A Wagner Matinee

"A Wagner Matinee" is told about a woman's life from the perspective of her nephew. In the story, the woman lives in the city (Cather). Then, she marries a man, and they move to the country. Where she is at in the country is away from everyone else. She went with the man because she loved him and wanted to live life with him. The woman was used to the city life and loved going to see shows in the theater, but moved to the country anyway. She did that for her husband. "A Wagner Matinee is also about regrets. This is because the woman goes back to the city and visits her nephew, and she realizes how much she misses the city life. Her nephew takes her to see a show at the theater and it sparks her memory, and she thinks of all of the good things about the city that she no longer has. In the city the people take care of themselves and look proper and presentable. she forgot about the city and the whole musical world in which she was enthralled in before she left the city. This story is about the regrets that this woman has. It is also a story about love and sacrifice (Cather). This story actually does not seem to have much in common with Emerson and Thoreau, but when you look a little deeper, there are a few similarities. In "A Wagner Matinee" the narrator of the story is very close to his aunt. He reminisces of being raised by his aunt and of all of the many things his aunt taught him in life. In "Critical Companion to Ralph Waldo Emerson", Emerson tells of his own life (Wayne). In his life, his aunt had a great amount of influence, and was in fact the one who caused him to have interest in being a Christian. His father died when he was young, and his mother raised him and his brothers along with her sister. Emerson's mom and aunt held much influence in his life, were very important to him, and contributed greatly to his upbringing, just as the aunt of the narrator in "A Wagner Matinee" was (Wayne) (Cather).

"A Wagner Matinee." Willa Cather's Short Story:. Web. 24 Feb. 2012. .

"Thoreau's Walden - an Annotated Edition." The Thoreau Reader. Web. 24 Feb. 2012. .

"Thoreau's Civil Disobedience - with Annotated Text." The Thoreau Reader. Web. 26 Jan. 2012.

Wayne, Tiffany K., ed. "Emerson, Ralph Waldo." Critical Companion to Ralph Waldo Emerson: A Literary Reference to His Life and Work, Critical Companion. New York: Chelsea House Publishing, 2010.Bloom's Literary Reference Online. Facts On File, Inc. http://www.fofweb.com/activelink2.asp?ItemID=WE54&SID=5&iPin= CCRWE0001&SingleRecord=True (accessed March 9, 2012).