Emily of New Moon · Chapter
The House in the Hollow explained
Emily Starr lives with her father Douglas in a secluded house in a hollow, finding companionship in nature, her cat Mike, and her imagination.
What happens
Emily Starr lives with her father Douglas in a secluded house in a hollow, finding companionship in nature, her cat Mike, and her imagination. After a dull, cold day, she ventures out for a walk in the spruce barrens, where she experiences 'the flash'—a moment of transcendent beauty and wonder. Upon returning home, Ellen Greene delivers the devastating news that her father has only a short time to live.
Themes in this chapter
Imagination and Creativity
Emily's rich inner world is central; she personifies the wind, sees magic in the barrens, and feels compelled to write down her experiences.
Loss and Grief
The chapter foreshadows the impending loss of Emily's father, with Ellen Greene's revelation casting a shadow over Emily's joyful walk.
Nature and Beauty
Nature is vividly described as a source of comfort and wonder for Emily, from the Wind Woman to the 'flash' of transcendent beauty.
Characters to notice
- Emily Byrd Starr
The protagonist, a imaginative and sensitive child who finds joy in nature and writing.
- Douglas Starr
Emily's father, who is ill and spends the day resting on the lounge.
- Ellen Greene
The household helper who is disturbed about something and ultimately reveals Douglas's impending death.
- Wind Woman
Emily's imaginary companion, personifying the wind, who accompanies her on walks.
- Mike II
Emily's cat, mentioned as one of her companions.
- Saucy Sal
Another of Emily's animal companions, mentioned alongside Mike.
Key passages
“The house in the hollow was 'a mile from anywhere'—so Maywood people said. It was situated in a grassy little dale, looking as if it had never been built like other houses but had grown up there like a big, brown mushroom.”
The isolated house in the hollow seemed to have sprouted naturally from the landscape, like a mushroom.
Establishes the setting and the house's organic, secluded feel.
“Emily didn't know she was being pitied and didn't know what lonesomeness meant. She had plenty of company. There was Father—and Mike—and Saucy Sal. The Wind Woman was always around; and there were the trees—Adam-and-Eve, and the Rooster Pine, and all the friendly lady-birches.”
Emily felt no loneliness because she was surrounded by her father, pets, and the personified natural world.
Highlights Emily's imaginative companionship and her lack of awareness of her own poverty.
“And then, for one glorious, supreme moment, came 'the flash.' Emily called it that, although she felt that the name didn't exactly describe it. It couldn't be described—not even to Father, who always seemed a little puzzled by it.”
Emily experienced a rare, indescribable moment of transcendent beauty she called 'the flash,' which she could not fully explain even to her father.
Introduces the central mystical experience that defines Emily's artistic sensibility.
“Do you know that your pa has only a week or two more to live?”
Ellen Greene bluntly informs Emily that her father is dying.
The pivotal moment that shatters Emily's happiness and sets the story's tragic trajectory.
