Psychoanalytical Analysis Of O Pioneers By Willa Cather

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Type B Psychoanalytical Analysis of O’ Pioneers! Published in 1913, Willa Cather is the author of O’ Pioneers!. Set in the Nebraskan Prairie, Cather tells the story of Alexandra Bergson. Far from stagnant, Alexandra is a very complex character because of her independence as a woman and her acceptance of others. Analyzing some aspects of Cather’s life provides insight into O’ Pioneers! , specifically, why Alexandra’s character traits and choices make sense. If Cather consciously or subconsciously influenced Alexandra’s character with her own, then Alexandra’s independence could be due to Cather’s career success and Alexandra’s tendency to welcome outcasts and to judge gently could be due to Cather’s gender struggles and to her lesbianism. …show more content…

From a young age, Cather showed signs of gender struggle. Her mother once walked her into a parlor and directed her to greet the people inside, instead of a typical polite greeting Cather responded with, “I’se a dang’ous nigger, I is!” (Carlin 50). This quote can be thought of as young Cather straying from the typical classifications of a young girl (Carlin 50). It is also known that Cather went through a phase of crossdressing and trying to change her appearance to be more masculine (Carlin 51). Cather’s community thought this to be repugnant and outcasted her (Carlin 51). Potentially insecure, Cather felt inclined to conceal her lesbianism and was not outwardly queer (Carlin 52). Linking these facts to Alexandra is somewhat straightforward; Cather was outcasted and rejected so she made Alexandra accepting and not one to judge harshly. The proof is in the pudding; Alexandra welcomed Ivar, a feared social outcast, to stay on her farm and treated him kindly (Cather 36), she also did not bear wrath upon Frank for murdering her brother (Cather 117). Cather knew what it was like to be outcasted by society, therefore she wrote Alexandra to treat others as she wished she had been treated. Cather wanted the respect and understanding Alexandra gave Ivar. Cather also wanted people to be less harsh in their judgments of her, for she knew too

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