Women Roles in a White Heron by Sarah Orne Jewett

In the late 1800s, well known female author Sarah Orne Jewett wrote her short story, “A White Heron”. The short story showcases the life of a young girl named Sylvia, that moves with her grandmother in the country side of her town, where she will face a difficult decision she must make. Since they had lived in the countryside, the woods had been near her grandmother’s home, which one day she decides to explore. Sylvia runs into a young man who is hunting while she is exploring the forest after hearing the hunters whistle. The young man explains that he is searching for a rare bird, which Sylvia had seen before while exploring the forest earlier, and is now stuck between choosing to help this young man she is attracted to, to please him or keeping the rare bird-safe after growing a special relationship and love for nature and the animals around her. Ultimately Sylvia is unable to give up the rare bird’s location, which upsets the young man and then leaves, Sylvia is left with the thought of whether her decision was the right decision or not. In the story, the hunter seems to be representing masculinity, by being this tough hunter who wants to conquer and kill nature and all these innocent and rare animals, whereas Sylvia stands for femininity, innocence, and purity, and can almost be depicted as part of nature, respectful and protective of it. Sylvia wants to find her own identity, her own voice, but it is difficult when she has an urge to succumb to this masculine hunter and feels she must play a specific role, in finding a man to marry. She is trying to discover the place she is meant to occupy in society and in the world in general, by remaining strong and independent, Sylvia is able to reject the typical roles of women.

Throughout the story we can see signs that the women in the story establish and maintain some type of hierarchy and independence, the women in the story demonstrate they are capable to care for themselves. When the author wrote, “if the creature had not given good milk and plenty of it, the case would have seemed very different to her owners”. This leads the reader to infer that Mrs.Tilley and Sylvia not only depend on the cow for milk but also for their own living and overall welfare. Readers can see that Mrs. Tilley and all the other women in the story do not depend on a husband, man, or even a son for financial independence. This establishes them each as individuals that are capable of self-sufficiency. In addition, the statement suggests that Mrs. Tilley is a skilled woman that has the ability to operate and maintain her homestead. Mrs. Tilley runs some kind of independent operation, giving her a character and giving the appearance that she is most likely the head of the household, demonstrating that without the aid of men, a feminine only home can run properly. It actually turns out that Sylvia’s grandmother is in fact head of her household. When Sylvia brings the hunter back to her home, Sylvia wonders, “would not her grandmother consider her much to blame?” which is then followed by the cow who “[gives] a loud moo by way of explanation”. This demonstrates that both Sylvia and the cow somehow feel the need to provide an account for their actions reflects the authority of Mrs. Tilley. Sylvia’s anxiety and the cow’s offering demonstrate some kind of social order and structure within the homestead, led by Mrs. Tilley. During this scene, Sylvia’s grandmother in a way is guarding her home similar to how the typical man might traditionally guard his, by standing near the doorway.

The homestead appears to be calm and peaceful until the young man shows up, but the resistance and power of Sylvia overcome the force of the hunter and his intimidation fails. The author illustrates the young man’s inferior state through his youth, his refusal to fall under a feminine world, and, ultimately, through Sylvia’s decision of rejecting him. At the beginning of the story, Sylvia hears the young man and she hears “a boy’s whistle,” notice how she does not call it a man’s whistle. By classifying the hunter into someone who hasn't fully matured, the author heightens the authority and status of the much more mature and older Mrs. Tilley. The young man continues to display immaturity when he is asked about the birds he replies “Oh no, they’re stuffed and preserved, dozens and dozens of them...and I have shot or snared every one myself”. The phrase “dozens and dozens” is somewhat a childish response and his grammar is consistent with a child’s grammar and speech, while the way he brags about how he hunted birds and his pride in his hunting skills (“I have shot or snared every one myself”) reveals he is not as manly as they thought. The way Mrs. Tilley’s reacts, also shows how much older and wise she is compared to the young hunter. At one point she evens smiles “...ever since I was a boy,” and the narrator interjects “(Mrs. Tilley smiled)”. By using parentheses, the author highlights and draws attention to Mrs. Tilley. Mrs. Tilley’s amusement demonstrates that for being a woman, she is just as smart, if not smarter, and more practical than a man, which upsets the standard order of gender. At this point, it is fairly easy to recognize that the man is still a boy and that his form of masculinity is outdated compared to the fast and modern growing agency of femininity. In the story, we witness the characters search who they are and for their status, a struggle Sylvia must face. Her choice to protect the heron, which is part of feminine nature, instead of helping the passive-aggressive hunter, causing the ultimate shift in the status of genders.

After reconsidering the implications of Sylvia’s relationships with both the young sportsman and Nature, the other implications of the story become clear. Sylvia’s choice to protect the heron from the hunter and to live in communion with nature. According to Reynoldo, the connection between Sylvia and the birds, the birds are to mesmerize Sylvia. Jewett’s advice that a woman might “care enough to wish to take her away from such a life”. “Such a life” here might refer to life among men as a traditional wife. The story “portrays the high cost of the social construction of woman-as-marriageable-heterosexual,” but more importantly, it offers an alternative lifestyle. This alternative “away from such a life” is in the country, or, metaphorically, among women. Sylvia “tried to grow for eight years in a crowded manufacturing town, but...it seemed as if she never had been alive at all before she came to live at the farm”. When Sylvia lived in industrialization, city, mostly dominated by men, she suffered, but prospered in the feminine atmosphere of the countryside, indicating her innate sexual orientation. A statement such as, “Sylvia would have liked him better without his gun” shows a significance in the topic of the protagonist’s tendency. By choosing to protect the heron and reject the hunter, Sylvia acknowledges that the expectations placed upon women to find someone to marry and tend the household, she rejects them, and instead Sylvia embraces a lifestyle where it is dominated by women.

By metaphorically illustrating a young girl’s rejection of traditional gender roles, specifically the roles women are seeking to fulfill, the author uses a passive-aggressive technique to advocate this alternative subject. It is key to note that throughout the story Sylvia has the freedom to make her own decisions and choose her own role, which is the most important element in the story. The author is able to expand the options available to women. Since the characters of “A White Heron” live in a local or small place, in this case, they are able to transcend the scope of geography and to include the limits placed upon the feminine role. The author’s characters break those barriers and live well outside the centers of power and urban social hierarchies. Since the author avoids the basic realism route, she narrows the main idea of her short story, “A White Heron” to the main idea of Sylvia’s bond with nature. The gender topic taking place in “A White Heron” is not only related to the changes in society’s attitude towards different sexual orientations but also to the implications of general gender concepts. The author exaggerates a specific character that chooses not her orientation but her way of life, relating a local struggle to the universal. She takes an option available only to white males and gives that option to a young girl, and in doing so, defends a woman’s right to choose her lifestyle. The author of “A White Heron” is also able to demonstrate with her work that the notion of the choices people make are universal.