Eventide : A Series of Tales and Poems

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Afton, Effie, 1829-1887

Language:

English

Physical Description:

1 online resource : multiple file formats

Place of Publication:

Salt Lake City, UT : Project Gutenberg,

Summary:

"Eventide" by Effie Afton is a collection of tales and poems written in the mid-19th century. This work presents a vivid depiction of rural life in a fictional village named Wimbledon, exploring the struggles of its inhabitants against the backdrop of both personal and societal challenges. The narrative seems to center around themes of poverty, compassion, and the stark differences between social classes, highlighted through characters such as Dilly Danforth, a washerwoman, and her son Willie, who embody the challenges faced by the poor. At the start of the collection, the reader is introduced to the tranquil yet poignant setting of Wimbledon, where the stark disparity between the lives of the wealthy and the impoverished unfolds. The story opens with the gentle rhythms of the village at night, transitioning into the harsh reality faced by those in poverty. Willie Danforth is introduced, gathering sticks to keep warm while his mother struggles as a washerwoman for a callous employer. This opening establishes the overarching themes of hardship and resilience, as well as foreshadowing the potential for kindness amidst suffering, notably through the eventual introduction of characters like Ellen Williams, who seeks to provide comfort to those in need. The beginning effectively sets a melancholic tone, inviting readers into the intricate social fabric of Wimbledon. (This is an automatically generated summary.)

Contents:

Wimbledon; or, the Hermit of the Cedars

Scraggiewood, a tale of American life

Alice Orville; or, life in the South and West

Come to me when I'm dying

Ellen

I'm tired of life

Lines to a friend, on removing from her native village

Ho for California!

N. P. Rogers

Lines

Henry Clay

The soul's destiny

Lines to a married friend

New England Sabbath bells

My heart

Our Helen

My bonnet of blue

Dark-browed Martha.

Credits:

Produced by Curtis Weyant and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images produced by the Wright American Fiction Project.)

Notes:

Reading ease score: 78.8 (7th grade). Fairly easy to read.

Release date is 2006-12-26