One of Ours: Willa Cather's Pulitzer Prize Winner (Timeless Classic Books)
- ISBN-10
- 1456378074
- ISBN-13
- 9781456378073
- Series
- One of Ours
- Pages
- 240
- Language
- English
- Published
- 2010-11-25
- Author
- Willa Cather
Description
One of Ours tells the story of a Nebraska farm boy who struggles to find meaning in his life. It is the story of a young man born after the American frontier has vanished, yet whose quintessentially American restlessness seeks redemption on a frontier far bloodier and more distant than that which his forefathers had already tamed.Before the war, Claude comes close to finding value in the world when his parents allow him to attend the University of Nebraska. Living in Lincoln he befriends the Ehrlich family, who expose him to a life of art, ideas, and culture. Later, when forced to return to his father's farm, Claude seeks to find meaning in the form of human companionship. His attempt to find individual affirmation in the form of marriage fails, however, and the loneliness Claude encounters from his unaffectionate wife Enid compels him to volunteer in the overseas conflict.Claude's violent death on the battlefield - portrayed as sacrificial and glorious by Cather in the mind of Claude's mother - appealed to millions of Americans and probably played a role in the decision to award Cather the Pulitzer Prize for One of Ours a year after it was published in 1922.
