Jane Yolen is an American writer, but she is well-known for her children’s stories,

fantasies, fairy tales. “Johanna” is one of her short-story. This text is about Johanna
and her mother, who is very ill and to make her feel better she has to go after a
doctor, but has to pass the Hartwood, think that is not allowed to her, because every
time when somebody goes there, never returns.
The title “ Johanna” is a clue to the theme, because we understand that we speak
about a girl, called so. The main character in the story is Johanna as her mother,
because of her mother illness she went to that forest.
In this text there are more conflicts, an internal one ( Johanna knows that is forbidden
to go in that forest, but she also knows that her mother is very ill, she accepted the
idea until she saw her mother in that difficult situation, Johanna has no choice.(“Pale
and sightless, breathing brokenly in the bed they shared.”) ), but there is also an
external conflict, between mother and Johanna, because mother was afraid to let her
to go alone to that forest, but Johanna wanted to go. The conflict was solved by
Johanna going to the doctor.
The author is limited omniscient, because he doesn’t describe in details what mother
thinks in moments she see her daughter going.
The primary action takes place at their home, but them it takes place in the forest,
where the author describes her way, in what difficult situation is Johanna, and in that
moment I understand that she changes from a girl to a deer ( at the beginning of the
story she is described as girl, but during the story we can see her like a deer ( “it’s a
deer”).
The climax of the story is when Johanna decided to go, to help her mother. This is the
theme, the risk for people you love, desire to make your beloved people feeling good.
The main idea of the text is a real one, because in real life mother and children risk a
lot for each over, mothers take care and are always afraid for their children, and
children try to do the best for their parents.