The Wide, Wide World
The Wide, Wide World is an 1850 novel by Susan Warner, published under the pseudonym Elizabeth Wetherell. It is often acclaimed as America's first bestseller.
Plot
The Wide, Wide World is a work of sentimentalism about the life of young Ellen Montgomery. The story begins with Ellen's happy life being disrupted by the fact that her mother is very ill and her father must take her to Europe, requiring Ellen to leave home to live with an almost-unknown aunt. Though Ellen tries to act strong for her mother's sake, she is devastated and can find solace in nothing.Eventually the day comes when Ellen must say goodbye to her mother and travel in the company of strangers to her aunt's home. Unfortunately these strangers are unkind to Ellen and she tries to leave the boat on which they are traveling. An old man sees Ellen crying and tells her to trust in God. He teaches her about being a Christian, as her mother had done, and asks her if she is ready to give her heart to Jesus. After talking with the man, Ellen becomes determined to become a true Christian, which gives her strength for the rest of the journey to her aunt's place in Thirwall.
On Ellen's first night in Thirwall, she learns that her father forgot to inform her aunt that she was coming, so a "Mr. Van Brunt" escorts her to her aunt's home. This aunt, Fortune Emerson, proves to be quite different from Ellen's loving mother: she treats Ellen unkindly and refuses to let her attend school. Ellen hates living with Fortune and comes to find comfort in the society of Mr. Van Brunt and other neighbors as she becomes more familiar with her new surroundings.
One day, discovering that her aunt withheld a letter from Mrs. Montgomery, Ellen runs crying into the woods. There she meets Alice Humphreys, the daughter of a local minister. Alice is kind to Ellen and invites her to tea the next day, to give Ellen a chance to tell her troubles; maybe Alice would be able to help. The girls become fast friends and Alice adopts Ellen as a sister, offering to educate her and guide her spiritually, teaching her to forgive others and trust in the Lord.
Alice and her brother John, who is away at school much of the time, treat Ellen like family, even inviting her to spend Christmas in the nearby town of Ventnor with them and their friends, the Marshmans. While there, Ellen meets another Ellen, Ellen Chauncey. She also gets better acquainted with John Humphreys, who comforts her many times after the other children tease her. Ellen comes to realize that if she hadn't needed to be separated from her mother, she might never have met Alice and John.
About a year later, one day when Ellen visits town, she overhears from some ladies' conversation that her mother has died. Devastated, she turns to Alice and her Bible for comfort. She stays with Alice and John until Aunt Fortune becomes ill and Ellen must look after her. Eventually Aunt Fortune recovers and Ellen returns to Alice and her other friends.
After Mr. Van Brunt's mother dies, he decides to marry Aunt Fortune; soon after, Alice tells Ellen that she is very ill and will soon be "going home" to Heaven; Ellen is not to grieve for her but to trust in God. She also invites Ellen to take her place in the Humphreys household. Ellen immediately moves in and begins by nursing Alice through her final weeks. After Alice dies, Ellen turns to John for guidance. He takes over as her tutor, spiritual advisor, and guiding light. By the time a Humphreys relative dies in England and John must travel overseas to handle the family's business, Ellen is a stronger person.
One day Nancy visits Ellen, bringing letters she has found while cleaning Fortune's house. They are for Ellen from her mother and express the wish that Ellen go live with relatives in Scotland; after sharing the letters with Mr. Humphreys, Ellen decides she must honor her parents' wishes so the Humphreys send her to Scotland to live with the Lindsays: her grandmother and uncle Lindsay and Lady Keith. They welcome her into their home and find her delightful, but they become very possessive of her and force her to denounce her identity as an American and as a Montgomery. Mr. Lindsay even makes Ellen call him “father” and refers to her as his “own little daughter.” The Lindsays also discourage Ellen's faith, as they don't see religion as being important to someone Ellen's age. Ellen finds it hard to live without her daily hours set aside for studying religion, but still tries hard to live by her faith and everything that John and Alice taught her.
Ellen misses John more than anything, and during a New Year's Eve party at the Lindsays', he shows up asking for her. The Lindsays try to keep them apart, but they are unsuccessful. During their emotional reunion John reminds Ellen to keep her faith; in a few years, when she will be able to choose where she lives, she can return to America and live with him. When Ellen introduces John to the Lindsays, they actually become fond of him. John must soon return to America, but not without promising Ellen that they will be together forever soon. In an unpublished chapter at the end of the book, Ellen returns to America as Mrs. John Humphreys.
Characters
Primary Characters:- Ellen Montgomery: The story's protagonist. Young and naïve at the story's beginning, Ellen lives happily with her mother as her sole companion and teacher. After being torn away from her mother, Ellen struggles to learn to love God and live a Christian life in the face of adversity.
- Mrs. Montgomery: Ellen's mother. Plagued with health problems, Mrs. Montgomery finds comfort only in Ellen and God. Although unable to perform many of the duties of a mother and wife, she does her best to teach Ellen about God and how to be a lady.
- Fortune Emerson: Captain Montgomery's half-sister is stern and unfeeling towards Ellen from the beginning. She refuses to let Ellen attend school and even withholds her mother's letter from Ellen.
- Alice Humphreys: Daughter of a minister. Kind and gentle, she becomes Ellen's companion and spiritual counselor and helps Ellen find solace in the Lord while living with Aunt Fortune. Eventually Alice becomes sick and dies, but not before teaching Ellen to learn to trust in God.
- John Humphreys: Alice's beloved brother. A handsome and charming young man, he becomes as close as a brother to Ellen. After Alice's death, John becomes Ellen's guide through the world, teaching her how to be a good Christian and a good person.
- The Lindsays: Ellen's family on her mother's side. Grandmother Lindsay; and Mr. Lindsay and Lady Keith, Ellen's uncle and aunt; adopt her readily into their family but become extremely possessive of her and make her denounce her identity as an American and a Montgomery. They also discourage Ellen's devotion to her faith.
- Captain Montgomery: Ellen's negligent father was often away from home and felt little sympathy for wife or daughter during their forced separation.
- Mr. Van Brunt: Fortune's farmhand. He is intimidating at first, though Ellen learns to love him. He feels kindly towards Ellen, often defending her when her aunt mistreats her.
- Nancy Vawse: A girl who lives nearby with her grandmother, she is thought by most to be "a bad sort"; though Ellen doesn't like her at first, she proves later to be a better person.
- Mrs. Vawse: Nancy's grandmother, a kindly old lady who lives on a mountain. She teaches French to Ellen and Alice and later cares for Ellen after Alice dies and John returns to school.
- Mr. Humphreys: Alice and John's father, a local minister. He is a quiet man who keeps to himself, though Ellen becomes like a daughter to him and comforts him after Alice dies.
- The Marshmans: Humphreys-family friends who live in a nearby town. They are kind to Ellen and treat her well when she is with them.
- Ellen Chauncey: A young girl Ellen meets while staying with the Marshmans.
- Margery: Alice's loyal servant who came from England with the Humphreys. She helps Ellen learn to take Alice's place in the household.
Themes
- One of themes present in The Wide, Wide World is that everything in life, even the bad things, is caused by God and leads to something good, especially in the spiritual sense. Ellen is very sad when she learns that her mother must leave, but reminds herself that the trip will make her mother healthy again. When she goes to the store to try and buy some merino cloth, she meets a salesman who treats her very badly and makes her cry, but as a result she gets to know a generous old gentleman who provides her with certain things for her trip that she might not have gotten otherwise. On the steamboat, the other girls make fun of Ellen and send her crying off to another part of the boat, but through this she met a man who teaches her many things about Christianity. When at the Marshmans’ house, she meets children who give her a hard time with her faith, but her friend Alice and Ellen Chauncey are there for her and comfort her. Through this theme, Susan Warner wanted people to see that God did not send misery upon his children for no reason, but used suffering as a means to bring them closer to Him. Ellen learns this and is better able to cope with problems in her life.
- Another theme present in the novel is that there are always good people present among the bad folks. Mr. Saunders, a cold-hearted clerk, is contrasted with an old gentleman who is very kind to Ellen. Captain Montgomery, a man who doesn't seem to care much for his daughter or her mother, is married to Mrs. Montgomery, a kind woman who loves Ellen with all of her heart. Ellen is forced to travel with Mrs. Dunscombe and her daughters, who find pleasure in mocking Ellen and her less-than-ideal clothes. After leaving them, Ellen meets a young man who spends much time with Ellen, teaching her about becoming a Christian and sincerely caring for the little girl. Aunt Fortune, who makes it obvious that Ellen is unwanted at her house, lives close to Mrs. Van Brunt, an older woman who cares for Ellen and acts kindly to her. Ellen meets people at the Marshmans’ Christmas party who give her a hard time on purpose, but she has many friends there as well. This seems to be saying that even though a person might be surrounded with bad people who make everyone around them suffer, there are still many kind people in this world that will offer their help when the time comes. Ellen meets many different kinds of people throughout the story, some of which are annoying and taunt her faith in God, but some who become real friends and shape Ellen's personality.
- A third theme that is present in this book is that those who desire to grow spiritually will receive the help of God if they honestly have that desire. When talking to her mother before the parting, Ellen is determined to live a perfect, Christian life and be an example for everyone around her. However, as soon as she gets on the boat, she discovers that her heart holds negative feelings towards the people around her. After meeting the Christian man on the boat, she realizes how hard her heart is, and her desire to live a good life is rekindled. She fails at this again, however, when she gets to Aunt Fortune's house, where she directly disobeys her aunt and throws fits when things aren't done to her liking. But she realizes her mistakes and wants to be good, and God sends her a young woman who acts as a spiritual guide for the girl. Through this, Warner was telling people not to give up when they made mistakes, and showing how God comes to those who seek him. Since The Wide, Wide World is a Christian book, it aimed to teach readers how seek God and encourage those who didn't exactly know how to go about doing that, but had a true desire to be closer to Him.
- Another theme seen in the story is that God has an unlimited supply of strength, and is willing to give it to anyone who desires it. Poor Ellen went through just about everything in her life. By the age of 10, she was separated from her mother forever, mistreated at the hands of others, mocked for her faith in God, and forced to move from her homeland. However, instead of whining and complaining she asks God to help her, and she is not left alone in this world. Warner knew that times weren't easy for everyone, just like today, and wanted people to know that there was an everlasting source of encouragement available at any time of day, anywhere in the world. She uses Ellen as an example, who doesn't despair but, with God's help, lives happily after she marries John.