Eleanor's House
Encyclopedia
Eleanor's House is a short story by Willa Cather
. It was first published in McClure's
in October 1907.
. Harold admits to Harriet that he is still in mourning over his late wife. Later, he goes away as he does customarily. Ethel decides to join him at Fortuney near Pontoise
, where he used to live with his late wife. Harriet will go with her. When they get there, the couple have a fight. Later however, Harriet tells her husband she is buying Harold's house in Fortuney - he is leaving for America
with his wife, who is pregnant.
.
Willa Cather
Willa Seibert Cather was an American author who achieved recognition for her novels of frontier life on the Great Plains, in works such as O Pioneers!, My Ántonia, and The Song of the Lark. In 1923 she was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for One of Ours , a novel set during World War I...
. It was first published in McClure's
McClure's
McClure's or McClure's Magazine was an American illustrated monthly periodical popular at the turn of the 20th century. The magazine is credited with creating muckraking journalism. Ida Tarbell's series in 1902 exposing the monopoly abuses of John D...
in October 1907.
Plot summary
Harold Forscythe and his new wife Ethel are visiting the Westfields, who live in Arques-la-BatailleArques-la-Bataille
Arques-la-Bataille is a commune in the Seine-Maritime department in the Haute-Normandie region in northern France.-Geography:Arques is situated near the confluence of the rivers Eaulne, Varenne and Béthune, with the forest of Arques to the north-east...
. Harold admits to Harriet that he is still in mourning over his late wife. Later, he goes away as he does customarily. Ethel decides to join him at Fortuney near Pontoise
Pontoise
Pontoise is a commune in the northwestern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the centre of Paris, in the "new town" of Cergy-Pontoise.-Administration:...
, where he used to live with his late wife. Harriet will go with her. When they get there, the couple have a fight. Later however, Harriet tells her husband she is buying Harold's house in Fortuney - he is leaving for America
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
with his wife, who is pregnant.
Characters
- Mrs Harriet Westfield. She went to a conventConventA convent is either a community of priests, religious brothers, religious sisters, or nuns, or the building used by the community, particularly in the Roman Catholic Church and in the Anglican Communion...
in ParisParisParis is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
with Eleanor in her youth. - Mr Robert Westfield
- Harold Forscythe
- Ethel, Harold's new wife.
- Eleanor Sanford, Harold's late wife.
Literary significance and criticism
Eleanor's House has been deemed to be clumsily JamesianHenry James
Henry James, OM was an American-born writer, regarded as one of the key figures of 19th-century literary realism. He was the son of Henry James, Sr., a clergyman, and the brother of philosopher and psychologist William James and diarist Alice James....
.
External links
- Full Text at the Willa Cather Archive