The Dollmaker by Harriette Arnow

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The Dollmaker by Harriette Arnow

The Dollmaker by Harriette Arnow is the story of one woman whose genius is undermined by those surrounding her. Gertie Nevels, a tall, big-boned woman raised in the Appalacian region of Kentucky is creative, self-sufficient, strong, and resourceful. In her native home, Gertie creates for herself an atmosphere where she is able to survive any situation and has everything under control. As Wilton Eckley states in “From Kentucky to Detroit“, a chapter in his novel, Harriette Arnow, “Certainly while the family is living in Kentucky, she [Gertie] is self-sufficient and has no fear that she will be unable to get along if Clovis is called to join all the other younger men of the community in the service” (87). In fact, she is able to make her dream of moving into a larger farm and expand her comforts and resources, along with providing better for her family without the help of her husband; however, when she is forced to move to Detroit, she is out of her element. Throughout her life, she has molded herself to be able to do any task that is stereotypical of males or females. Even though initially she finds it hard to live the “city life” that is typical of Detroit, she is able to adapt her mind to be able to tolerate- and eventually accept- her new surroundings. Although Gertie Nevels shows obvious genius, because of her geographic disposition and gender, she is unable to use her abilities to the fullest extent.

Harriette Arnow uses the first scene in her novel to exemplify Gertie’s strength, intellectual capacity, practical usage of skills and courage; furthermore, she portrays (within the reaction of the soldiers) the reaction that outsiders usually have to her. Because of her dialect a...

... middle of paper ...

...er needs the block of wood to feel as if she can connect to God. Harriette Arnow, in her “Letter from a Writer“, states that “Gertie split her wood because she didn’t need it anymore; it was not an act of despair.” Moreover, “It hurt and was a sacrifice in a sense made for all the things she hated” (25). Furthermore, she comments that Gertie “split the block of wood, knowing the things she had wanted in the face were about her in the world.”

Works Cited

Arnow, Harriette. The Dollmaker. New York: Avon, 1972.

... “Letter from a Writer.” Now and Then 5 (Fall 1988): 24-25.

Eckley, Wilton. “From Kentucky to Detroit City” (Chapter 5). Harriette Arnow. New York: Twayne, 1974. 85-100.

Walsh, Kathleen. “Free Will and Determinism in Harriette Arnow’s The Dollmaker.” South Atlantic Review 49.4 (1984): 91-106.

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