” which reveals her deep disgust of the ridiculous perspective the Antiguans held of England (22-23). Her sharp satire cuts both ways; she criticizes England’s “greatness” but also criticizes the Antiguans for their unresistant

She repeats the phrase “Made in England” with a bitter tone to describe how it was written all over her childhood, how it “ran through every part of [her] life”, and how it represents the “greatness” of England ingrained into Antiguan society (40, 81-82). At the beginning of each paragraph, she includes slight variations of the ironic statement, “I saw England for the first time”, to duplicate the constant, powerful presence of England in her life, despite never seeing it in person, only seeing it on maps