A Study on the Direction of Life in My Antonia

The purpose of this study is to examine the essential value and direction of life as reflected in the vitality and imagery of a goddess embodied in a heroine living in primitive nature. Willa Cather presents the vividness of primitive nature, which is both harsh and peaceful at the same time, through her My Antonia. Characters accustomed to urban civilization are unable to adapt to the reality of contact with nature and face loss of self, lack of confidence, and death as a means of escaping reality. The female protagonist in the work shows a life full of vitality that comes from peace and coexistence with nature, separated from the city where egoism, materialistic greed, competition, and arid life are repeated. She seeks comfort, and through the vitality of living in a natural environment, she seeks to address the deficiencies of city life, the need for communication between humans and nature, and present the true direction of life. Cather shows the inner passion that modern urbanites lack, self-recovery, and the importance of a nature-friendly life through a female protagonist who is at one with nature. The vivid reality in which her heroine lives is important in that it restores the direction and value of life that modern people who are wandering with loss of confidence should pursue. (Anyang University)