Summary
A young third-generation farmer, Ingmar Ingmarsson, observes his picturesque surroundings and criticizes himself for being dissatisfied. Considering his role in his community, Ingmar laments that his fellow parishioners do not consult him for his wisdom as they did his now-deceased father and grandfather, who were prominent men. Ingmar imagines meeting his father in a rural version of heaven, surrounded by their ancestors.
In his vision, Ingmar explains to his father that he courted a woman named Brita of Bergskog, who was from a prominent family. Brita's family pressures her into marrying Ingmar, and as Ingmar's farm suffers an unprofitable year, Brita grows depressed. She runs away, births a child, and strangles it. Ingmar assumes Brita committed infanticide to "get even" with him for "forcing [him]self upon her" without officially marrying her. Ingmar debates whether or not he should marry Brita when she is freed from prison because he feels responsible for the infant's death and because he believes no farmers will allow him to marry their daughters. However, he does not love Brita and fears that marrying a "murderess" is immoral. The elder Ingmar consults with his ancestors; meanwhile, a painter wanders through the field and offers to paint Ingmar's barn. Ingmar takes this as a sign from his father that he should marry, as the elder Ingmar said he would paint the barn "the year Ingmar married."
The senator, Brita's father, stops by Ingmar's house on his way to a parish meeting. Despite his high standing, he envies the Ingmarssons' long and respected reputation within the community. He informs Ingmar and his mother, Martha, that "to make everything right again," he plans to send Brita to America, allowing Ingmar to marry another woman. However, Ingmar interprets the senator's offer as a test of his faith and decides that he will not go against God's judgment by allowing Brita to be sent away.
Mother Martha converses with an old woman, Kaisa, who divulges conversations she had with Brita before Brita's imprisonment. According to Kaisa, Brita was dissatisfied with her husband's appearance, living on the farm, being coerced into marriage, and the loneliness she experienced, as the Ingmarssons were not particularly conversation. On multiple occasions, Brita considered ending her own life, though Kaisa talked her out of it, unable to understand Brita's dissatisfaction.
Ingmar retrieves Brita from prison and brings her back to his house. Brita longs for Ingmar's forgiveness and promises that she will be "going out into the world a new and a better woman." However, she receives mixed messages from Ingmar about whether or not he cares for her; for example, he gives her flowers yet is unable to converse with her for the entire trip home.
Once they reach the parish, Brita expresses a desire to attend church and begin her new, moral life, and Ingmar obliges, though he fears "it might be embarrassing for him be seen there with her." During the church service, the congregation gossips about Brita and refuses to sit with her, causing Ingmar and Britta to think that "one who has committed such a crime cannot live among people." Arriving at the farm, Brita and Ingmar are turned away and drive directionlessly down the road and into the woods. Ingmar receives a letter, which Brita wrote to him in prison, declaring her love for him. The letter convinces Ingmar to stay with Brita and return her to his home.
Kaisa finds Ingmar and Brita in the woods and relays a message from Mother Martha. According to Kaisa, the preacher praised Ingmar for forgiving Brita and taking her home, saying Ingmar's actions were "a better sermon than any [he] could ever preach." Thus, Ingmar earns the title "Big Ingmar," taking his father's place in the community. Mother Martha encourages Ingmar and Brita to return home.
Analysis
The novel opens with highly detailed pastoral imagery describing the natural beauty of the Swedish countryside. Ingmar's homestead is situated in an idyllic village where "the grass sparkled with dew, and the air was so light and bracing that no words can describe it." This peaceful visual imagery contrasts sharply with Ingmar's existentialism and discontentment. By contrasting Ingmar's picturesque property with his tragic backstory and unhappiness, the text introduces the theme of religious devotion, explaining why people turn to religion during times of difficulty. Despite Ingmar's privileged life, he feels something is missing and struggles to forgive Brita. Only after imagining heaven and interpreting spiritual signs does he choose to welcome Brita back into his home.
The text uses a combined monologue and imaginary vision to introduce Book One's central conflict and characterize Ingmar. By using an intimate and dreamlike monologue, the text introduces the motifs of internal struggles and the universal search for meaning. As he walks through the fields, Ingmar pictures his version of heaven. Ingmar's version of heaven is informed by his cultural context as his "heaven" is set in an agrarian farmhouse in which he is able to converse with his deceased father and solicit wisdom from his many male ancestors. Though Ingmar is Christian, he seeks guidance from his own father rather than God or Jesus, indicating the importance the Ingmarsson family holds in their community.
Book One explores the theme of religious devotion by centering the church as an important center for Ingmar and Brita's identities. At first, Ingmar is disappointed that his marriage disqualified him from taking a leadership role in the church, like his father before him. Despite his reservations about forgiving Brita and his commitment to his family and community, Ingmar believes his most important duty "is to walk in the ways of God," which, through interpreting signs he believes are sent by his father, he discerns to mean honoring his vows to Brita. By forgiving Brita and returning her to his community, Ingmar earns a privileged spot in his parish, as the priest commends Ingmar's courageous and public act of forgiveness. Brita also engages in religious devotion; during her three-year imprisonment, a chaplain counsels her, and she confronts her shortcomings, devoting herself to God. So great is her faith, in fact, that Brita does not notice the other villagers' judgment as she focuses on attending the Sunday church service.
In addition to the characters' personal expressions of faith, within the context of the narrative, adherence to religious law is rewarded, and violating religious norms is punished. For example, Ingmar brings Brita into his home after completing "the banns," a public betrothal announcement, though they do not have a wedding, as required by religious custom. Living unmarried with Ingmar, Brita grows increasingly depressed and contemplates suicide, eventually committing infanticide because, according to Ingmar, their child was born illegitimately. Consequently, Ingmar is shunned within his community after Brita's arrest, and no one seeks his advice, as they did his father's. However, after he commits to marrying Brita and rectifying the wrongs of living with her without marrying her, the couple is immediately rewarded. Brita and Ingmar both feel moved to love one another, and the parish priest celebrates their reconciliation.
Ingmar and Brita's story introduces the theme of connection to land and community. Ingmar takes pride in the long legacy of well-respected farmers who came before him and is distressed that his marriage threatens his standing in the community. In fact, Ingmar inadvertently leveraged his family's reputation to coerce Brita to marry him. Brita's father, a handsome senator, privately wishes he belonged to the Ingmarsson family. Brita's dissatisfaction with her marriage is attributable to the disconnect she feels while living in the Ingmarsson family home. Like her husband, Brita loves her family and feels comfortable in the lands of her childhood. She asks Kaisa for information about her family property, and her inability to return plunges her into depression. Once Ingmar forgives Brita, he earns the title of "Big Ingmar," solidifying his leadership role within the community.
Book One introduces the motif of signs and omens. Ingmar's religious belief creates a supernatural view of the world in which coincidences are viewed as spiritually significant. When seeking guidance for his decision about whether or not to marry Brita, Ingmar interprets events as signs from his father, pointing him in the right direction. First, a painter arrives at the farm and offers to paint the dilapidated house. Because Ingmar's father believed the house should be painted the year Ingmar married, Ingmar believes he should marry Brita. Similarly, Brita interprets Ingmar's behavior as signs of his feelings toward her. He picks her up from prison and gives her flowers, which she initially interprets as a sign of his forgiveness and affection. Later, she interprets his cold demeanor as a sign of his hatred for her. At a pivotal moment, Ingmar receives Brita's letter that expresses her love for him, though the letter was supposed to arrive days later. Ingmar and Brita interpret this happy coincidence as a sign that they should be together and that happiness is possible for them. Their faith is then immediately rewarded as Kaisa explains that through their mutual forgiveness, the couple has been welcomed back into the community in a position of newfound high esteem.
