1923 One of Ours

 

1923

One of Ours

by Willa Cather

459 pages 

Summary

Cather was skewered by Sinclair Lewis and Ernest Hemingway for including romantic conventions in a novel set in World War I.  However, one unique strength of this book is Cather's (heretical) opinion that the European war was a freeing experience for some Americans; it was not just an unrelenting horror.  I personally find Cather's writing to be uneven. She insists on writing from the male perspective--and doesn't do so convincingly. But she is correct in observing that World War I  (as costly as it was to the nation and to individuals) did help Americans see beyond their own borders.   

In this novel, a young man from a Nebraska farm, Claude Wheeler, is sent to a Christian college by his parents. There he befriends a fun-loving, free-thinking family, the Ehrlichs. He is called home to help with the family farm, and marries a childhood friend. His wife values Christian and political work over the companionable, sensual side of marriage, a flaw he sees clearly for having associated with bohemian people like the Ehrlichs. When Claude is drafted and sent to France, he finds freedom from farm life and his disappointing marriage. Although he encounters the influenza pandemic and horrific battles, Claude feels like he has found his purpose in life. 

Adaptations

Willa Cather distrusted Hollywood after one of her novels, Lost Lady, was adapted as a mediocre film. She never permitted another film adaptation in her lifetime. In the 1990s, however, people began producing films of her books, most noticeably My Antonia, Cather’s best known work. Look for the 2016 Australian film starring Jason Robards. 

Related Activity

To gain perspective on the contribution of US men in World War I, visit Cantigny Park in Wheaton IL. Peruse the First Division Museum or climb on the tanks in Tank Park. Cantigny, once a private estate held by the Medill-McCormack family, offers extensive formal and informal gardens, two museums on military history, Tank Park, and a golf course. Robert R. McCormack served as a colonel with the First Division during WW I in France. He made it his mission to collect and preserve the records of the First Division. Today the archive holds more than 10,000 works on military history. (https://www.fdmuseum.org/ and https://cantigny.org/.

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