Heather Chau on "Girl"

The title of the very general and inclusive word "Girl" makes Jamaica Kincaid's protagonist easily relatable to those who identify as girls. The subject matter is also an issue that most girls will have no trouble identifying with-- being given a set of restrictive rules on how to behave simply due to our gender. 

However, Jamaica Kincaid also gives our protagonist another, less relatable identity besides her gender, which is hinted at through subtle clues but never outright stated.

The author mentions such things as benna in Sunday school, how to grow okra and dasheen, possible red ant invasions, how to make doukona, and how to buy cotton to make a blouse. These are practices that most of us have not had to deal with, hinting that the protagonist is not from the same culture or area as us. This interests me because an article I had read stated that studies have shown that we empathize less with people of other races, and that in stories we empathize more with characters whose races are revealed at a later time, since we go in without any preconceptions.

So the way Jamaica Kincaid has chosen to identify her protagonist through clues has perhaps allowed many of her readers to empathize with the protagonist first through shared struggles, and has humanized her for some of her readers before judging her based on nationality.