Jamaica Kincaid and Female Sexuality in The Autobiography of My Mother

A controversial topic of discussion, the role of female sexuality has been dissected countless times in subjects related to humanities. Most often times, one would be complacent with the idea of a woman's sexuality as either a weapon of seduction used to gain favor/power or as a conquest for men to enhance their sense of masculine superiority. Both situations largely fail to address, or at least remark, the importance of sexual pleasure for the woman. Sexual engagement indeed can serve as a source of pleasure and psychological armory for the woman, as lucidly illustrated in Jamaica Kincaid's novel The Autobiography of My Mother, wherein the sexuality of the protagonist, Xuela, functions both as a psychological defense mechanism against her traumatic childhood and a subconscious desire for autonomy, manifest through her borderline promiscuity and her exceptional exhibition of self-love.