Character Clues

Character Analysis

Location

Mrs. Tilley's quaint New England cottage gives us a great deal of insight into her and Sylvia. Their home—and the surrounding area—help us make sense of their characters and the environment that shapes them

First off, there's the forest. It's not particularly inhabited (by humans, at least), yet Sylvia is able to navigate it "whether [her] eyes could see it or not" (1.1). If that doesn't show just how connected she is to the forest, then we don't know what will.

Then there's the home itself. We get the most insight into their house when the hunter notes that it is "the best thrift of an old-fashioned farmstead" (1.14). Although Mrs. Tilley doesn't have much money, she cares for her home in a responsible manner. This further emphasizes how important the hunter's money could be for Sylvia and her grandmother, while also making it clear that these two ladies do well by themselves with relatively little.

Props

When Sylvia first sees the hunter, she can't stop focusing on his gun. That gun represents a few different things, all of which threaten the way of life that Sylvia has come to love—and all of which we've discussed in some detail over in the "Symbolism, Imagery, Allegory" section. So, you know, click on over there to unpack this, er, loaded prop.

Family Life

Although the passage describing Sylvia's family life is brief, it goes a long way in explaining how she and her grandmother got to where they are in the story.

First, we learn that their family life is steeped in tragedy. Mrs. Tilley has "buried four children" (1.15) and doesn't know the whereabouts of a couple more, emphasizing the fact that Sylvia and her grandmother are relatively isolated, not just geographically, but emotionally. That Mrs. Tilley chose Sylvia out of all her grandchildren to come join her on the farm also clues us into an affinity between these two, suggesting they share an appreciation for where they are. Neither, in other words, is there by accident. They are both blood relatives and kindred spirits.