Article #51-2 | Gutenberg Articles

Excerpt

Excerpt from Anne of the Island, by L. M. Montgomery

“When is Mrs. Lynde going to move up?” asked Diana, as if she had not
heard Anne’s remark.

“Tomorrow. I’m glad she’s coming—but it will be another change. Marilla
and I cleared everything out of the spare room yesterday. Do you know,
I hated to do it? Of course, it was silly—but it did seem as if we were
committing sacrilege. That old spare room has always seemed like a
shrine to me. When I was a child I thought it the most wonderful
apartment in the world. You remember what a consuming desire I had to
sleep in a spare room bed—but not the Green Gables spare room. Oh, no,
never there! It would have been too terrible—I couldn’t have slept a
wink from awe. I never walked through that room when Marilla sent me
in on an errand—no, indeed, I tiptoed through it and held my breath, as
if I were in church, and felt relieved when I got out of it. The
pictures of George Whitefield and the Duke of Wellington hung there,
one on each side of the mirror, and frowned so sternly at me all the
time I was in, especially if I dared peep in the mirror, which was the
only one in the house that didn’t twist my face a little. I always
wondered how Marilla dared houseclean that room. And now it’s not only
cleaned but stripped bare. George Whitefield and the Duke have been
relegated to the upstairs hall. ‘So passes the glory of this world,’”
concluded Anne, with a laugh in which there was a little note of
regret. It is never pleasant to have our old shrines desecrated, even
when we have outgrown them.

“I’ll be so lonesome when you go,” moaned Diana for the hundredth time.
“And to think you go next week!”

Explanation

**Detailed Explanation of the Excerpt from Anne of the Island by L.M. Montgomery**

Context of the Excerpt

This passage comes from Anne of the Island (1915), the third book in Lucy Maud Montgomery’s beloved Anne of Green Gables series. The novel follows Anne Shirley as she leaves her childhood home in Avonlea to attend Redmond College in Kingsport, marking her transition from adolescence to young adulthood. The excerpt takes place just before Anne’s departure, as she and her best friend, Diana Barry, discuss the impending arrival of Mrs. Rachel Lynde—Marilla’s friend and a prominent (and often meddlesome) figure in Avonlea—who is moving into Green Gables.

The scene is emotionally charged, as Anne reflects on the changes happening in her childhood home, symbolizing her own growth and the inevitability of leaving behind the past. Diana, ever the loyal and sentimental friend, laments Anne’s upcoming absence, underscoring the bittersweet nature of change.

Themes in the Excerpt

Nostalgia and the Passage of Time
- Anne’s reflection on the spare room at Green Gables is steeped in nostalgia. The room represents her childhood—its mysteries, fears, and reverence. Clearing it out feels like "sacrilege" because it marks the end of an era. The line “So passes the glory of this world” (a paraphrase of a biblical phrase, likely from 1 Corinthians 7:31) reinforces the transient nature of youth and the inevitability of change.
- The spare room is a symbol of innocence and wonder—a place that once seemed magical but now must be repurposed for practicality (Mrs. Lynde’s move). This mirrors Anne’s own transition from a dreamy, imaginative girl to a young woman facing adulthood.
Change and Growth
- The physical act of emptying the spare room parallels Anne’s emotional preparation to leave Green Gables. Just as the room is "stripped bare," Anne is shedding parts of her past to make way for new experiences.
- Diana’s repeated lament (“I’ll be so lonesome when you go”) contrasts with Anne’s more philosophical acceptance, showing how different people process change. Anne, though sentimental, recognizes that growth requires letting go.
The Sacred and the Profane (Desecration of "Shrines")
- Anne describes the spare room as a "shrine"—a sacred space that inspired awe. The religious imagery (“tiptoed through it and held my breath, as if I were in church”) elevates the room to a place of worship, emphasizing how deeply childhood spaces can shape our emotions.
- The removal of the portraits (George Whitefield, a famous preacher, and the Duke of Wellington, a military hero) symbolizes the dismantling of old authorities—both literal (the figures on the wall) and metaphorical (the rules and fears of childhood). Their relocation to the "upstairs hall" (a less revered space) reinforces the idea that what once seemed monumental is now diminished by time.
Fear and Awe in Childhood
- Anne’s childhood fear of the spare room (“I couldn’t have slept a wink from awe”) highlights how children perceive ordinary spaces as extraordinary. The mirror that didn’t distort her face (unlike others in the house) adds to the room’s mystique—it was a place of truth and judgment, where even the portraits "frowned" at her.
- This fear is not just of the room but of transgressing boundaries—a common childhood experience. The fact that she never walked but tiptoed suggests a deep-seated respect (or terror) of disrupting the room’s sanctity.
Friendship and Separation
- Diana’s repeated sorrow over Anne’s departure underscores the pain of growing apart, a recurring theme in the series. While Anne is moving forward, Diana represents the pull of the past—comfortable, familiar, but ultimately limiting.
- Their dialogue also shows their different personalities: Diana is emotional and resistant to change, while Anne, though nostalgic, accepts it with wit and wisdom.

Literary Devices

Imagery & Sensory Language
- Visual: The portraits of George Whitefield and the Duke of Wellington “frowned sternly,” giving the room a judgmental, almost haunted quality. The mirror’s uniqueness (not distorting her face) makes it a symbol of clarity and self-perception.
- Tactile/Kinesthetic: Anne’s description of tiptoeing and holding her breath creates a sense of reverence and tension, as if the room itself demands silence.
Metaphor & Symbolism
- The spare room as a shrine is a central metaphor, representing childhood’s sacred spaces that lose their power as we age.
- The portraits’ relocation symbolizes the decline of childhood idols—figures that once loomed large but are now relegated to the background.
- The mirror could symbolize self-reflection—both literal (Anne seeing herself clearly) and metaphorical (her growing self-awareness).
Irony & Humor
- Anne’s dramatic language (“committing sacrilege”) is hyperbolic, adding humor to her nostalgia. The contrast between her childish awe and her adult perspective (“it was silly”) creates a lighthearted yet poignant tone.
- The phrase “So passes the glory of this world” is ironically grand for something as mundane as redecorating, yet it perfectly captures the melancholy of growing up.
Allusion
- The reference to George Whitefield (a famous 18th-century preacher) and the Duke of Wellington (a military leader) adds a historical weight to the room, reinforcing its solemnity in Anne’s mind.
- The biblical echo in “So passes the glory of this world” ties the moment to broader themes of impermanence (Ecclesiastes, 1 Corinthians).
Foreshadowing
- The clearing of the spare room foreshadows Anne’s own departure—just as the room is being repurposed, so too is Anne’s life changing. The emptying of the space mirrors her emptying of old attachments to make way for new ones.

Significance of the Passage

Universal Experience of Growing Up
- The excerpt resonates because it captures a universal rite of passage: the moment when childhood spaces lose their magic as we mature. Many readers will relate to Anne’s mix of amusement at her past self and sorrow for what’s lost.
The Bittersweet Nature of Change
- Montgomery excels at portraying joy tinged with sadness. Anne’s laughter has “a little note of regret,” encapsulating how progress often requires leaving behind what we loved. This duality is central to the Anne series, where beauty and melancholy coexist.
The Role of Memory in Identity
- Anne’s attachment to the spare room shows how physical spaces shape our sense of self. The room is not just a place but a repository of memories, fears, and dreams. Its transformation forces her to confront how she, too, has transformed.
Contrast Between Anne and Diana
- Their reactions highlight different ways of coping with change. Diana clings to the past, while Anne acknowledges loss but moves forward. This dynamic reinforces Anne’s growth as a character—she is no longer the impulsive, dramatic girl of Anne of Green Gables but a young woman learning to balance emotion with resilience.
Montgomery’s Signature Style
- The passage is quintessential L.M. Montgomery: lyrical, nostalgic, and gently humorous, with a keen eye for the poetic in the ordinary. Her ability to elevate mundane moments (like cleaning a room) into profound reflections on life is why her works endure.

Final Thoughts: Why This Excerpt Matters

This short but rich passage encapsulates the heart of Anne of the Island—a novel about leaving home, embracing adulthood, and the ache of growing up. The spare room is more than a setting; it’s a character in Anne’s story, representing the innocence she’s outgrowing and the changes she must accept.

Montgomery doesn’t just tell us Anne is growing up—she shows us through the dismantling of a childhood shrine, making the emotional weight tangible. The humor, the nostalgia, and the quiet wisdom in Anne’s words make this moment deeply human, reminding readers that change, though painful, is also beautiful.

In the end, the excerpt is a microcosm of the series itself: a celebration of imagination, friendship, and the bittersweet journey from girlhood to womanhood.

Questions

Question 1

The spare room’s transformation from a "shrine" to a stripped space most fundamentally serves as a metaphor for:

A. the inevitable erosion of childhood reverence in the face of adulthood’s pragmatic demands.
B. the cyclical nature of domestic life, where spaces are perpetually repurposed for new occupants.
C. the loss of religious faith as secular modernity encroaches on traditional rural communities.
D. the way physical environments reflect the psychological fragmentation of maturing individuals.
E. the tension between communal expectations (Mrs. Lynde’s arrival) and personal nostalgia.

Question 2

Anne’s statement “So passes the glory of this world” is primarily effective because it:

A. juxtaposes biblical grandeur with the mundanity of domestic redecorating, underscoring the irony of her nostalgia.
B. signals her resignation to the inevitability of time’s passage, aligning her with a fatalistic worldview.
C. critiques the vanity of human attachments to material objects, echoing Ecclesiastes’ themes of futility.
D. reveals her latent resentment toward Marilla for dismantling a space that defined her childhood.
E. functions as a literary allusion to romantic poetry, where transient beauty is a central motif.

Question 3

The portraits of George Whitefield and the Duke of Wellington are most thematically significant as:

A. historical anchors that ground Anne’s imaginative childhood in tangible, authoritative figures.
B. symbols of patriarchal judgment, reinforcing the oppressive gender norms of Avonlea society.
C. ironic contrasts to Anne’s whimsical nature, highlighting her rebellion against rigid tradition.
D. literal representations of the colonial and religious values that structured rural Canadian life.
E. embodiments of childhood awe that, once removed, mark the dissolution of an internalized moral framework.

Question 4

Diana’s repeated lament (“I’ll be so lonesome when you go”) serves primarily to:

A. emphasize her emotional dependency on Anne, framing their friendship as asymmetrically mature.
B. contrast her static, nostalgic perspective with Anne’s forward-looking acceptance of change.
C. underscore the gendered expectations of rural women, who are confined to domestic spheres.
D. foreshadow the narrative’s shift toward Diana’s eventual growth in Anne’s absence.
E. critique the limitations of Avonlea as a space that stifles ambition and personal evolution.

Question 5

The passage’s tone is best described as:

A. elegiac, with a pervasive sense of irrecoverable loss dominating the reflection.
B. satirical, using hyperbole to mock the melodrama of adolescent sentimentalism.
C. didactic, instructing the reader on the necessity of relinquishing childhood attachments.
D. ambivalent, oscillating between wistfulness and relief at the shedding of past burdens.
E. lyrical yet restrained, blending poetic nostalgia with a lightness that tempers melancholy.

Solutions and Explanations

1) Correct answer: A

Why A is most correct: The spare room’s shift from a sacred childhood space to a functional adult one mirrors Anne’s transition from reverence to pragmatic acceptance. The passage emphasizes the inevitability of this erosion (“it is never pleasant to have our old shrines desecrated, even when we have outgrown them”), framing it as a universal experience of maturation. The room’s physical stripping parallels the psychological stripping of childhood illusions, making A the most thematically comprehensive choice.