# XVII explained — The Song of the Lark

> Chapter companion for The Song of the Lark by Willa Cather.

## What happens

Thea struggles with the demands of her father's church, reluctantly taking on organ and singing duties at prayer-meetings. She finds solace in reading Tolstoy's Anna Karenina late at night, escaping the mournful atmosphere of the meetings and the small-town pressures.

## Themes in this chapter

### Community and Alienation

Thea feels alienated by the demands of her church community and the mournful atmosphere of prayer-meetings, yet is bound by the fear of gossip.

### Self-Discovery and Identity

Thea's private reading of Anna Karenina represents her inner life and burgeoning sense of self, separate from her public role as the pastor's daughter.

### The Role of Place and Environment

The harsh winter landscape of Moonstone and the dim, stifling prayer-meeting room shape Thea's experiences and desire for escape.

## Character check-ins

### Thea Kronborg

Feels rebellious about church duties but submits to her father's pressure; finds escape in reading Anna Karenina.

### Mr. Kronborg

Insists Thea participate more in church work to avoid gossip; leads prayer-meetings.

### Mrs. Kronborg

Attends prayer-meetings with Thea but stays silent; offers practical comfort to Thea.

### Ray Kennedy

Takes Thea driving in the sand hills, providing a welcome escape from her labors.

### Dr. Howard Archie

Away from home much of the year, having invested in mines.

### Gunner

Reading a Jules Verne book by the stove at home.

## Key lines

> The fear of the tongue, that terror of little towns, is usually felt more keenly by the minister's family than by other households.

In small towns, the minister's family is especially sensitive to gossip and public opinion.

_Highlights the social pressure on the Kronborg family._

> Thea accepted the mournfulness of the prayer-meetings as a kind of spiritual discipline, like funerals. She always read late after she went home and felt a stronger wish than usual to live and to be happy.

Thea endured the sad prayer-meetings as a form of training, and afterward reading made her more eager to live joyfully.

_Shows Thea's internal response to the oppressive religious environment._

> The book was a poor translation of Anna Karenina . Thea opened it at a mark, and fixed her eyes intently upon the small print. The hymns, the sick girl, the resigned black figures were forgotten. It was the night of the ball in Moscow.

Thea became absorbed in a cheap translation of Anna Karenina, escaping into the glamorous ball scene in Moscow and forgetting the prayer-meeting.

_Illustrates Thea's imaginative escape through literature._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_song_of_the_lark_se/chapters/xvii
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_song_of_the_lark_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_song_of_the_lark_se/chapters