Importance of the Past in Willa Cathers My Antonia Essay

The Importance of the Past in Willa Cathers My Antonia In My Antonia, Willa Cather emphasizes the importance of the past through Jum Burdens narration. Jim Burden realizes at the conclusion of the novel how much he enjoyed his childhood days and how much his memories mean to him. There are three events that Cather included in the novel which contribute greatly to the overall theme, concerning the importance of the past. One event is in Chapter II of Book III. Jim decides to write about his youth in Nebraska as Vergil has just done. As he is thinking about this, Lena Lingard comes to the door and he is excited to see her. Once again he begins to think about the past. Even after she left, just her presence had impacted his†¦show more content†¦He spends a day in Black Hawk that ends in a disappointment since none of his childhood friends are around. Walking out to the edge of town, he finds a half-mile stretch of the old wagon-road which used to run like a wild thing across the open prairie. The memory of his first ride over that road comes to him strongly. Now he feels that this road has brought him and Antonia back together. It is the road of Destiny along which their lives have traveled. Another event appears in chapter 14 of book II. Antonia and Jim are having a picnic by the river. It is an important event for many reasons. First, the past is brought up, when Antonia says, It would be like old times. The reader can only be reminded of the events that have taken place in Book I. For example when Jim walks two miles towards the river. At the riverbank he takes a swim and realizes how much he will miss this river once he goes off to college. Jim skated, swam and fished on this river throughout his childhood. Second, it is the last shared afternoon of Jim and Antonias youth. Throughout their youth, Jim and Antonia share a number of memorable moments, like the time when Jim teaches Antonia how to read. However, this is their last day together in their childhood. Soon, Jim will be going away to college so the future is near. Then, he finds Antonia crying because she is looking at overhanging bushes that remind her of Bohemia. It makes me homesick,Show MoreRelatedEssay on Use of Environment, Landscape, and Cycles in My Antonia3310 Words   |  14 PagesUse of the Environment, Landscape, and Cycles, in My à ntonia       The landscape and the environment in Willa Cathers, My à ntonia, plays several roles. It creates both a character and protagonist, while it also reflects Cathers main characters, Jim and à ntonia, as well as forming the structure of the novel. Additionally, it evokes several themes that existed on the prairie during the time in which the story takes place. Some of these themes that directly relate to the novel, which are worthRead MoreAnalysis Of Willa Cathers My Antonia1427 Words   |  6 PagesIn this excerpt from Willa Cather’s My Antonia, as it nears night in the prairie of Nebraska. Jim Burden returns to his hometown of Black Hawk, visiting family and friends during his summer vacation before he starts Law School. He first visits his Grandparents and other family friends, but finds himself reminded of Antonia, his childhood friend who he grew up with. He walks to Antonia’s house, and Antonia’s sister directs him to the field where she is working. T heir reunion is sentimental, as theRead MoreInfluences of Regionalist Liturature in the 20th century1481 Words   |  6 PagesMark Twain, Bret Harte, and Willa Cather are notable authors stemming from the Realist movement that occurred around the turn of the century. Mark Twain’s â€Å"Corn Pone Opinions† comments on the fickleness of the human mind, using the example of a slave minister. Bret Harte’s â€Å"The Outcasts of Poker † tells the tale of a gambler and other rabble rousers who were shunned from the Western mining town of Poker , which had recently seen a moral reprise. Willa Cather’s My Antonia narrates the life of Jim BurdenRead More Comparing the Theme of Sacrifice in My Antonia and The Song of the Lark2537 Words   |  11 PagesSacrifice in My Antonia and The Song of the Lark      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   A common trait for Willa Cathers characters is that they possess a certain talent or skill. This art usually controls the lives of these characters. According to critic Maxell Geismar, Cathers heroines who possess a skill often either do not marry or marry men whom they dominate; if they do marry the marriage is without excitement because their passion is invested in their art. In a sense, Geismar accuses Cathers heroines of sacrificingRead MoreMy Antonia Character Analysis1856 Words   |  8 PagesMy Antonia was published in 1918, two years before all American women were granted the right to vote in 1920. Willa Cather lived in a bustling time where women were heavily vouching for fundamental rights and breaking free from what had been considered societal norms. While Cather mentions the conventional duties and housewives of the time the book was written, her story’s focus differs. â€Å"My Antonia’s,† narrative centers around women, m any of whom are immigrants, who transcend the gender norms ofRead MoreWilla Cather s My Antonia1932 Words   |  8 Pages In her novel My Antonia, Willa Cather, while writing in a sexist time, calls attention to the power of the female in life and society through Antonia, Lena Lingard, Tiny Soderball and Frances Harling and accentuates and celebrates the significance of the matriarchal world by use of Jim Burden as the narrator. Jim holds an enlightened consciousness of the female because, after spending most of his life with these women, he sees how they started with nothing ended with a successful life. In a time