Paul's Case: A Study In Temperament By Willa Cather

When authors take the time to write literature, they have a purpose for writing. The author’s purpose can categorize literature into a variety of genres. If the work is written as a way for readers to escape the real world and for the author to make money, then it is classified as commercial fiction; however, if it is written as a means to plunge the reader into the deeper meaning of life, then it is literary fiction (Arp and Johnson 62). Because a literary work expects its audience to actively analyze as they read, readers can “expect to come away from a literary work with an enhanced understanding of life” (Arp and Johnson 65). Since “Paul’s Case: A Study in Temperament” by Willa Cather demonstrates the active role the reader must take, an understanding of life’s difficulties, and an unfortunate ending, it is an example of literary

According to Perrine’s Literature, “as you proceed through the chapters, learning bout plot, characterization, theme, and so forth, you will gradually develop the instincts of a serious reader” (Arp and Johnson 65). Becoming a serious reader by identifying these aspects, allows one to emerge with a new meaning of life. Willa Cather utilizes symbolism in “Paul’s Case” to foreshadow. Paul usually wears a red carnation in his coat and his teachers felt “his whole attitude was symbolized by his shrug and his flippantly red carnation flower” (Cather 235). This becomes significant when Cather uses red carnations to symbolize Paul’s descent from happiness. Before Paul commits suicide, he reflects on the flowers he saw behind the glass case in New York and how they were making one last-stand against the inevitable winter (Cather 250). These flowers signify Paul’s attempts to survive in a world that opposes his views. Both the flowers and Paul are unable to live against their