Don't be afraid

Gustavo Quintero
English 48B
February 26, 2008
Journal #29 Sarah Orne Jewett


Quote:
"Afraid of folks,'they said! I guess she won't be troubled no great with 'em up to the old place"(Jewett 523).



Summary:
Mrs. Tilley is commenting on the personality trait that Sylvia exhibits. Sylvia is a lonely little girl that is very shy around people.



Response:
Mrs Tilley mentions a character trait that is essential to knowing Sylvia on a deep level. Sylvia is a young girl, pre-teens, that is very afraid of people. She has grown up most of her life in a factory town during that industrial revolution. She is a girl that has no friends and is secluded form the rest of society. All of this helps mold Sylvia into the animal loving, Nature enthusiast that she exhibits later in the short story. This character trait of hers is important to understanding Sylvia because it lays down the foundation for the crush that she later has on the Heron hunter. Sylvia is isolated from all types of people because of where she grows up in. In "life in the iron Mills", by Rebecca Harding Davis the scene of the city is set up as a very dismal one. The pollution casts a black and gloomy shadow over the city that prevents any sun from shining on the workers. In this type of town where all the people work 24/7 there is no time allotted for children to grow and experience friendships. I believe that this is the very same type of environment that Sylvia grows up in. This is what causes her to be deathly afraid of people. She has no interaction with anyone so she does not know how to open herself up to other people. Sylvia says,"...this was a beautiful place to live in, and she never wished to go home". When she is taken away form the factory city she is on the path to discovering who she really is. The environment that she grew up in serves as a catalyst for her love of the environment later in the story. As we read on, Sylvia transforms from the wilted and dying Geranium, to one that is in full blossom and lively.