Paul's Case
by Willa Cather
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See Also
- Theory of Short Fiction (Critical Survey of Short Fiction, Second Revised Edition)
- Willa Cather (Cyclopedia of World Authors, Fourth Revised Edition)
- Willa Cather (Dictionary of World Biography: The 20th Century)
- Willa Cather (Identities & Issues in Literature)
- Willa Cather (Critical Survey of Long Fiction, Fourth Edition)
- Willa Cather (Critical Survey of Short Fiction, Second Revised Edition)
At a glance:
- Author: Willa Cather
- First Published: 1905
- Type of Plot: Character study
- Time of Work: 1905 or earlier
- Setting: Pittsburgh and New York City
- Genres: Short fiction, Historical fiction
- Subjects: Values, Traveling or travelers, Suicide, Music or musicians, Alienation, Hotels, motels, or inns, Fantasy, Theft, Theater, Materialism
- Locales: United States, North America, New York, New York, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
The Story
The story begins in industrial Pittsburgh at the height of American industrial expansion and at a time when wealth, power, and material values are supreme and dominate the thought and goals of the nation. Paul is a misfit in every way, and the reader is given a detailed description of his conflicts with school, home, and society. Paul is different from his peers. He dresses with a kind of dandified elegance, sporting fancy neckwear and a flower in his lapel. He is bored with school and hates his shabby room at home and his middle-class neighbors and the street where he...
(The entire page is 1395 words.)
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Popular Questions
See all »- Identify examples of the four types of conflicts in "Paul's Case."
- In "Paul's Case," how does the antagonist (the father) contribute to the story's overall meaning ?
- How does Cather use the device of point of view in the story, "Paul's Case" to advance the plot, develop characters, and shape...
- Why does Paul kill himself?
- Cather uses the flowers as symbols in "Paul's Case". Explain the symbolism of the flowers in the following instances:
