Eric Hermannson’s Violin
In the story titled “Eric Hermannson’s Soul” it may be surprising to learn the extent to which a violin comes to play in a battle for the soul of one man. Cather makes it clear through metaphor very early on that the key to understanding the tale lies in understanding the significance that the instrument is to play:
“The violin is an object of particular abhorrence to the Free Gospellers.”
Norwegians
The Midwest setting of Cather’s fiction is heavily populated by Norwegian stock. The Scandinavian culture permeates through her stories from the names to the physical descriptions. Generally, the similes and metaphors engaged for this purpose are simple and direct. A typical example of the Norwegian influence is provided in “The Enchanted Bluff.”
“Olaf was a big, heavy Norwegian slow of speech and movement. His head was large and square, like a block of wood.”
Dialogue
Cather refrains from putting too may metaphors and similes into the mouths of her characters. Recognizing figurative language is best utilized when limited to those with the educational background to lend it significance, she typically only allows it in cases of cultural or geographic patois. The world of opera singers and the projected worldliness of singer Kitty Ayrshire is a notable exception:
“In the kingdom of the blind any petticoat is a queen.”
The Were-Wolf Dog
An atypical story for Cather is also one of her most engaging. “The Strategy of the Were-Wolf Dog” is children’s tale mixing elements of Halloween and Christmas long before it became cool. When the title creature is introduced, Cather’s use of metaphor creates a character that does not disappoint:
“When all was quiet about the house, there stole from out the shadow of the wall a great dog, shaggy and monstrous to look upon. His hair was red, and his eyes were bright, like ominous fires. His teeth were long and projected from his mouth like tusks, and there was always a little foam about his lips as though he were raging with some inward fury.”
Paul's Case Expained
The most famous character from Cather’s short fiction—ranking right alongside Ántonia Shimerda—is another titular character, the subject of the study in temperament which comprises “Paul’s Case.” The centerpiece of Paul’s fascination as Cather’s most psychologically puzzling creation can be located in a fairly direct and uncomplicated metaphor located at about the midway point of the narrative:
“It was at the theatre and at Carnegie Hall that Paul really lived; the rest was but a sleep and a forgetting. This was Paul's fairy tale, and it had for him all the allurement of a secret love.”
