Swallow Barn is the perfect american village. It has a mansion that is very old and worn out. Kennedy says that it should have been abandoned a long time ago. The roof was caving in and the door was falling off its hinges. The village has beautiful shrubs and a stream. The barn has terrible trees and a barn that is disjointed.
Kennedy was a very interesting author. He said that slave women were portrayed as being happy and liked working for him. He also stated that the women liked being home and taking care of the young, mischievous kids. Kennedy wrote about the stereotypes of the south. He wrote about people's places in society.
Frank is the owner of Swallow Barn. He has a good temper, good cheer, has a comfortable figure, and is handsome. A quote from the book states,"I think he prides himself on his personal appearance, for he has a handsome face, with dark blue eyes, and a high forehead that is scantily embellished by some silver tip locks."He dresses new and glossy. He goes to Washington one day because he wants to investigate politics there. He gets disturbed by what he hears. He comes back very pissed off at Congress. When he comes back he says he agrees with the things that John Adams says. "Frank relapsed into an indolent man of opposition." Frank became a public man and now thinks that a good citizen shouldn't solicit nor decline office. He thought that Virginia supports the Constitution very much. He agrees with the things that John Smith says. Frank still is very indecisive about congress though. When he's with his friends he goes back to his old self and the beliefs about congress that he once had before. He is all the stereotypes of a southern gentleman. He also is nice to his slaves so he's seen in good light with them. Frank thinks of himself as a high churchman and says that he goes all the time but nobody sees him there. He contradicts himself a lot.
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3 comments:
"Swallow Barn" is full of contradiction. There are the obvious, in text, contradictions, as well as the underlying contradictions.
It appears that Frank Meriweather and his dwelling are perfect opposites. Frank is well put together and fits the stereotype of the perfect Southern gentlemen. He wears new clothes of fine fabric, is handsome, and takes pride in himself. He seems like a very warm and inviting man. On the other hand, Swallow Barn is not in good shape and seems almost uninviting. It is literally falling apart. The door is practically off its hinges, the roof is too big for the barn, and there are cracks that allow the wind through. While Frank himself is in good shape, his home is not.
There is also the obvious contradictions. Frank is very indecisive. As you mentioned, he went to Congress and became very upset. He proceeds to change his feelings rapidly. His erradict changes of mind remind me of Jeffereson. Jefferson was also very indecisive. For both men, it seems that it doesn't take much for them to change their minds.
Swallow Barn is a really intersting piece. I mean first off it starts off with the description of the house and the barn. And then the characters are I introduced. I feel as if that when the house is introduced it's quite different than when Frank Meriweather is introduced. I mean the thing is the description of the house is old, falling apart, and just wasting away. Then when Frank is introduced he's looking like this gorgeous well aged and well kept man. Also i feel as if he is very indecisive in the story as it goes on. Especially when he goes to congress and becomes upset. It's weird to see how he changes so fast. But overall i loved the descriptions and i felt that the story was really interesting.
Greg, I think you are absolutely right in saying that Swallow Barn has a lot of contradictions and it is also about the stereotypes of the south. I agree with you that Frank is very indecisive. It can then be derived that Kennedy is saying a typical southern gentlement is like this, indecisive and perhaps easy going. It also seems that the description of the plantation itself was contradictory, rather not what we may have pictured in our minds.
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