Segregation in the Great Depression The 1930s in America were years of severe economic depression resulting in abject poverty. Some fared better than others; minority populations such as African Americans and Mexican immigrants tended to struggle the most because they already faced racial discrimination and thus had to work harder than whites to achieve the…
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Marigolds by Eugenie W. Collier – Symbolism, Metaphor, Literary Devices
Memoir Collier tells the story in the style of a memoir, that is, in first person, as if she is speaking directly to the reader. Use of the words ‘‘I’’ and ‘‘my’’ and ‘‘we’’ make the story more personal, more emotional than it would be if told in the third person or in the style…
Marigolds by Eugenie W. Collier – Themes
Coming of Age A coming-of-age story is one in which the protagonist, or main character, is initiated into adulthood through the attainment of knowledge or experience. Often, experience leads to knowledge, and the process is often one of disillusionment. ‘‘Marigolds’’isLizabeth’scoming-of-age story. The confusion she feels over her father’s desperation and shame and the subsequent role…
Marigolds by Eugenie W. Collier – Characters
John Burke John Burke is the ‘‘queer-head’’ son of Miss Lottie Burke. Although his condition is never labeled, he is known to be mentally challenged. Lizabeth describes him as ‘‘totally unaware’’ of his surroundings, an ageless black man prone to violence if his ‘‘mindless stupor’’ is interrupted. John Burke spends most of his time sitting…
Marigolds by Eugenie W. Collier – Summary
‘‘Marigolds’’ is set in a rural Maryland steel town during the Great Depression (1930s). Since segregation is only just beginning to be legally opposed, it is safe to assume that the entire community is African American. At the very least, all the characters in the story and the neighborhood in which they live are African…
How Much Land Does A Man Need? – Analysis – Essay
The origins of ‘‘How Much Land Does aMan Need?’’ lie in several developments in Tolstoy’s life that began in earnest about ten years before the publication of the story. In the late 1870s, when Tolstoy was about fifty years old, he entered a period of existential crisis and despair. He was the celebrated, world-renowned author…
How Much Land Does A Man Need? – Setting – Background
Nineteenth-Century Russian Literature The nineteenth century is often known as the golden age of Russian literature. During this period Russia produced some of the greatest writers in the world. Early in the century, the nobleman Alexander Pushkin (1799–1837) led the way. He is most famous for his poetry, including the verse-novel Evgeny Onegin (1833), first…
How Much Land Does A Man Need? – Folktale, Foreshadowing & Irony
Folktale ‘‘How Much Land Does a Man Need?’’ is Tolstoy’s retelling of a folktale. A folktale is a prose story usually of unknown authorship that is handed down from generation to generation by word of mouth or in writing. Folktales are found in all human cultures. Many folktales contain the devil as a character who…
How Much Land Does A Man Need? – Themes
Greed and Envy When viewed through its main theme, ‘‘How Much Land Does a Man Need?’’ is not a complex or subtle story. It is about the sins of greed and envy as they manifest in one particular man, the peasant Pahom. Unlike his wife, Pahom has not learned to be satisfied with what he…
How Much Land Does A Man Need? – Characters
The Chief The chief is the leader of the Bashkirs. It is he who formally agrees to Pahom’s request to take some land, and he lays out the details of the agreement. Pahom dreams of the chief, seeing him sitting outside the tent laughing. Then when the exhausted Pahom nears the hillock where the chief…