O Pioneers!

O Pioneers!

This is a book by Willa Cather about prairy and farm life in the 1800s. With Alexandra running her fathers farm, and her brothers with their own lives, will she be able to keep the farm alive?

Author Biographical Information
Willa Cather was born December 7, 1873 in Gore, Virginia near Winchester, Virginia. She died April 24, 1947 in New York City. She worked for the Pittsburg Leader, and McClures Magazine. Her fist novel was Alexanders Bridge.

Setting: Historical Information
This book was set in Nebraska, in the 1800's. A family of farmers, shows Americas farmland and beautiful prairy lands. Life was like the show, Little House on the Prairy. These events could have happened in reality with the farming and such.

Genre
Historical Fiction. The time setting and things that could have happed are real but the characters and events are made up by the author.

Plot Summary
On a winter day in Nebraska in the 1800's, the four main characters Emil Bergson, his sister Alexandra, her friend Carl Linstrum, and Marie Shabata. Emil and Alexandras father is dying, John Burgson tells Oscar and Lou, two more sons, that he is making Alexandra in charge of the farmland. she does a good job, and keeps the farm running smooth. It then jumps foward 16 years later, where the family has grown up and married, and owns their own land. The book is divided into sections, which are then divided into chapters. 1. The Wild Land. 2. Neighboring. 3. Winter Memories. 4. The White Mulberry Tree. 5. Alexandra. In part 3, Alexandra is alone for one winter, because of the location of her home in the middle of farmland. Marie visited eher sometimes, and alexandra starts having weird dreams. Emil and Marie get shot and killed by Maries husband Frank. He found out that Emil and Marie love each other. Carl and Alexandra marry. Thats pretty much it.

Characters
http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/opioneers/characters.html
 * Alexandra Bergson- Main character of the story. Her father leaves her in charge of the family farmland. She is intelligent, strong and independent.
 * Emil- Alexandras youngest brother. He is the handsome one of the family, who is able to go to college because of Alexandras success.
 * Carl Linstrum- Alexandras best friend. He is smart, but has a kind of mellowed out personality. He and Alexandra marry.
 * Marie Shabata- Friend of Alexandras, and Emils secret love. Emil and she end up getting killed by Maries husband, Frank.
 * Frank Shabata- Maries husband. Weird, jealous man who somehow got Marie to marry him.
 * John Bergson- Father of Alexandra, Oscar, Emil, and Lou. He gives the family farmland to Alexandra. He is a fairly smart man. Hard worker.
 * Lou Bergson- second oldest son. He is very witty and devious, and goes into a life where he can use it: politics.
 * Oscar Bergson- He works hard and is the oldest son, but still younger than Alexandra.
 * Crazy Ivar- Crazy old man who trusts no one. Becomes Alexandras servant.
 * Amedee Chevalier- Emils best friend. She dies and causes things to happen to Emil at the end.
 * Milly Bergson- Alexandras favorite niece. Daughter of Lou and Annie Bergson.
 * Annie Bergson- Lous wife, Millys mom. She is intelligent and thinks looks is very important.

Author's Style
The author does not number the chapters. Willa Cather uses references to show certain things. Like while she is explaing something, she will use a saying or something to show what she means. For example, "Alexandria, her father often said to himself, was like her grandfather, which was his way of saying she was intelligent."

Setting
The setting of O Pioneers! is in Nebraska in the 1800’s. It takes place in a small town surrounded by miles of farmland, like the Bergson farm. Takes the course of several years, including a 16 year jump. Shows the change of seasons and what they bring.

Themes

 * Theme 1- True love finds a way. After everything that happens, Marie and Emil find a way together, and Alexandra marries Carl.


 * Theme 2- Patience. Alexandra has to learn to be patient living alone on the farm waiting for those long winters to end. Nothing comes fast, so you have to learn to wait.


 * Theme 3- Even if a job seems big, you can do it. Alexandras father gave her the job of keeping up the families farm and it seemed like a something that would be difficult, but she did it, and did it well.

Symbols
The farm that Alexandra was in charge of was a big job, so that could be a symbol of a big, tough job that you might have to face.

The ending with Alexandra and Carl marrying and Emil and Marie loving each other, this could be a symbol of true love finds a way. It seems like in movies or other novels that in the end, the lovers always find each other.

Crazy Ivan in the novel just might represent the crazy old man that everybody knows. You know who I’m talking about; that guy that works at the store or the crazy dude who goes to your church. Theres nothing really wrong with that guy, hes just a little stranger than the average bear.

Significance of the Opening/Closing Scenes
The significance of the opening scene of John Bergson, Alexandras father, tells her and all of her brothers that he is putting Alexandra in charge of the family farm. This sets the rest of the novel in motion. After he tells the family the news, he dies, leaving Alexandra to run the farm. The reader may think, “Can she do it,” “or does it fail?” These are questions that you can only find out by reading, so it could be a cliffhanger.

The closing scene consists of Alexandra marrying Carl and not caring if her brothers approved or not. After the death of Marie and Emil, it kind of puts a somewhat happy mood to the end of the book. Everyone likes a happy ending, and this is what Willa Cather did.

Memorable Quotes
"Tell the boys to come here, daughter. I want to speak with them" Here their father is about to tell them Alexandra is going to be responsible for the land.

"Mabey I could hide in a badger hole" This i thought was funny because Emil was telling Carl what he would do if he saw Crazy Ivar comming.

"We'll take care of the horses, Ivar. You'll be finding some disease in on them. Alexandra wants to see your hammocks" Ocar was telling Ivar what to do. I still dont understand the diseases part.

"Look out! Dont agree to anything. Dont let them fool you." Lou was telling Carl not to let the traders fool him.