A heartwarming tale that has become one of the most loved children's stories of all time, Eleanor H. Porter's 1913 best-seller—the first in a long series of Pollyanna novels by the author and other writers—is a beautiful story with a powerful moral message.
This book ranked eighth best selling American novel in 1913, second in 1914 and fourth in 1915. It deserves its position as a classic, even though the title character's name has been unfairly maligned in recent decades. Having read it yet again, I'm convinced that those who criticise this delightful heroine must be the very people who haven't read the book. Because she certainly isn't the toxic optimist they perceive her to be. In all honesty, my cheesiness radar barely flickered.
11-year-old Pollyanna, is sent to live with her gruff Aunt Polly after the death of her minister father. Aunt Polly is stewing over a failed love affair from years ago, and seems to think her history of disappointment excuses her for making everyone else's lives miserable too. Being asked to take her orphan niece under her wing seems a huge imposition, but Pollyanna is a cheery soul who manages to transform the gloomy attitudes of not only her aunt but many other townspeople with the 'Glad Game' her father taught her. In every situation, there will always be something to be glad about and searching for it is part of the fun. Whenever we pounce on these elusive goods rather than grumble about whatever is getting us down, we'll weather trials faster. A more old-fashioned way of saying it is that every cloud has a silver lining. But Pollyanna lives the proverb so that it's practical and not hackneyed.
I think people assume that she refuses to acknowledge the bad side of life at all, choosing to live in a delusional world of denial. That's way off track. Pollyanna never denies the bad. She just chooses to accentuate the good, which seems a healthy way to live. Some of the same columnists, life coaches and psychologists who endorse gratitude journals and blessing jars are the same people who say, "I'm not suggesting that you become a Pollyanna." As a matter of fact, I believe they are. Hey folks, please do your research before slinging mud at a person who is right on board with your key principles.
There are other characters with great supporting roles. Aunt Polly is surely a product of the austere nineteenth century. I'm glad we rarely come across quite such sourpusses in the twenty-first century. (That's my attempt at the game!) There is Mr John Pendleton, the taciturn gentleman who, similar to Miss Polly, refuses to move on from being turned down by a woman he loved years ago. I appreciate the laugh we get when Pollyanna mentions the skeleton he keeps in his closet.
I think people assume that she refuses to acknowledge the bad side of life at all, choosing to live in a delusional world of denial. That's way off track. Pollyanna never denies the bad. She just chooses to accentuate the good, which seems a healthy way to live. Some of the same columnists, life coaches and psychologists who endorse gratitude journals and blessing jars are the same people who say, "I'm not suggesting that you become a Pollyanna." As a matter of fact, I believe they are. Hey folks, please do your research before slinging mud at a person who is right on board with your key principles.
There are other characters with great supporting roles. Aunt Polly is surely a product of the austere nineteenth century. I'm glad we rarely come across quite such sourpusses in the twenty-first century. (That's my attempt at the game!) There is Mr John Pendleton, the taciturn gentleman who, similar to Miss Polly, refuses to move on from being turned down by a woman he loved years ago. I appreciate the laugh we get when Pollyanna mentions the skeleton he keeps in his closet.
We get a glimpse into the dour world of the minister, Paul Ford, and share his wonderment when Pollyanna chatters about the Bible's 800 'rejoicing texts' and her father's opinion that since God took the trouble to tell us to be glad so many times, he must really mean it. And there is little Jimmy Bean, the homeless boy who runs away from an orphanage. One of my favourite scenes doesn't even include Pollyanna. It's when Jimmy takes it upon himself to explain to Aunt Polly why she must let Dr Chilton see Pollyanna in her desperate hour of need.
This time around, I appreciate how Pollyanna defends her downtime, or as she calls it, 'time to just live.' In fairness to Aunt Polly, she certainly allows Pollyanna ample time to traipse around town socialising with all and sundry. But the world of this storybook town of Beldingsville is one with completely no stranger danger. Everyone is an unimpeachable citizen, including grouches with skeletons in their closets, like John Pendleton. They might be cranks, but they're trustworthy, town cranks.
I've got to add though, Jimmy's plight is deeply disturbing, even in a feel-good story, because it takes months before a stable home becomes possible, and even then it's sort of grudgingly at first. I can't help wondering what his lifestyle looked like in the meantime. What sort of small town turns a blind eye to a homeless 10-year-old boy lingering around, presumably getting more desperate and bedraggled?
If you follow modern labels, Pollyanna is obviously one of those sunny, sanguine children, a true extrovert who gets her energy from rubbing shoulders with other people and never gets brain freeze. I wish I had her gift of the gab. But even those of us who are introverts and more on the melancholic or phlegmatic scale can take on board the main theme of Pollyanna in our own way. I guess that's another thing to be glad about. Overall, it's satisfying to see others rally around Pollyanna in her time of great need, reminding her of the benefit of her own game when it seems impossible to play.
If you follow modern labels, Pollyanna is obviously one of those sunny, sanguine children, a true extrovert who gets her energy from rubbing shoulders with other people and never gets brain freeze. I wish I had her gift of the gab. But even those of us who are introverts and more on the melancholic or phlegmatic scale can take on board the main theme of Pollyanna in our own way. I guess that's another thing to be glad about. Overall, it's satisfying to see others rally around Pollyanna in her time of great need, reminding her of the benefit of her own game when it seems impossible to play.
I say bring on more. I anticipate that we can only improve our attitudes by reading this series. Next up will be Pollyanna Grows Up
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