Carrie meeber, an ordinary girl who rises from a lowpaid wage earner to a highpaid actress, and george. Jan 19, 2020 here are my thoughts for this novel by theodore dreiser, as well as for it. Carrie meeber, the female protagonist of the text, is a symbol of ambition. Eighteenyearold carrie meeber is leaving her parents and her small midwestern town behind.
When a girl leaves her home at eighteen, she does one of two things. When drouet disappears carrie feels his absence greatly. Carrie soon becomes interested in him due to his fine clothing and manners. Cities were growing, the mccormick reaper made america the worlds largest agricultural producer, and five railroad systems spanning the country allowed people to travel from coast to coast with relative ease. Later when carrie grows tired of her sister s poor living conditions, she tells drouet not to see her there. Her companion, affected by her wonder, so contagious are all things, felt anew some interest in the city and pointed out its marvels. This is most evident in the relationship between hurstwood and carrie as only the readers are made privy to their thought processes. He does not have a smooth or expressive writing style, but his characters seem real and immediate, in my opinion. Hurstwood eventually confesses that he made up the whole drouet story. The man sitting behind her on the train, named drouet, starts talking to her. The couple plan to have carrie live with them while she works in the city. The books strengths include a brooding but compassionate view of humanity, a memorable cast of characters. Sister carrie, as other works by theodore dreiser represents the movement of naturalism in theater, film, and literature that seeks to replicate a believable everyday reality, as opposed to such movements as romanticism or surrealism, in which subjects may receive highly symbolic, idealistic, or even supernatural treatment.
Sister carrie study guide literature guide litcharts. Dreiser published sister carrie in 1900, a time when america was expanding rapidly. Apparently carries willingness to use people to better herself without any thought of the consequences caused quite a scandal in its day 1900 and the original manuscript had to be toned down before it could even be. Introduction this is a study guide for the book sister carrie written by theodore dreiser. At the beginning of the novel, carrie is penniless.
She takes a train from her hometown of columbia city, wisconsin, to chicago in the hopes of. Sister carrie is the perfect book to curl up with on a rainy, dreary day. In that respect, nothing in this book would be out of place in a progressive lecture on social purity. Parents need to know that stephen king s carrie is a classic novel of the supernatural, about a troubled teen with telekinetic powers who takes revenge on those whove bullied her. After a pretty long train ride, carrie starts to get suspicious. Once the bright days of summer pass by, a city takes on that somber garb of grey, wrapt in which it goes about its labours during the long winter.
Carrie is met at the station by her sister minnie hanson. Carrie meeber journeys to live with her sister in chicago to escape the boredom of rural life in wisconsin. While the american dream was supposed to be a collective success at its initial stage, ambition, along with a pinch of greed and materialism were perfect ingredients to the realization of an american nightmare rather. Learn exactly what happened in this chapter, scene, or section of sister carrie and what it means. The rest of the novel traces carries rise and hurstwoods fall. Coles is a touching family saga of love in the midst of clashing cultures. At the age of eighteen, she sets to chicago to realize her american dream. Sister carrie study guide contains a biography of theodore dreiser, literature essays, a complete etext, quiz questions, major themes. The two are immediately attracted to one another and exchange contact information.
That probably has something to do with its gloomy tone. Sister carrie is likewise a uniquely american story, and i think dreiser does a good job of capturing the conflicts from a female perspective. Theodore dreisers sister carrie was the first real book ive ever read in english. Theme analysis the failure of the characters to communicate with words is a recurring theme in this novel.
Find a summary of this and each chapter of sister carrie. It goes back to the old cliche that money doesnt guarantee happiness. Sister carrie is filled to the brim with timely messages of love, healing, and tolerance in a world steeped in prejudice and ignorance. It has been called the greatest of all american urban novels. It is thought that carrie will pay for her room and board in. When young carrie broward is orphaned and taken in by her sister jessie, she experiences a difficult adjustment to life in her sisters community and finds comfort in a loving relationship with zamel, a handsome and polite young man from iran.
He wrote commercial hits such as the genius, the financer, and sister carrie, the latter of which was adapted into the academy awardnominated film carrie. Choose the part of sister carrie which you want to read from the table of contents to get started. Sister carrie is a popular book by theodore dreiser. The two girls travel to the flat where minnie lives with her husband sven and their baby. In order to make ends meet dreiser worked at other literary jobs.
All central characters are products of a changing economydecline of agriculture and rise of industry in. Sister carrie by theodore dreiser plot summary litcharts. The novel opens with caroline sister carrie meeber moving from the. Sister carrie was the first masterpiece of american naturalism in its grittily factual presentation of the vagaries of urban life and in its ingenuous heroine, who goes unpunished for her transgressions against conventional morality. It is thought that carrie will pay for her room and board in order to help the hansons reduce expenses. Ive just finished reading theodore dreisers sister carrie. Sister carrie study guide contains a biography of theodore dreiser, literature essays, a complete etext, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis. Sister carrie cliffsnotes study guides book summaries.
This lesson discusses theodore dreisers classic american naturalist novel, sister carrie, as well as the concept of conspicuous consumption. Carries mother is a religious fanatic who spouts scripture while locking carrie away in a closet. Plot summary of sister carrie novel summaries analysis. Caroline meeber, known as carrie, leaves her home at age eighteen and takes the train to chicago. Jun 28, 2017 sister carrie by theodore dreiser about the book. Theodore dreisers sister carrie consists of 47 parts for ease of reading. Shes on a train headed for chicago where shes got plans to move in with her big sister minnie. Essay about sister carrie and the american dream 1626 words. When he does get home to carrie he gives a positive report of his business dealings and mentions getting married. Chapter summary for theodore dreisers sister carrie, chapters 2 3 summary.
Apparently carrie s willingness to use people to better herself without any thought of the consequences caused quite a scandal in its day 1900 and the original manuscript. It starts out looking like a simple morality play about the evils of the big city but carrie is no innocent girl from the country. Carrie white is humiliated when she gets her first period in a high school shower, and the other girls throw tampons at her. Read sister carrie online, free books by theodore dreiser. Normally, i read a worthwhile book such as this on my. Read sister carrie, free online version of the book by theodore dreiser, on. Sister carrie novelguide free study guide answers, book.
Sister carrie study guide contains a biography of theodore dreiser. While kings book was set in 1979, this carrie is set in a modernday small town. She meets drouet, a young man by whose fine clothing she is quite impressed in the train. Pretty much the only thing carrie likes about the place is the sound of the bells on the horsecars outside, and the apartment itself is pretty drab with shoddy furniture and threadbare carpet. Carrie arrives at her sister s onefloor apartment and we now learn that sis is named minnie. Theodore dreiser 18711945 was an american novelist best known for his naturalistic novels. Copy and paste one of these options to share this book elsewhere. In any novel, and particularly in sister carrie, the first chapter is extremely important. Upon arriving in chicago she says goodbye to him, but not before she has given him her address. Besides writing seminal hits, dreiser was a socialist and political activist who.
This is the chicago river, and he pointed to a little muddy creek, crowded with the. When carrie and zamels love turns to marriage, family and cultural values clash, suspicions arise, and the resulting tensions educate and inspire in surprising and affirming ways. Perfect for acing essays, tests, and quizzes, as well as for writing lesson plans. Ambition not only killed the cat but killed relationships as well in texts like sister carrie and death of a salesman. Well, we dont exactly know that yet but shell figure it out. Sister carrie by theodore dreiser, has been acknowledged as the greatest of all american urban novels. A young girl from a provincial town learns the bitter reality of a big city and great love.
Sister carrie 1900 is a novel by theodore dreiser about a young country girl who moves to the big city where she starts realizing her own american dream, first as a mistress to men that she perceives as superior, and later becoming a famous actress. Get a summary and analysis of the novel, then test. In it the author introduces his theme and plot through foreshadowing, careful arrangement of details, and introductory characterization. Complete summary of theodore dreisers sister carrie. While the book sold well in england, sister carrie did not enjoy much success in the united states, even though b. Sister carrie, by theodore dreiser full text free book. William heinemann published an english version of the book in 1901. Carrie s mother is a religious fanatic who spouts scripture while locking carrie away in a closet. Sister carrie 1900 is a novel by theodore dreiser about a young country girl who moves to the big city where she starts realizing her own. The two above mentioned texts not only expose their readers to a fictitious american tragedy but they also reflect the downfall of the real american dream that emerged in 1776 in the us society. Sister carrie 1900 is a novel by theodore dreiser about a young country girl who moves to. With laurence olivier, jennifer jones, miriam hopkins, eddie albert.
A part i sister carrie opens in 1889 with eighteenyearold caroline meeber on her way from her small hometown to the big city of chicago. Sister carrie 1900 is a novel by theodore dreiser about a young country girl who moves to the big city where she starts realizing her own american dream by first becoming a mistress to men that she perceives as superior and later as a famous actress. This book was a lesson in the journey from poor to rich and how even though moving up the ladder of success, sister carrie never achieved the peace and happiness she thought success and money would bring. Fallen woman in dreisers sister carrie freebooksummary. March 12, 2011 matela angloamerican literature fallen woman in theodore dreisers sister carrie introduction one might think that sister carrie is a love story, but rather it is a story of greed, declining morality, and selfish desires. Sister carrie and the american dream freebooksummary. Sister carrie, by theodore dreiser project gutenberg. While the book appalled americans, the english appreciated it. Hurstwood as a viable option is growing in her mind, and she is a bit startled when drouet mentions seeing him.