Comparing Anne of Green Gables to “In Spite of Myself”

The works of L.M.Montgomery may be about love or everyday life; and her setting mostly takes place in a poor cottage or a society mansion. But always, her stories open up for us a world we have lost, a world of old-fashioned values and concerns, a world that we enter into gladly. The master storyteller takes us to westem Canada as well as to her beloved Prince Edward Island, where she incorporates her own life experience and lessons into the characters of her inspiring stories. Two of L.M.Montgomery's well-known works, Anne of Green Gables, and "In Spite of Myself", have similar qualities in terms of the protagonists' characteristics, the setting of the stories, as well as methods to achieving each of their goals.

The principal characters of the novel and short story, Anne Shirley from Anne of Green Gables and Augusta Ashley from "In Spite of Myself", show numerous similarities in their characteristics, beliefs, and points of view. Anne is an eleven-year-old girl whose very lively and vivid imagination takes away the breath of her readers. Unlike most girls of her age, she speaks her mind as she wishes without having the fear of criticism by adults or anyone else. In Anne of Green Gables, Anne exclaims:

How dare you call me skinny and ugly? How dare you say I'm

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freckled and red-headed? You are a rude impolite, unfeeling woman!

(Montgomery 66)

This suggests that Anne is a daring child who talks back to those that are rude to her no matter who they are. She stands for what is right and does not go back on her words. At other times, Anne may be a young girl full of spirit, heart, and vivacity. In the following citation, Anne describes her state of euphoria to Marilla about how she loves her new home in Green Gables:

It's lovely to be going home and know it's home," she said.

"I love Green Gables already, and I never loved any place before.

No place ever seemed like home. Oh, Marilla, I'm so happy, I

could pray right now and not find it a bit hard. (Montgomery 77)

Having similar lifestyles as Anne, Augusta Ashley possesses attributes of a cool, businesslike woman. In spite of their age difference, Augusta is also a very determined and aggressive individual who can be lively and entertaining when she chooses. A quote from "In spite of myself" states, "...as you may have discovered, I am not 'most young ladies." (91). This suggests that Augusta is different from most women of her age and is accountable to no one but herself when she makes any type of decision. Augusta shows traits of being lively and entertaining in the following quotation taken from the short story. "I have to go now and see about putting away the milk, and I dare say you're not sorry to rid of me" (87). This quote is taken from Augusta's words when she directs it to her cousin in a humourous manner. This proofs Augusta might have a deceiving appearance that fools the readers into concluding her personality rather than her true self. While it is true that Montgomery illustrates the similarities of the two protagonists' actions and behaviors, she also includes many other factors in her works that show a number of resemblances.

Not only has Montgomery created believable characters in the two stories, but she has also depicted the setting in the small towns of eastern Canada in a lovingly and accurate manner. In Anne of Green Gables, Anne dramatically describes her neighbourhood in the town of Avonlea from the following excerpt of the novel:

"The Avenue," so called by the Newbridge people, was a stretch of road four or five hundred yards long, completely arched over with huge, wide-spreading apple-trees...overhead was one long canopy of snowy fragment bloom.... and far ahead a glimpse of painted sunset sky shone like a great rose window at the end of a cathedral aisle.

(Montgomery 24)

The scenery describing the setting of this novel gives the reader a sense of heart-warming, country- like environments, much like the setting of where the short story takes place. Taken from the short story, the narrator tells us of his first encounter with Augusta's country-like home:

Pretty country lane, arched over with crimson maples and golden

-brown beeches. The purplish haze of a sunny autumn day mellowed over the fields, and the bunch of golden rod at my companion's belt

was akin to the plumed ranks along the fences. (Montgomery 85)

The imageries for both of these homes are significantly visible to one's mind according to their delicate and in-depth descriptions. However, since Anne is nearly ten years younger than Augusta, her analysis of Avonlea may not be as precise compared to the description of Augusta's home in another part of Prince Edward Island.

Despite the differences in age and situation, both Anne and Augusta achieve their goals and find niches for themselves thanks to their determination and energy. In Anne of Green Gables, Anne's best friend Diana cries:

Anne you've passed! Passed the very first - you and Gilbert both -

you're ties - but your name is first. Oh I'm so proud! (Montgomery 266)

Diana congratulates her best friend when Anne gets her results back from the open examination into Queen's college. Both of them are overjoyed with the news because Anne has put a lot of effort and time into studying for this examination and she can finally achieve her goal. As for Augusta, her goal is to become more independent as well as giving others an impression that she is a strong-minded and intelligent woman who does not need the help of men in order to succeed. A quote from the short story states:

It was evident that Miss Gussie held the reins of household

government, and no doubt she was strong-minded and wanted to vote. (Montgomery 87)

This quote comments on how the narrator thinks of Augusta (also known as Miss Gussie), as an intellectual individual who can take good care of herself and those around her also. After all, both protagonists of these two pieces of work show great perseverance and patience against hardship in order to succeed in their lives.

These two stories, written by L.M. Montgomery, artfully prove the alikeness of the protagonists' personal qualities, the setting of the stories, and how they achieve their goals by their determination and energy. Though distant from us in time, her characters have problems similar to those we have today and their solutions are not very different. An example of such conflict is that when they are under the influence of peer pressure, they seek advice from their parents, teachers, or someone they can trust. Just as the characters from the two pieces of literature above have to battle in order to prove their worth in the face of their society, so do we all have to deal with today's rigid opinions and beliefs. For instance, if workers believe they are treated unfairly in their workplace, they themselves are the only ones to speak up and fight for their own rights. Even though L.M Montgomery may be old-fashioned, she will never be out of fashion, never.

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