The Country of the Pointed Firs

In the first chapter of Jewett's stories she says, "When one really knows a village like this and its surroundings, it is like becoming acquainted with a single person. The process of falling in love at first sight is as final as it is swift in such a case, but the growth of true friendship may be a lifelong affair" (1). This passage clued me in to what the people of Dunnet would be like. It made me feel as though everyone was connected in some way; everyone knows the story of everyone else. I thought it was interesting that Jewett compared this to falling in love at first sight. Maybe she was trying to imply that what you get from the people in the town is what life is really like. There are not necessarily any secrets or confusing elements to life. You are certain of your place in Dunnet, just as you are with everyone else's.

In Mrs. Todd's section of the story she gives more insight to the way people in Dunnet are: "...I have never had nobody I could so trust" (4). Here Mrs. Todd is talking to the narrator about her life. It's interesting to think that even though the people in this town all seem to have a connection, they are also very much apart too. They each have such a distinct story that separates them from the rest of the town. This could be why Jewett divides up her stories the way she does. She wants each character or each situation to have its own distinct attention brought to it. Everyone's story is important in Dunnet.