Prof. Derek P. Royal

ENG 442 – Survey of American Literature II

Study Points for Sarah Orne Jewett’s “A White Heron”

Ø Story begins as a journey/growth narrative – Sylvia wondering in the woods, “filled with shadows,” when she meets the young man

Ø As her name suggests, Sylvia is associated with the woods. What might this imply as to her character?

Ø Gender issues become central in the story. What are the different (gendered) ways that Sylvia and the young man “collect” nature?

Ø The white heron means different things to each main character. What does it mean to the young man? What might it mean to Sylvia?

Ø The young man is sometimes associated with phallic images: the gun and the jack-knife he gives Sylvia.

Ø What is the underlying relationship between Sylvia and the young man? How is this associated with the forest and nature. Consider the following:

o Her heart gives “a wild beat” when the young man tells her about the heron

o The first day they search for the heron, and after the young man gives her the jack-knife, Sylvia watches him with “loving admiration” and is described this way: “the woman’s heart, asleep in the child, was vaguely thrilled by a dream of love”

o Sylvia climbs a tall tree, ascending the heights, in order to find the nesting place of the heron. Jewett writes, “She knows his [the heron’s] secret now. What is this secret? How might it relate to Sylvia’s maturational development?

o Sylvia’s “secret” is where the white heron lives; but in the end, she decides not to share her “secret” with the young man. What might be the sexual connotations of this? Of the white (virginal?) heron?

Ø What do you make of the intrusive narrator toward the end of the story? Why does Jewett’s narrator interject editorial commentary and exclamations in the last several paragraphs? Consider the following examples:

o The narrative voice demands that Sylvia “look, look!”…“Now look down again”…“wait! wait!” as she climbs the tree

o The narrator personifies “loyalty” in her address in the last paragraph. Why?

o The story ends with the following statements: “Were the birds better friends than their hunter might have been,—who can tell? Whatever treasures were lost to her, woodlands and summer-time, remember! Bring your gifts and graces and tell your secrets to this lonely country child!” Is this ending melodramatic? What is the narrator demanding here?

Ø What is the tone of the story—in other words, what might be Jewett’s attitudes toward Sylvia and her growth? Does she wish her to always be “innocent”? What are the author’s attitudes toward the young man? Are they all negative?