The first edition of the novel was published in 1991, and was written by jane smiley. How is zebulon county itself a major character in a thousand acres. Need help on characters in jane smileys a thousand acres. There are echoes of king lear in the story of a wealthy farmer who decides to divide his estate among his three daughters. It won the 1992 pulitzer prize for fiction, the national book critics circle award for fiction in 1991 and was adapted to a 1997 film of the same name. His decisions and the outcomes of his decisions all seem to leave his life in ruins. Arguably, the complexity of the storyline may be too ambitious for 100plus minute running time. Harold clark is a seemingly easygoing, eccentric old farmer. Kindles xray feature helpfully tells you how each character in a thousand acres is aligned to the characters in king lear.
Larry cooks neighbor and friendly rival, and father to loren clark and jess clark. Larry, known as daddy to his three daughters, is a wellrespected farmer in iowa. A thousand acres film a thousand acres is a 1997 american drama film directed by jocelyn moorhouse and starring michelle pfeiffer, jessica lange, jennifer jason leigh and jason robards. The a thousand acres quotes below are all either spoken by harold clark or refer to harold clark. Even after marriage to ty smith, ginny is the mainstay of the cook. All the characters are sharply defined, with lange and pfeiffer in fine form, and robards suitably sour as the grumpy old curmudgeon, but the plot has been. A thousand acres is a classic novel in at least one sense.
A thousand acres character analysis ginny cook smith. Which of the issues explored in a thousand acres are unique to rural life in america. A thousand acres is a drama about an american family who meets with tragedy on their land. This sets off a chain of events that brings dark truths to light and explodes longsuppressed emotions. In a thousand acres, why do feminists claim smileys novel as a statement about the diminution. A thousand acres is an ungainly, undigested assembly of womens issues, milling about within a halfbaked retread of king lear. A thousand acres of analysis this novel, as well as the film, is most notably different from king lear because of its female viewpoint and stance on issues affecting women shakespeares king lear vs.
Virginia ginny cook smith, the narrator and the oldest of larry cooks three daughters. A thousand acres by jane smiley is a remake of shakespeares king lear one of big reasons why shakespeare is regarded as the greatest author, or playwright, of all time, is because his stories and characters continue to resonate through the centuries. The role of the family in this book is a complicated one. A thousand acres is a 1997 american drama film directed by jocelyn moorhouse and starring michelle pfeiffer, jessica lange, jennifer jason leigh and jason robards it is an adaptation of the pulitzer prizewinning novel of the same name by jane smiley, which itself is a reworking of william shakespeares king lear. A thousand acres starts off with an introduction to the land, and some family history surrounding the novels characters. Ginny is the main character and narrator of a thousand acres.
A thousand acres is the size of the iowa farm that is both the setting of the novel and also the subject of a personal and legal battle that embroils the main characters family. Oct 31, 1991 in a thousand acres, much of the evil that is set loose is a result of humans attempting to exert control over nature. We had geographical sweep and the requisite, for an american novel, adventure in the west. Its a model novel, the kind that should be, and is. The main characters of this fiction, literary fiction story are. She is the daughter of larry cook, and is married to tyler smith. Supersummary, a modern alternative to sparknotes and cliffsnotes, offers highquality study guides that feature detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, quotes, and essay topics. Smileys choice of epigraph plays itself out in the novel. Complete list of characters in jane smileys a thousand acres.
Larry cook is a very wealthy farmer who lives and works in. Subplots get short changed and characters seemingly disappear without warning. Rose is ginnys sister that also inherits their fathers land. It was produced by the joint collaboration of marc abraham and thomas bliss. You can fully understand and appreciate this book without ever having read king lear. Nobody big except me is the dream world of holden caulfield and his first person story is down to the basic, drab english of the precollegiate. Oct 15, 2011 a thousand acres is a classic novel in at least one sense. She does this through juxtaposed portrayals of the characters, developing the men as negative archetypical figures of abuse and the female characters as victims of their violence and lack of compassion. A bunch of tragic shit happens that is mostly the fault of the men. A thousand acres by jane smiley book club discussion. Jane smileys 1991 pullitzer prizewinning novel has been described as king lear in a cornfield. Laurence cook character analysis in a thousand acres. Perhaps jane smileys pulitzer prizewinning novel a thousand acres was a bit overrated. This onepage guide includes a plot summary and brief analysis of a thousand acres by jane smiley.
It is may of 1979, and when a neighbor, harold clark, holds a community pig roast to announce the return of his prodigal son, jess, larry cook. After his wifes death, he begins to rape his two oldest daughters. A father, his two daughters and their husbands all live on an expansive farm consisting of a thousand acres of fertile land. A quiet farmwife who dislikes confrontations and remains emotionally dominated by her father, she is living with repressed memories of abuse and incest that have unknowingly shaped her adult life. The novel is told in firstperson from ginnys perspective. A thousand acres is a novel that carries the reader through many ups and downs. Discuss how the symbiotic relationship between person and place addressed in ms. The film was written by jane smiley and directed by jocelyn moorhouse.
How can a thousand acres be interpreted as a meditation on family. Aging larry cook announces his intention to turn over his 1,000acre farmone of the largest in zebulon county, iowato his three daughters, caroline, ginny and. The novel begins in zebulon county of iowa where a family led by larry cook is composed of himself and three daughters by the names of ginny, rose and caroline. Knowledge, ethics, and trauma in jane smileys a thousand acres.
Jess clark turned his back on his family and their 500acre farm years ago. The drama entitled a thousand acres is centered on the life of a man known as larry cook. With michelle pfeiffer, jessica lange, jennifer jason leigh, jason robards. Related questions and answers for characters in a thousand acres. What provides a thousand acres a certain autonomy despite its borrowed plot and characters.
As in king lear, the problem with knowledge in a thousand acres seems at first that it has been withheld, in this case from larry cooks daughters. Caroline is the youngest of larrys three daughters, and his favorite. This sober drama lasted about a week in theaters and was dismissed as dreary soap opera by most critics. Jane smileys a thousand acres uses feminist doctrines. Pdf a thousand acres book by jane smiley free download. A thousand acres study guide contains a biography of jane smiley, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis. The most successful farmer in his northwest iowa county, larry suddenly and inexplicably decides to. The book has been awarded with pulitzer prize for fiction 1992, ambassador book award for fiction 1992 and many others. Jane smiley is the author of numerous novels, including a thousand acres, which was awarded the pulitzer prize, and most recently, golden age, the concluding volume of the last hundred years trilogy. Jul 25, 2014 the drawn parallels between the characters in king lear and a thousand acres allow the perpetuation of the themes, compassion and reconciliation, appearance versus reality, and a womens place in a patriarchal society. How does the novel shed light on the dark corners of family life. A thousand acres has a choppy feel, almost certainly the result of the booktoscreen transition, and the preepilogue ending happens with surprising suddenness. It is the story of a father, his daughters, and their husbands, and their passion to subdue the history of their land and its stories.
Detailed analysis of characters in jane smileys a thousand acres. She is also the author of five works of nonfiction and a series of books for young adults. Learn all about how the characters in a thousand acres such as ginny cook smith and rose cook lewis contribute to the story and how they. An analysis of jane smileys a thousand acres smiley. A thousand acres as movie is melodramatic and bogus essay 1017 words 5 pages. A violent surfacing of adolescence which has little in common with tarkingtons earlier, broadly comic, seventeen has a compulsive impact. He chose the wrong paths throughout his life, and in the end, is left to deal with the consequences alone. An analysis of jane smileys a thousand acres jane smileys a thousand acres tells a dark tale of a corrupt patriarchal society which operates through concealment. The drawn parallels between the characters in king lear and a thousand acres allow the perpetuation of the themes, compassion and reconciliation, appearance versus reality, and a womens place in a patriarchal society. The film is so unfocused that at the end of its very long 104 minutes, i was unable to say who i was supposed to like and who i was supposed to hatealthough i could name several characters for whom i had no feelings at all. A thousand acres can jane smileys modern day, countryside retelling of king.
And words are sometimes put in characters mouths that seem like. Ginny, the books narrator, is also its central figure. The patriarch of the cook family, and the father of rose, caroline, and ginny, larry cook is a proud, intimidating farmer whos risen to own one thousand acres of fertile farmland. A thousand acres, told from the middle of three daughters, is a story about a small farming community in rural iowa during the mid1970s and is loosely based on king lear. Free download or read online a thousand acres pdf epub book. Michelle pfeiffer rose cook lewis, jessica lange ginny cook smith, jason robards larry cook, jennifer jason leigh caroline cook. Learn everything you need to know about ginny cook smith, rose cook lewis, and more in a thousand acres. Only on its back cover is a thousand acres identified as winner of the pulitzer prize. How does the novel shed light on the dark corners of family. Buy a cheap copy of a thousand acres book by jane smiley.
Aging larry cook announces his intention to turn over his 1,000acre farmone of the largest in zebulon county, iowato his three daughters, caroline, ginny, and rose. He is a stern and angry man, though he tells everyone he is a sensible farmer. Pdf a thousand acres book by jane smiley free download 371. A thousand acres follows the lear story not slavishly, but obviously enough to provoke thought. In a thousand acres, much of the evil that is set loose is a result of humans attempting to exert control over nature.
Rose cook lewis is the strongwilled second daughter of larry cook whom many family. Ginny cook smith has always gone along with what her family wantsespecially her. For the ultimate away from it all property, this very private tennessee mountain land is a. This page presents a few companion links for the novel and the shakespeare story, and charts comparing the characters and events in the two stories. A thousand acres is a 1991 novel by american author jane smiley. The number of acres is significant because it is the largest farm in the county where the cook family lives. Harold clark character analysis in a thousand acres litcharts. Harold clark character analysis in a thousand acres. An ambitious reimagining of shakespeares king lear cast upon a typical american community in the late twentieth century, a thousand acres takes on themes of truth, justice, love, and pride. What are the strengths and weaknesses of ginnys narration. A man of harsh sensibilities, he carves caroline out of the deal because she has the nerve to be less than enthusiastic about her fathers generosity. This study guide consists of approximately 22 pages of chapter summaries, quotes, character analysis, themes, and more everything you need to sharpen your knowledge of a thousand acres. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one. It is a story in which the characters attempt to manipulate one another through the secrets they possess and the subsequent revelation of those secrets.
A brief overview of each character and they relationships along the story and how they interact. A bluff line and rugged topography form a natural barrier near the southern boundary of this land. In a thousand acres, smiley develops the characters with more depth to provide more reasoning behind the characters actions. The protagonist and narrator of the novel, daughter of larry cook and wife of tyler smith. The novels fusion of literary experiment and homespun tone becomes far more earthbound here, despite game talk of hogs, tractors and wheatgrass from the films otherwise glamorous stars. Larry cook is intensely proud of the thousandacre farming kingdom he. Correspondences between the characters in the novel and in the play edit larry cook king lear. We had every necessary element, from the wealth of incident both domestic and historical, to the large cast of characters. The book was published in multiple languages including english, consists of 371 pages and is available in paperback format.
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