Just as My Àntonia’s setting is initially raw and featureless, its narrative at first seems haphazard: “I didn’t arrange or rearrange. I simply wrote down what of herself and myself and other people’s, Antonia’s name recalls to me. I suppose it hasn’t any form.” Is Burden’s description accurate? Although the narrative proceeds chronologically, its structure is unconventional, as Àntonia is present in only three of the five sections and much of her story unfolds via exposition. What effect does Cather produce by telling her story in this fashion?
These two sites will help you with this.
http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/antonia
http://www.gradesaver.com/my-antonia/
i've already read those sites but mostly i don't understand what the questions mean
1. Just as My Àntonia’s setting is initially raw and featureless, its narrative at first seems haphazard: “I didn’t arrange or rearrange. I simply wrote down what of herself and myself and other people’s, Antonia’s name recalls to me. I suppose it hasn’t any form.” Is Burden’s description accurate?
Who is Burden? Do you think Burden's statement (the unquoted part above) and the quotation from Cather (the quoted part above) is correct? Is the setting "raw and featureless"? What does that mean, anyway? What do you think the word "haphazard" means in this sentence? Do you think Burden is correct? Why or why not?
2. Although the narrative proceeds chronologically, its structure is unconventional, as Àntonia is present in only three of the five sections and much of her story unfolds via exposition. What effect does Cather produce by telling her story in this fashion?
The title of the book is My Àntonia. Why do you think that this particular character shows up in only 3 of the 5 sections of the book? Who shows up in all 5 sections? Anyone? If there is a character who is in all 5 sections, why do you think the book's title didn't include his/her name?
well for the first one i thought that maybe burden saw it raw and featurless because he wasn't expecting anything when he moved to nebraska and everything was so different from the city life. but antonia became such a big part of her life that he started admiring the landscape and his surroundings
for the second one, i think Cather put it in this fashion to show that even though antonia wasn't in all parts of his life, she was still there somehow. he would always think of antonia