Journal #26 Sarah Orne Jewett: Just A Crush!

QUOTE:

“All day long he did not once make her troubled or afraid except when he brought down some unsuspecting singing creature from its bough. Sylvia would have liked him vastly better without his gun; she could not understand why he killed the very birds he seemed to like so much” (Jewett 526).


SUMMARY:

Sylvia seems to be developing a crush on the young hunter as she follows him hunting birds. However, she doesn’t like the fact that he kills the birds, so she doesn’t actually help him.


RESPONSE:

Since Sylvia “has been nine years growing” (Jewett 528), which I still consider to be quite young, I think that she merely has a simple crush on the young hunter. Her crush isn’t serious enough to make her act against her personal “blueprint” for her life, or her own set of specific values, however. When Sylvia first realizes that she is somewhat fascinated with a young man who wants to kill the beautiful creatures that she even considers to be her real friends, she becomes very conflicted. Sylvia begins her own small battle inside, weighing out exactly which of her choices carries the most meaning to her. It seems to be a battle that deals with literally “selling out” in order to get ahead in life.

It’s very fitting for Sylvia to be nine years old and having this conflict though. I think she’s young enough to still value her animal friends, almost like “imaginary” friends, but she’s also starting to notice the opposite sex in more of a “dreamy” way. She wants to be “liked” by the young man, but I don’t think she wants him to necessarily like her in a romantic way. This is why I describe Sylvia’s feelings toward the young hunter as a crush, because she has a short-lived infatuation with a new person who happens to be male, and she also seems to be infatuated with the ten dollars the young hunter offers. Everything about the hunter’s plan sounds pretty nice to Sylvia, except for the fact that it involves killing the creatures that she considers to be possibly her true friends.