In 1921, the novel was originally awarded the Pulitzer Prize in fiction. Main Street was widely acclaimed at the time of its publication and has since ascended as an American classic. Sinclair drew inspiration for the novel from his own time spent in the small town of Sauk Center, Minnesota. However, Carol is resisted by the provincial nature of the small townsfolk who despise big-city values. As Carol contends with the small-minded, middle-class customs of her husband’s hometown, she envisions transforming the place into a bustling hub of culture, art and commerce. Set in the tiny town of Gopher Prairie, Minnesota, the story revolves around the trials and tribulations of Carol Milford Kennicott as she struggles to adjust to small-town living. GradeSaver, 16 July 2018 Web.Main Street is the 1920 satirical novel written by Sinclair Lewis. Next Section Glossary Previous Section Main Street Summary How To Cite in MLA Format Anonymous 'Main Street Characters'.

Will review the submission and either publish your submission or provide feedback. You can help us out by revising, improving and updatingĪfter you claim a section you’ll have 24 hours to send in a draft. Before long, she's the talk of the town, and the way the town mistreats her in the aftermath is the last straw for Carol who leaves right behind Fern. Poor Fern is a young lady and a high school teacher, not much older than her own students, and that means she is tempted by her own students, especially Cy Bogart, and at a dance, she can't help herself, and the two become involved. Erik is also Swedish, and the two are quickly discovered.

Oddly, Carol doesn't succeed in making a relationship between her and Guy, but she does find an affair with Erik Valborg instead. This character is a lawyer, and he helps us to understand Carol, because she finds herself very attracted to Guy, a liberal person who also is tired of small town life. Bea SorensonĪ free-thinking person and an ethnic Swede, Bea becomes the victim of the town's vicious judgment after the tragic death of his wife and child. Kennicott's natural authority in the small town attracted Carol to him, but he turns out to be more conservative than she originally hoped for, and he often criticizes her for her curious and spunky attitude. The novel mainly concerns her relationship to small town characters. Written by people who wish to remain anonymousĪ midwesterner and a librarian by trade, Carol's story takes her to a miserable small-town life, away from her more liberal life in St. We are thankful for their contributions and encourage you to make your own.

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