"The Best Years" | |
---|---|
Short story by Willa Cather | |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Genre(s) | Short story |
Publication | |
Published in | The Old Beauty and Others |
Publication type | Short story collection |
Publication date | 1948 |
"The Best Years" is a short story by Willa Cather, first published after her death in the collection The Old Beauty and Others in 1948. [1] It is her final work, [2] and was intended as a gift to her brother, Roscoe Cather, [3] [4] who died as it was being written. [5] Set in Nebraska and the northeastern United States, [6] [7] the story takes place over twenty years, tracing the response of Lesley Ferguesson's family to her death in a snowstorm. [8] [9]
The short story carries images or "keepsakes" from each of her twelve published novels and the stories in Obscure Destinies. [10] In keeping with her own literary tradition, the story has been described as being steeped in a " sense of place", where "land and physical realities" work alongside (both influencing and being influenced by) the characters and their emotions. [8] [11] It also deals with what Cather described as the "accords and antipathies" of family relationships, including those between generations, [12] [13] [14] [15] and the feelings of loss that accompany these relationships. [16] [17] [18] It has been described as her "final achievement" in pursuing the mystery genre, [19] and as "a rich portrait" by scholar Ann Romines. [20] It has been said to be "richer in domestic feeling than anything else she ever wrote", [21] but it has also been completely ignored by some scholars, [8] or seen as "a slackening into self-indulgence", [22] "minor", [23] "bad" or centered on "sentimental" "self-pity". [24]
The story draws heavily on Cather's own life, [25] [26] and is among her most autobiographical of stories. [27] [28] Her friend and teacher, Evangeline "Eva" King, is the model for the character Evangeline Knightly. [29] [12] According to Cather, after she moved with her family to Red Cloud, Nebraska, King, as a principal of the high school, was "the first person who interviewed the new county pupil" and "was the first person whom I ever cared a great deal for outside of my own family." [30] It has also been suggested that her brother, James Cather, served as a model for the character of Bryan Ferguesson; similarly, her brother John "Jack" Cather may be the basis for Vincent Ferguesson, [31] and Roscoe Cather is Hector. [5] Her own childhood home—in particular, the attic [32]—is also depicted in the story, chiefly as small and overcrowded. [33] [34]
While much of Cather's writing has been described as male-centered, "The Best Years" continues her end-of-life tradition of exploring mother-daughter relationships through the lens of women, rather than men, with careful use of a female protagonist. [35]
"The Best Years" | |
---|---|
Short story by Willa Cather | |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Genre(s) | Short story |
Publication | |
Published in | The Old Beauty and Others |
Publication type | Short story collection |
Publication date | 1948 |
"The Best Years" is a short story by Willa Cather, first published after her death in the collection The Old Beauty and Others in 1948. [1] It is her final work, [2] and was intended as a gift to her brother, Roscoe Cather, [3] [4] who died as it was being written. [5] Set in Nebraska and the northeastern United States, [6] [7] the story takes place over twenty years, tracing the response of Lesley Ferguesson's family to her death in a snowstorm. [8] [9]
The short story carries images or "keepsakes" from each of her twelve published novels and the stories in Obscure Destinies. [10] In keeping with her own literary tradition, the story has been described as being steeped in a " sense of place", where "land and physical realities" work alongside (both influencing and being influenced by) the characters and their emotions. [8] [11] It also deals with what Cather described as the "accords and antipathies" of family relationships, including those between generations, [12] [13] [14] [15] and the feelings of loss that accompany these relationships. [16] [17] [18] It has been described as her "final achievement" in pursuing the mystery genre, [19] and as "a rich portrait" by scholar Ann Romines. [20] It has been said to be "richer in domestic feeling than anything else she ever wrote", [21] but it has also been completely ignored by some scholars, [8] or seen as "a slackening into self-indulgence", [22] "minor", [23] "bad" or centered on "sentimental" "self-pity". [24]
The story draws heavily on Cather's own life, [25] [26] and is among her most autobiographical of stories. [27] [28] Her friend and teacher, Evangeline "Eva" King, is the model for the character Evangeline Knightly. [29] [12] According to Cather, after she moved with her family to Red Cloud, Nebraska, King, as a principal of the high school, was "the first person who interviewed the new county pupil" and "was the first person whom I ever cared a great deal for outside of my own family." [30] It has also been suggested that her brother, James Cather, served as a model for the character of Bryan Ferguesson; similarly, her brother John "Jack" Cather may be the basis for Vincent Ferguesson, [31] and Roscoe Cather is Hector. [5] Her own childhood home—in particular, the attic [32]—is also depicted in the story, chiefly as small and overcrowded. [33] [34]
While much of Cather's writing has been described as male-centered, "The Best Years" continues her end-of-life tradition of exploring mother-daughter relationships through the lens of women, rather than men, with careful use of a female protagonist. [35]