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My Antonia Themes in Gereral (Context (Lawless "Wild West"…
My Antonia
Themes in Gereral
Context
It is a historical novel
capturing a lost age
Written by a woman- rare
Not just Jim's nostalgia, of his childhood, but Cather also looking back on America's simpler times.
American identity is fragmented- different nationalities
Lawless "Wild West" freedom for women
E.g. the hired girls
Railroads- symbolism
Journey, adventure
Child-like building
Black Hawk (the town)
Native American heritage
Structure
Introduction
Narrator never named, written in first person
Could be Willer Cather
Title
"My Antonia" possessive
Possibly belongs to Jim, even though she doesn't
Could have been "My America"
The Shimerdas
Story of childhood
The narrator is Jim now
Themes
Coming of age
Nostalga
The old and new worlds
Important characters
Jim
The Shimerdas
mother
Mean and unlikable, but will survive because of her toughness
Father
Kind and gentle, dies because he can't cope with the harsh world
Antonia
Ambrosch (brother)
Krajek :- cheats the shimerdas
Grandparents help them
Otto Fuchs and Jake
Seek their fortune, but fail
Foil characters for Lena and Tiny
The Hired Girls
Important characters
Lena Lingard
Is chased by Crazy Mary with a knife
isn't phased, she laughs about it
Quite tough
Town Vs. Country
Antonia's coming of age
Independence
Harlings too strict
Cutter's wife is a shrew
The Pioneer Woman's Story
"Poor Antonia"
Abandoned
Left pregnant by Larry Donovan
Lena is the "Bad One" that turns out good
Antonia is the "good one" that turns out bad
Cuzak's boys
Antonia's redemption
Her beauty is warn away
But she is the mother of many chidlren