Willa Cather felt a very deep connection to nature and felt most comfortable being outside, much like Alexandra in O Pioneers! She chose to have interviews outside and she thought that the air in places where the land was untouched by humans was better than any other air.
While doing some research for my paper, I came across a quote in an article by Melissa Ryan which discusses the image that Alexandra has of being carried away by an unidentified man. “The threat of this figure is linked to his emphatic heterosexuality (in contrast to the lesbian eroticism of Alexandra’s relation to the land). Indeed, he is the land bodied forth in masculine sexual aggression...” I agree that Alexandra has a clear, strong connection to the land, but I was shocked when I read this that it would be viewed as sexual at all, and especially as “lesbian eroticism.” I had been thinking that this fantasy she had was about being lonely and wanting for once in her life to be taken care of instead of always taking care of everyone else.
Sexuality and passion are barely visible in the novel. It is only with Emil and Marie that we see any at all. Ryan says that “Alexandra experiences this desire as traumatic.” What do you think is the connection between sexuality and nature? What do you think about the contrast between “masculine sexual aggression” and “lesbian eroticism” in Alexandra’s life? In Cather’s life?
7 comments:
This is a really interesting quote that I am not sure I can totally agree with but can see the merit in. I can see how Alexandra’s sexuality is hidden in the novel and how the only passion she seems to share is with the land. In fact, I remember when she and Emil are riding through the Divide and he suddenly becomes embarrassed over seeing his sister’s fierce passion for the land. It is almost as if he has walked in on a passionate kiss or other intimate moment. This doesn’t seem to represent a romantic or sexual type yearning in my mind though. It feels to me as if she is fitting in or feeling oneness in her situation with the land, not a passionate desire or other romantic feeling. Another thing that is interesting is how masculine sexuality is very aggressive in the novel and this is brought up again in the quote. Emil is the one who initiates the relationship with Marie and the men of the time seem very keen on exhibiting their strength and attractiveness in the contests they hold. On the other hand, lesbianism is portrayed as erotic and gentle, much different from the carousing of men. This could provide evidence for Cather’s homosexuality but I think it makes a better statement on how to pursue love. Only love that is grown over time and with caution seems to prosper in this novel.
I can't really say I have a clear answer for my believe on the connection between sexuality and nature. There is sexuality amongst the people and animals that live and survive from the nature around us. The connection between sexuality and nature can be interpreted in many different ways. I am not exactly sure how i would interpret the land, in regards to the relationship that Alexandera had with it. Personally I believe she had a deep emotional connection with the land, but an emotional relationship and a sexual relationship can be very different.
For me this "lesbian eroticism" and "masculine aggression" seems obscure. We are not given this impression as readers, the language Cather uses does not suggest anything sexual. I would definitely agree that this fantasy is more of Alexandra's desire to be cared for. Obviously Alexandra has a deep connection with the land, but for me this connection comes from her family's history on the land and her nostalgia for the past. She connects the land she lives on and that of her neighbors with her childhood...a childhood that was very short lived as she was forced to take her father's place after he died.
As far as the connection between sexuality and nature goes. I see nature as being very similar to Alexandra's own, but in a different way. Nature or mother earth herself is a hermaphroditic entity, producing and nurturing without the presence of either male or female sexuality. Similar to the role Alexandra plays, neither conforming to gender roles expected of her, and playing the part usually taken by a man.
Sexuality and nature almost go hand in hand in that sexuality is a part of nature and the natural cycle of life. People can have a love for the land and nature. Within our society, love is generally considered a sexual desire in most cases. I don’t know if I can say that nature has a gender or a sexual quality about it-I don’t see one. Nature can be peaceful, awe striking, expansive, and breathtaking. These effects of nature could possibly be translated into some type of sexual feeling or desire with time. I don’t think it’s as much as a sexual attraction to nature as it is a liking, like a child and their favorite toy or a friend or family.
Masculine sexual aggression would be more powerful and forceful than lesbian eroticism which seems more equally passionate between lovers, not dominated by one. I did not interpret lesbianism or masculine aggression in Alexandra’s life just different levels of emotional connection to land and people. Marie, on the other hand, had love and passion in her life, as did the rest of the characters in the novel.
I think it is really interesting how you think this passage sends a information between sexuality and nature. But I am not quite sure if I am agree with you. I personally think that sexuality is always the last thing you would think of when you are living in the hard period of time, Especially in the novel,Alexandra herself. I just think Alexandra needs to put her personal desire behind all of her family business and land develop. Foe her, sexual desire is always been locked when she is busy taking care of the land and her brothers. But I don't think that is because the nature is too fascinating to have personal desire. Because for me, the land is the space that make her settler down and have a place she loves and can call it home.
I agree that the novel is largely void in addressing sexuality, but I can see Alexandra's connection to the land as being somewhat sexual. I am not sure if I can distinguish between the masculine sexual aggression that the land might embody from any sense of "lesbian eroticism" regarding Alexandra's relationship with her surroundings. None the less, the connection that Alexandra has with her surroundings could be seen as intimate in some sense. I actually thought that Alexandra demonstrated traits that resembled both masculine aggression and lesbian eroticism, especially regarding her relationship with the land. Alexandra longed to conquer the land and be in charge of the farm and its natural setting (masculine) while also demonstrating a more intimate and feminine connection to what can only be described as the inherent beauty of mother Earth. I think the spectrum of emotions that Alexandra exhibits towards her surrounding has clear parallels to the life of Cather. During her life, Cather had to take on many characteristics of her male counterpoints to achieve the goals that she had sent forth for herself, but at the same time, later in life, she grew out of her "tom boy" ways and began to embody a more feminine personality.
There have always been references to these two topics as connected within many different areas, including literature, for a long time. It would appear as though a connection is possible. However, even though Alexandra does have periods that may have various tones to it, I don’t think there are very directly sexual connections in her life.
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