In A Lost Lady by Willa Cather, the author attributes the decline of the Mrs. Forrester’s character to inappropriate behavior. Mrs. Forrester undergoes many changes and is at the same time faced with many obstacles and struggles as a woman. Mrs. Forrester’s personality does not correspond with the environment at Sweet Waters, not forgetting other external factors that affect Mrs. Forrester such as being a widow at a tender age. The author is ultimately asking the reader not to be too quick in judging Mrs. Forrester, but to, instead, show compassion to the character who has been subjected to a harsh social customs and fate.
Another obstacle is that Mrs. Forrester and the rest of the community face poor crop yield. Her town is slowly dwindling away and poverty has started setting in . Age also sets in and she starts to get older. She is however unable to let go of her own youth and continues to live in a world that does not exist. Mrs. Forrester’s life flashes right between her eyes in between her many struggles in life. She is feeling denied her chance to live for the fullest with her husband leaving her poor and all alone. Mrs. Forrester is forced to live in a world in which she does not within two generations. She does not relate to most of their social customs and is left to live a life of misery and one which is incomplete.
In conclusion Mrs. Forrester is forced into change as a result of her obstacles and struggles in life. Her personality does not allow her to fit in her current society since she does not agree with its way of life. His frequent obstacles and struggles as a woman living in a society that has little reverence for a woman cause her to undergo tremendous change. In order to survive she has to compromises her personality. A woman who was bold enough to leave her family to escape a young marriage is later married to an older man. Mrs. Forrester is forced to live among an older generation and her youth is locked in. it is later in life that these youth forces her to alcohol and an affair with a younger man. When her husband’s falls ill and her lover leaves her she becomes devastated and starts drinking. Her life becomes completely out of control. Her young age and her ideologies which do not comply with the current society cause her immense suffering in trying to escape and eventually she is left with no option but to adjust. Mrs. Forrester has limited strength in a society which has little acknowledgement for women.
Works Cited
Cather, Willa. A lost lady. Maryland: Start Publishing, 2013. print.
