The girl with a baby

The Novel “The girl with a baby” by Sylvia Olsen is about a 14-year-old girl that is pregnant and gives birth to her baby. Jane, the main character is very interesting. Her life changes from on day to another completely, but she can’t do anything against it. She has to deal with her new situation. Considering Jane is only 14 years old, she is responsible, incredibly strong willed and confident.

The birth of Jane’s daughter Destiny brings a big change in her life and now she has to be responsible for more than just herself, “[She has] to be Destiny’s mother…” (p. 93).
Everything that she is doing is not just affecting herself; it is also affecting her child.
She cannot go to parties and hang out with friends all the time; she has to be there for her baby. She has to feed and play with the baby and change its diapers whenever needed.
Nevertheless, her child is not the only thing she has to take care of. After Jane’s mother died, she had to take over the role of her mum. She has to take care of her dad and also of her two brothers which are the opposite of her, undependable and always in trouble.

As well as being responsible, Jane is strong willed. She WANTS to be a good mother for her child; she WANTS to be there for the rest of her family and she ALSO WANTS the leading role in a school play. Jane is working very hard for all of these things and she does not want to give up on anything.Her grandmother supports her a lot by telling her how strong Jane’s mother and great-grandmother were. “I [Jane] am going to audition for the part of Sandy. I’m going to put my name on the list, first choice Sandy, second choice Frenchy…” (p. 110).
This quote shows good how resolute and determined she is. She wants to try as hard as she can to get the leading role in the play, no matter what is going to happen. Even after her life went into a totally different direction as she planned, she still wants to make the best out of it and she is not going to give up.

Her dream to play the leading role in the school play also shows that she is very confident. As soon as she is on stage every single feeling of fear just disappears. She is only singing and everything around her seems not to exist.
“…that is going to be too bad for her, because I know who’s going to get the leading role.” (p. 113) shows once more her confidence about what she is doing.
Especially in those conversations with Vanessa, an extremely snobbish girl, Jane always knows how to act without getting herself down. Even if Vanessa makes her feel like she has not the tiniest chance, she either ignores her or she shows her the opposite.

Jane’s character is completely different than a stereotypical character of a 14-year-old girl. She is a fulltime mother and student simultaneously. Whenever one thing is done, another one is already waiting. Only her strength and responsibility help her, and without her confidence she would never have got the leading role in the play.