Carnival in the Novels of Willa Cather : When the World Becomes Grotesque (New ed.)

This work analyzes Willa Cather's fiction using images of laughter, feasting and dancing.

The study employs Bakhtin's theory of the carnival and demonstrates that for Cather, festivals are transformative events.

Willa Cather possesses a keen awareness of the power of festive life; in her fiction, celebrations, dancing and parties are notably important occasions.

Many notable moments are set in June, during the time of Midsummer festivals, and nearly every novel includes scenes from the Christmas season.

From a literal depiction of a festive event such as a French church fair during midsummer, Cather moves to metaphoric treatment of it as the world-turned-upside down or the grotesque.

Such events unbury the dead, lift out the transgressive, or turn the usual order of the world upside down.

These occasions celebrate excesses, revel in the underbelly, question authority and give voice to persons without status, such as immigrants and hired girls.

This book explores Cather's adoption of these occasions, the meaning and traditions surrounding them, and the ways in which they take on greater importance in her fiction.