Main Character: Winesburg Ohio

The novel, Winesburg Ohio by Sherwood Anderson may at first seem like a collection of short stories but in reality, it is a fragmented narration of George Willard's life in relation to Winesburg Ohio. In the first story, "Hands," we discover that George is a reporter for the Winesburg Eagle. The story "Hands" is supposedly the beginning of the stories written by Anderson. It sets up the background for George in that it tells you that he is a reporter, he cares about people (this is shown by his constant attention that he gives to Biddlebaum), and he notices small things such as the movement of Biddlebaum's hands. In "Mother" we learn of Elizabeth Willard and her relationship with George. We discover that his mother was sick and we learn even more about George's character. George is caring which is shown through his visits to his mother. When his mother is ill, Anderson writes, "When she was ill and sat by the window in her room he sometimes went in the evening to make her a visit" (p. 25). He cares for his mother and understands the bond between them though it is outwardly overly formal. We also discover his background in "Mother." We learn about his relationship with his father and the relationship between the father and mother. The mother obviously dislikes her husband and the husband obviously wants little or nothing to do with neither his wife nor his son. The love that Elizabeth has for her son is shown when she is described as "a tigress whose cub had been threatened would she appear, coming out of the shadows..." (p. 32). George clearly comes from a loving mother and a good sense of family relationship, at least relative to mothers. The short story titled "The Philosopher" continues to show the dedication that George has to his work. He sees in depth into those that he is interviewing and works very hard for the small town newspaper. The fact that so many stories in Winesburg, Ohio are about George's reporting goes to show how dedicated he is to his work and how much time he spends doing work. The sheer immensity of stories about his work life is like a little glimpse of the proportion between his life and his work. However, it is sure that George does have somewhat of a personal life. This is proven in "Nobody Knows." George's affair with Louise Trunnion shows George's thoughts, habits, and social skills. He is not sure of himself and lacks some self confidence. However, he does believe that he should be correct. He also has a strong preference for a conversation with a man over a conversation with a woman. He says, "He had wanted more than anything else to talk to some man" (p. 47). George wants a man's opinion and a man's perspective after he spent so long with Louise. He feels more on level with a man than with Louise. Throughout the novel there are more examples of how George is the main character and how the novel is actually a narration of George's life in small pieces.