SEAO Plainswoman

Title:

Forrest, Williams. Plainswoman. The Language of Literature. Ed. Applebee, Arthur, et al.
Evanston, Il.: McDougal Littell, 2002. 8-19. Print.
How does the title relate to the story?
o Literal: The title literally means that the story is about a woman on the Great Plains.
o Figurative: The title figuratively means the story is about a simple (plain) woman dealing
with her fears and challenges.

Purpose: List the focus objectives for this selection (listed in text or stated by teacher)
To learn to identify the elements of a short story.
Point of View (POV):
Who is narrating?
o 3 person limited, because Nora is referred to as a she, but the narrator does not know
what is happening on the roundup, or what Pleny is thinking.
How reliable is the narrator?
o There is no evidence that the narrator is not reliable, or that his/her opinions have
changed the story.
Setting:
Where?
o Somewhere on the Great Plains, on a ranch belonging to Noras husband.
When?
o Around the 1850s to 1860s (when cattle herding was popular)
Duration?
o The story takes place in the span of a day (possibly few days between chopping finger
and bread kneading scene)
rd

Characters: (do not restate elements of plot in this section)

Protagonist
o Nora
Dynamic
Round
Nora is the wife of a cattle rancher, Rolf, and just has moved onto the ranch. She
is shown throughout the story as contradicted on whether to stay, or to give up
and leave due to her concerns of her future baby.
Antagonist
The Great Plains
Static
Flat
The Great Plains is shown as a vast and endless area that strikes up fears in Nora.
The setting is the cause of the conflict in the story.

Major &Supporting Characters

o Pleny
Pleny is shown as a shy character, who unknowingly brings up Noras fears.
Rolf
The reason why Nora is on the ranch. He is away cattle ranching, leaving Nora
alone on the Plains.

Minor Characters
o Woman with Gun
o Men on the Train
All of the minor characters were in the story to show the contrast between the
society that Nora was brought up in versus her new life out on the Great Plains.

Conflict: (A v B: Protag vs Antag OR Protag vs inner struggle)

External
o Nora vs Environment
o Nora vs Pleny (finger)
Internal
o Nora is debating whether she should leave her husband and return to the East, or stay on
the ranch and endure the hardships.
Main source of conflict?
o Nora feels isolated from her surroundings, and is not used to the harsh ways of the west.
These feelings cause her to feel conflicted inside, and her responsibilities as a
Plainswoman start to overwhelm her.
Plot: (events of story in chronological order) Identify events for each of the following:
Exposition
o Nora is a woman who grew up in New England. She just got married and is pregnant. She
travels to the Great Plains, and her surroundings scare her.
Rising action
o All of the cowboys are out ranching, and Pleny the farmhand comes in with his hand
covered. He asks Nora to cut his infected finger off for him, but the sudden revelation of
her fears frighten her. Pleny pleads with her, and Nora decides to be strong and save his
life.
Climax
o Nora cuts Plenys finger off.
Dnouement
o While Nora is kneading bread, her baby kicks her. She laughs as she realizes that she has
overcome her internal conflict. She hears her husband and other ranchers returning.

Theme: (point, moral, lesson learned from story which is universal and timeless)
What is the subject/topic of the story?
o Overcoming your fears
What is the theme?
o Adapt or Die

How do you know? What evidence from the story supports your claim about the theme?
Nora is unhappy with her new environment. She doesnt feel better until she adapts to her
new environment and her responsibilities.
What symbols (note the word is plural) appear in the story? State what each symbol
represents. (List as many as there are for the A. Minimum of 5)
Symbol/object = meaning/symbolism

Great Plains: isolation, loneliness

Woman with Gun: represents the difference between Noras New England
society versus her new society in the West.
Rolfs grip (in the train): anxiety, nervousness, uncertainty
Plenys finger: it represents Noras fear.
Axe: represents Noras change to adapt to her new life.