The Yearling

“Small clouds were stationary, like bolls of cotton.”

The Yearling begins in the spring, with Rawlings using sensory details to give the narrative a strong sense of time and setting. Using a simile to compare clouds to cotton gives the reader a visual sense of how fluffy and unassuming they appear.

“[…] but ‘twa’n’t mine and I wouldn’t of wanted to die with it on me. Dead or alive, I only want what’s mine.”

Penny Baxter is a man of character. When the shopkeeper gave him an extra dollar in change, he went to great lengths to return it. He takes his integrity seriously and says he wouldn’t want to die with the extra money in his pocket. This is ironic as the Baxters could use the money, but Penny sees the extra change as theft.

“This was the saw-grass. It grew knee-deep in water, its harsh saw-edged blades rising so thickly that it seemed a compact vegetation.”

This quote’s dense vegetation gets its name from its sharp edges that can slice through human skin. The description of the native plant shows the harshness of the climate and landscape, and highlights the way the natural world is central to the characters and plot.