Willa Cather's Characterization Technique in Neighbor Rosicky
Willa Cather's Characterization Technique in Neighbor Rosicky
" Neighbor Rosicky ", written in 1928 and collected in the volume Obscure Destinies
in 1932, is generally considered one of Willa Cather's most successful short stories. It
is a character study of Anton Rosicky, a man who, facing the approach of death, reflects on
the meaning and value of his life. In tracing Rosicky's journey from Bohemia to
Nebraska,Cather explores the intimate relationship between people and the paces they inhabit.
The story also celebrates the small triumphs of life. ( Wilson 1) The protagonist, Neighbor Rosicky is presented from the point of view of an observer,
an omniscient narrator, who enters the consciousness of several different characters and sees
the world from their point of view . Rosicky's person evokes sympathy of the reader and
appreciation of human drama from Cather's part. She has a very careful way of drawing the
character and exploits all the usual methods of characteriztion technique, through which she
creates "a hero that can be examined from all sides, as a rare object in the middle of the table"
(Seargent 139). Nevertheless, the essense of the character is given by the extremely deep
psychology applied by Cather. As we can see while reading the story we are given a lot of information referring to the
character of Rosicky: dialogs between characters, their actions, others' descriptions provide a
clear picture how should we imagine Cather's hero. Dialogue is often used to display the
interaction between the family members and friends. Through these we get the feeling of the
endearing qualities of their family life. From the dialog between Anton and Dr.
Burleigh, the family's doctor and very good friend, we learn that he has problems with his
health and that he must be a well-known and liked person in his community. We are led
further when we enter his warm and very lively
" Neighbor Rosicky ", written in 1928 and collected in the volume Obscure Destinies
in 1932, is generally considered one of Willa Cather's most successful short stories. It
is a character study of Anton Rosicky, a man who, facing the approach of death, reflects on
the meaning and value of his life. In tracing Rosicky's journey from Bohemia to
Nebraska,Cather explores the intimate relationship between people and the paces they inhabit.
The story also celebrates the small triumphs of life. ( Wilson 1) The protagonist, Neighbor Rosicky is presented from the point of view of an observer,
an omniscient narrator, who enters the consciousness of several different characters and sees
the world from their point of view . Rosicky's person evokes sympathy of the reader and
appreciation of human drama from Cather's part. She has a very careful way of drawing the
character and exploits all the usual methods of characteriztion technique, through which she
creates "a hero that can be examined from all sides, as a rare object in the middle of the table"
(Seargent 139). Nevertheless, the essense of the character is given by the extremely deep
psychology applied by Cather. As we can see while reading the story we are given a lot of information referring to the
character of Rosicky: dialogs between characters, their actions, others' descriptions provide a
clear picture how should we imagine Cather's hero. Dialogue is often used to display the
interaction between the family members and friends. Through these we get the feeling of the
endearing qualities of their family life. From the dialog between Anton and Dr.
Burleigh, the family's doctor and very good friend, we learn that he has problems with his
health and that he must be a well-known and liked person in his community. We are led
further when we enter his warm and very lively