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Readings from the Fringes

5
A White Heron
Sarah Orne Jewett

INTRO
Sarah Orne Jewett (1849 – 1909) is an American writer of regional fiction that
centred on life in Maine, an American state that lies at the north-eastern corner of
the country.
Jewett’s best book is ‘The Country of the Pointed Firs’ (1896).

SUMMARY - ESSAY 1

1. Discuss "A White Heron" as an eco-critical and eco-feminist short story.

"A White Heron" by Sarah Orne Jewett is a beautiful short story that
explores eco-critical and eco-feminist themes.
Sylvia is a young girl who lives in the woods in Maine with her
grandmother, Mrs Tilley. She loves to wander in the woods. One evening, while
Sylvia is driving home her cow, she suddenly meets a hunter. He asks her for
directions towards the road. He also tells her he has been hunting birds and now
got lost. He then asks if he can accompany her home, and spend the night on her
farm.
Sylvia reluctantly leads the stranger to her grandmother who is happy to
play the hostess. The man tells them that he is an ornithologist. He has been out
hunting for birds to add to his collection of stuffed specimens. He asks if Sylvia
would show him where he might find the rare white heron. He offers them ten
dollars if she will show him where to find it.
The next day, Sylvia goes out with the stranger and walks through the
woods. In the evening, they walk home disappointed. The next day, before dawn,
Sylvia goes out and climbs a huge pine tree. She sees the white heron in its nest.
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She goes home, but she keeps it a secret. Her grandmother rebukes her for not
getting the money by sharing the knowledge. But she cannot speak. The hunter
leaves the farm.
“A White Heron” portrays the relationship that exists between human
beings and the natural environment. Also, the hunter with his masculine
supremacy desires to control the wilderness, but Sylvia shies away from the
hunter.

SHORT ANSWERS
1. Who is the protagonist of the story and whom does she live with?
Sylvia is the protagonist of the story. She lives with her grandmother Mrs.
Tilly.

2. Where does Silvia stay? Why did she not like to return to her home in town?
Sylvia stays her grandmother on the farm. She did not like to return to her
home in town because she was afraid of the people in the city.

3. Why was the girl suddenly horror stricken in the woods?

The girl was suddenly horror stricken in the woods because she heard a
clear whistle not very far away. It was a boy’s whistle, determined and aggressive.

4. What help does the stranger ask Sylvia?

The stranger asks Sylvia to allow him to spend the night at her house as he
has lost his way in the woods.

5. What did the hunter think of Sylvia's grandmother's house when he entered
there?
He was surprised to find so clean and comfortable a little dwelling in that
New England wilderness. It was like a hermitage.

6. Why was the stranger surprised when he came to know that Sylvia knows all
about birds?
The stranger was surprised when he came to know that Sylvia knows all
about birds because he was making a collection of birds himself. He has been at
it ever since he was a boy.

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7. What does the stranger do with the birds?

He stuffs and preserves them because he is an ornithologist. He has dozens
and dozens of them.

8. Who is an ornithologist?
An ornithologist is a person who studies birds.

9. What was the offer given by the stranger to anybody who helps him find the
white heron's nest?
The stranger would give ten dollars to anybody who helps him find the
white heron's nest.

10. Why did Sylvia climb the great pine?

Sylvia climbed the great pine to look for the nest of the white heron.

11. Why did Sylvia not speak about the nest of the white heron to the stranger?
Sylvia did not speak about the nest of the white heron to the stranger
because she is not ready to give its life away. To her, the birds were better friends
than their hunters.

12. What did Sylvia do at the end of the story?

Sylvia refused to tell the heron’s secret and give its life away.

PARAGRAPH QUESTIONS

1. Describe Sylvia's relationship with the cow.

To Sylvia, the cow named Mistress Moolly was a valued companion. They
like to be outdoors and wander enjoying the sights and sounds of nature. Mistress
Moolly often wandered out of her familiar path into the woods. Sylvia also liked
to wander in the forest looking at the trees and enjoying the songs of birds, insects
and animals. She enjoyed the shoal swimming together in the brook. She was
happy to watch the sunset. As they walked home, they stopped at a brook, where
Mistress Moolly drinks. Sylvia cools her bare feet in the water. They are lovers
of nature

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2. Analyse the character of Sylvia in "A White Heron".

Sylvia is a nine-year-old child of nature. Her name, "Sylvia," comes from
the Latin “silva” meaning "wood" or "forest." She lives with her grandmother on
a farm. She remembers with fear her early years, when she lived in a noisy town.
When a hunter comes looking for a white heron, she enjoys the company of
another person for the first time. But she is puzzled by the conflicting emotions
he stirs in her. He offers the desperately needed money. She alone can give him
the bird he seeks. But she is not willing to betray nature. So, she does not reveal
the heron's nesting place.

3. Comment on the significance of the pine tree.

Sylvia makes her way from the material world to the large pine tree – a
journey from the material plane to the spiritual. Pine tree stands for immortality
and eternal life. It is from the top of the pine tree that she gains the knowledge
she seeks. In the end, Sylvia thinks of the great pine’s murmur and the harmony
she felt with the heron. At the top of the tree, she is able to connect with the heron
at an almost spiritual level. She cannot tell the heron’s secret and give its life
away. She values nature more than whatever the hunter is offering.

4. How does nature serve as a setting for the story?

Jewett’s story, "A White Heron" is set in the Maine woods. Nature serves
as a setting for the story. Sylvia, the protagonist, lives with her grandmother on a
farm. It is a beautiful place to live in because the girl longs for peace and joy in
the nature surrounding her. She enjoys the evenings. The story begins on a
summer evening. The close association between Sylvia and Nature continues
throughout the story. When Sylvia sees the heron's spectacular view from the top
of the tree, she makes a moral choice to refuse to help the hunter kill the bird.

5. Comment on the Symbolism in "A White Heron".

In the story “A White Heron," Jewett uses a large number of symbols to
heighten the effect. The heron and its whiteness are symbolic of Sylvia's own
childhood innocence and purity. The whistle she heard symbolises Sylvia's fear
of people in general. The hunter who whistled represents the crowded town which
Sylvia had left as a child of eight. The cow is symbolic of freedom. Sylvia makes
her way from the material world to the large pine tree. At the top of the tree, she
is able to connect with the heron at an almost spiritual level. She decides in favour
of nature not man.
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6. Discuss the use of language in "A White Heron".

In the story “A White Heron”, Jewett uses figurative language to let the
reader feel a sense of adventure. Such language helps the reader to experience a
journey through Sylvia’s eyes. When the little girl went to the top of the great
pine tree, she had a feeling “heart to heart with nature and the dumb life of the
forest.” Jewett also uses beautiful figurative language. Figures of speech such as
simile and personification add to its effect. The language the grandmother speaks
in her prose is simple New England dialect. Her unique way of speaking marks
her out as belonging to the place.

7. What is the theme of the short story "A White Heron"?

In “A White Heron,” Jewett presents various themes relating to the major
theme of the country versus the city. The first is “innocence” versus “experience.”
Sylvia lives a quiet, innocent life in the country. Soon, her experience with the
white heron helps her to make the moral choice of conserving nature. Another
theme is “nature” versus “industrialization.” Sylvia’s choice is between the hunter
and the heron. “Conservation” versus “greed” is another theme. Sylvia decides to
reject the hunter's offer in order to conserve the life of the heron. “Solitude” is yet
another theme. It leads Sylvia to be content with nature.

8. Comment on the ambiguous ending of the story.

The story "A White Heron" by Sarah Orne Jewett has an ambiguous
ending. The hunter promises $10 to anyone who helps him locate the white heron.
Sylvia, a nine-year-old rural girl, lives in tune with nature. She goes to the forest
and locates the nest of the heron, but she keeps it a secret. She does not want the
heron to be shot by the hunter. Her grandmother scolds her for not being able to
collect the reward of $10. The hunter waits to hear the story. Sylvia cannot speak.
The story paints a contrast between Sylvia’s love for nature and the hunter’s
desire to tame it.
ESSAY - 2

1. Analyse the 'regionalism' or 'local colour' in the story.

"A White Heron" by Sarah Orne Jewett is a beautiful short story with a lot
of “regionalism” and “local colour” in it. Local color or Regionalism focuses on
the customs, way of speaking, dress, or other features of a place or period that

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contribute to its particular character. Jewett’s story exemplifies this in several

ways.
The setting of the story is in rural New England, close to the coast. The
woods and marshes around Sylvia's house testify it. The opening of the story, in
which Sylvia goes looking for a wayward cow, is given primarily to description
of this place. It has transformed Sylvia, who had lived before in a town. The
landscape is described in great detail in several places. It helps to identify the
piece as local color.
The dialect spoken by the characters represent the New England dialect.
The grandmother’s unique way of speaking marks her out as belonging to this
place. The hunter's standard English marks him as an outsider.
The characters, Sylvia and her grandmother live lives that are formed by
this remote setting. Their rustic cabin and Sylvia's life among the creatures of the
forest almost suggest something out of a fairy tale. The bird hunter, as a
representative of the outside world, throws their quaint ways into relief. It is also
characteristic of local colour that the great pine tree and the heron itself both
function as characters too.
As a regionalist writer, Jewett is interested in features of the physical
landscape. She also focuses on the relationship between that world and human
consciousness. It is evident in Sylvia's bond with nature in “A White Heron.”

Prepared by:
Prof. MURUKAN BABU C.R.
(formerly) Associate Professor of English
Panampilly Memorial Govt. College
Chalakudy

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