A Lost Lady
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Author | Willa Cather |
|---|---|
| Publisher | Alfred A. Knopf |
| Released | September 1923 |
Willa Cather's A Lost Lady was first published in 1923. It tells the story of Marian Forrester and her husband, Captain Daniel Forrester who live in the Western town of Sweet Water, along the Transcontinental Railroad.
Contents |
[edit] Plot summary
The novel is written in the third person, but is mostly written from the perspective of Niel Herbert, a young man who grows up in Sweet Water and witnesses the decline of Mrs. Forrester, for whom he feels very deeply, and also of the West itself from the idealized age of noble pioneers to the age of capitalist exploitation.
[edit] Characters in "A Lost Lady"
- Niel Herbert – the nephew of the local judge, who is in charge of the Forrester's investments.
- Ivy Peters – the novel's villain, who represents this cut-throat capitalism that comes to take hold of the West.
[edit] Literary significance & criticism
The novel is regarded as having a robust symbolic framework. [citation needed]
[edit] Allusions/references from other works
The novel is also regarded as having been an influence on F. Scott Fitzgerald, as Marian Forrester was an inspiration for his Daisy Buchanan character in The Great Gatsby.
[edit] Film, TV or theatrical adaptations
The novel was adapted very loosely into a film in 1934 by Gene Markey, and starred Barbara Stanwyck as Marian Forrester. The film did not live up to the novel's reputation and is generally regarded as mediocre.
