Willa Cather’s My Antonia, 1918
Setting: Nebraska prairie late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries
Form: Novel
Structure:
Introduction: A frame narrator
Book I: The Shimerdas
Book II: The Hired Girls
Book III: Lena Lingard
Book IV: The Pioneer Woman’s Story
Book V: Cuzak’s Boys
The novel has a linear chronology that begins when Jim is orphaned at age ten and moves from Virginia to Nebraska to live with his grandparents; the novel ends with his visit as an adult to his friend Antonia who by then has a large family. Each of the five sections, or “Books,” contains untitled chapters depicting formative episodes from Jim’s life that live in his memory.
Narrative Point of View: An unnamed frame narrator sets up the context for the story and introduces the principal narrator, Jim Burden, then disappears. The sections that follow the introduction are from a manuscript Jim writes about his childhood and about his friend Antonia and has given to the frame narrator.
Main Characters: List and jot down the essential traits of characters so that you can keep track of who is who in class discussions and when you study for tests.
Setting: Nebraska prairie late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries
Form: Novel
Structure:
Introduction: A frame narrator
Book I: The Shimerdas
Book II: The Hired Girls
Book III: Lena Lingard
Book IV: The Pioneer Woman’s Story
Book V: Cuzak’s Boys
The novel has a linear chronology that begins when Jim is orphaned at age ten and moves from Virginia to Nebraska to live with his grandparents; the novel ends with his visit as an adult to his friend Antonia who by then has a large family. Each of the five sections, or “Books,” contains untitled chapters depicting formative episodes from Jim’s life that live in his memory.
Narrative Point of View: An unnamed frame narrator sets up the context for the story and introduces the principal narrator, Jim Burden, then disappears. The sections that follow the introduction are from a manuscript Jim writes about his childhood and about his friend Antonia and has given to the frame narrator.
Main Characters: List and jot down the essential traits of characters so that you can keep track of who is who in class discussions and when you study for tests.
