from A Walk to the Jetty
Study Guide

Comprehension
1. Identify four places that remind Annie of episodes from her childhood.

2. Briefly summarize the memory that each of these places calls up.

3. What are Annie’s feelings about leaving home?

4. Describe how her mother and father say goodbye.

Interpret

5. In what way is Annie walking through time as well as through space?

6. Why does Annie reexperience her old fear of falling through the boards of the jetty?

7. Compare Annie’s relationship with her father with the one she has with her mother.

8. Describe Annie’s response to leaving the island.

Literary Focus
Flashback

9. Find two flashbacks and explain how the author uses precise details to make them vivid.

Self-Test
from "A Walk to the Jetty" from Annie John, Jamaica Kincaid

1. What are Annie's feelings about leaving home?
She is thrilled to leave home and can't wait to get away.
She is happy to be independent but she is sad to leave home.
She is terrified to leave and begs to stay.

2. How do her mother and father say goodbye?
Her mother sobs; her father does not speak.
Her father weeps; her mother leaves without a word.
Her father and mother say their farewells at home.

3. In what sense is Annie walking through time as well as through space?
She thinks of the future.
She does not notice how quickly time passes.
She mentally goes into the past as she physically walks toward her future.

4. What is suggested by the return of Annie's old fear of falling through the boards of the jetty?
She is too young for the journey.
She is apprehensive about leaving home.
She will never leave.

5. Which statement best describes Annie's relationship with her mother?
Annie loves her mother but feels smothered.
Annie and her mother are best friends.
Annie is dependent on her mother.

Extra Credit
Create a Tourist Guide for Antigua
The setting of the excerpt from Annie John is the Caribbean island of Antigua. Tourism is the dominant economic activity of Antigua, with thousands of people visiting annually. Create a guide that provides useful facts for visitors, using the information at the following sites:
AntiguaNet provides information on the island's history, activities, culture, government and economy, shopping, and major events.

Antigua & Barbuda Official Travel Guide provides information on history, arts & culture, activities, calendar of events, transportation, accommodations, travel tips and more.
Use the information you find at the above sites to compose a tourist guide that covers 8–10 of these travel topics. Keep information brief and to the point; only include the most important points. Bind your guide into a booklet.