The Golden Apples: Analysis of Major Characters
"The Golden Apples: Analysis of Major Characters" delves into the intricacies of life in Morgana, Mississippi, through a rich cast of characters shaped by their personal struggles and community dynamics. Central to the narrative is King MacLain, a wandering patriarch whose sporadic return to the town leads to complex relationships, particularly with his wife, Snowdie Hudson, who navigates motherhood and loss while managing their twin sons, Randall and Eugene. Randall grapples with personal turmoil, including a troubled marriage and a tragic love affair, whereas Eugene seeks a life beyond Morgana but faces sorrow in his family.
Katie Rainey, the town's storyteller and gossip, provides a narrative thread that connects the characters, culminating in her funeral, which signifies the end of an era in Morgana. Her daughter, Virgie, embodies rebellion and artistic aspiration, ultimately challenging societal expectations despite her humble beginnings. Meanwhile, Miss Eckhart, an outsider piano teacher, shares her passion for music with Virgie but faces her own struggles for acceptance within the community. Characters like Loch and Cassie Morrison further explore themes of vision and escape, revealing diverse perspectives on the limitations and beauty of life in Morgana. Overall, the analysis highlights how individual stories intertwine with broader themes of identity, loss, and the quest for belonging.
The Golden Apples: Analysis of Major Characters
Author: Eudora Welty
First published: 1949
Genre: Short fiction
Locale: The fictional town of Morgana, Mississippi
Plot: Social
Time: 1900–1940
King MacLain, the wandering patriarch of Morgana, Mississippi. He periodically reappears in Morgana for sexual encounters with the town's women. “Shower of Gold” is the story of his courtship of and marriage to Snowdie Hudson and the birth of their twin sons. “Sir Rabbit” tells of his sexual encounter with another Morgana woman. In “The Wanderers,” an aged King returns to Morgana to be cared for by his wife, but he still displays hints of his earlier rebelliousness.
Mrs. Snowdie Hudson MacLain, the albino wife of King MacLain. Deserted by her husband and left alone to rear her twin sons, Randall and Eugene, Snowdie takes in boarders. The opening story, “Shower of Gold,” tells of the birth of Snowdie's twin sons. In the last story, “The Wanderers,” Snowdie readies Katie Rainey's body for burial. Her association with birth and death frames the rest of the stories of Morgana.
Randall MacLain, one of King and Snowdie MacLain's twin sons. As children, the twins demonstrate the rebellious streak inherited from their father. “The Whole World Knows” tells the story of Ran's troubled relationship with his wife, Jinny Love. Separated from Jinny Love, Ran has an affair with Maideen Sumrall that ends tragically in Maideen's suicide. At the end of the book, Ran has been elected mayor because of the aura of glamour and revelation his past gives him.
Eugene MacLain, Randall's twin brother and one of the few characters who leave Morgana. Living in San Francisco, Eugene works for Bertsingers' Jewelers and marries his former landlady, Emma Gaines, but their love is replaced by sorrow after the death of their daughter. In “Music from Spain,” the habitual Eugene does the unexpected: He slaps his wife, skips work, and spends the day roaming the streets of San Francisco with a Spanish guitarist. Later on, Eugene returns to Mississippi without his wife and dies quietly of tuberculosis.
Katie Rainey, the wife of Fate Rainey, who sells milk, butter, and ice cream in Morgana. Katie Rainey is the narrator of the first story, “Shower of Gold,” and her funeral is the collection's final event. She is the gossip and storyteller of the town; her narrative introduces most of the characters and their relationships to one another.
Virgie Rainey, the vital, rebellious daughter of Fate and Katie Rainey. She is the one gifted musician among the town's children. Because Virgie is from a lower-class, Methodist family, she is not awarded the Presbyterian church's music scholarship. “June Recital” tells the story of Virgie's journey from talented, iconoclastic piano student to sexually mature piano player at the local movie theater. Virgie's sexuality and rebellion make her the object of gossip in the small town. Tired of the limitations imposed by Morgana, she escapes to Memphis for a short time but returns home to help her mother after Fate Rainey dies. Milking her mother's cows and typing for a lumber company replace her piano playing. After her mother's funeral, Virgie prepares to go back out into the world. She is a wanderer whose vision encompasses the beauty, tragedy, and mysteries of life.
Miss Eckhart, a German piano teacher who boards at the MacLain house. An outsider because of nationality, religion, and artistic sensibility, Miss Eckhart is tolerated but never accepted by the community. Miss Eckhart passes on to Virgie her love and knowledge of music; the two are linked by their roles as outsiders and wanderers. As a result of the war with Germany, fewer and fewer children in Morgana take lessons from her; eventually, she ends up impoverished on the County Farm. In “June Recital,” she tries to burn down the house where she taught music. Her attempted conflagration is an apt symbol of the passionate intensity and loneliness of the artist.
Loch Morrison, one of the narrators of “June Recital” and a Boy Scout. He is another of the visionary characters. In “Moon Lake,” as a lifeguard for a girls' summer camp, Loch saves the life of Easter, an orphan, who has almost drowned. Eventually, Loch leaves Morgana for New York City.
Cassie Morrison, Loch's older sister and the other narrator of “June Recital.” She is awarded the music scholarship, though she is less talented than Virgie. Like Loch and Virgie, Cassie can see beyond the surface of life into its mystery of mingled beauty and horror; unlike Loch and Virgie, she remains rooted in the conventionality of the small southern town. Although she envies Loch and Virgie their ability to grow beyond Morgana's confines, she chooses to stay in the town, give piano lessons, and tend the flowers that every spring blossom to spell out her dead mother's name.