Question

kenan is reading an excerpt from \a death in the desert\ by willa cather. click to follow keenans thinking as he reads.

everett hilgarde was conscious that the man in the seat across the aisle was looking at him intently. he was a large, florid man, wore a conspicuous diamond solitaire upon his third finger, and everett judged him to be a traveling salesman of some sort. he had the air of an adaptable fellow who had been about the world and who could keep cool and clean under almost any circumstances.

the \high line flyer,\ as this train was derisively called among railroad men, was jerking along through the hot afternoon over the monotonous country between holdridge and cheyenne. besides the blond man and himself the only occupants of the car were two dusty, bedraggled-looking girls who had been to the exposition at chicago, and who were earnestly discussing the cost of their first trip out of colorado. the four uncomfortable passengers were covered with a sediment of fine, yellow dust which clung to their hair and eyebrows like gold powder. it blew up in clouds from the bleak, lifeless country through which they passed, until they were one color with the sagebrush and sandhills. the gray-and-yellow desert was varied only by occasional ruins of deserted towns, and the little red boxes of station houses, where the spindling trees and sickly vines in the bluegrass yards made little green reserves fenced off in that confusing wilderness of sand.

Explanation:

Analyze the characters introduced in the passage

Using the Character Analysis and Reading Comprehension knowledge points, we examine the individuals on the train. The protagonist, Everett Hilgarde, is observing his surroundings. Across the aisle sits a large, florid man wearing a conspicuous diamond solitaire ring, whom Everett assumes is a traveling salesman. This man appears adaptable, worldly, and capable of staying cool and clean despite the harsh conditions.

Analyze the setting and atmosphere

The setting is a train nicknamed the "High Line Flyer," traveling through a hot, dusty, and monotonous desert landscape between Holdridge and Cheyenne. The environment is described as bleak and lifeless, with fine yellow dust covering all the passengers. This harsh, uncomfortable setting contrasts with the worldly, clean appearance of the traveling salesman, highlighting the oppressive nature of the journey.

Identify the other passengers

Besides Everett and the traveling salesman (referred to as "the blond man"), the only other occupants of the train car are two dusty, bedraggled-looking girls. They have recently attended the Exposition in Chicago and are discussing the financial cost of their first trip outside of Colorado. All four passengers are physically uncomfortable and covered in a layer of yellow dust.

Synthesize the reader's perspective

The prompt indicates we are following "Keenan's thinking as he reads" this excerpt from Willa Cather's "A Death in the Desert." The passage establishes a strong contrast between the characters' backgrounds (a worldly salesman, girls returning from a major exposition) and the bleak, dusty, and decaying environment of the Western desert they are traveling through.

Answer:

This excerpt from Willa Cather's "A Death in the Desert" introduces Everett Hilgarde on a hot, dusty train ride across a monotonous desert landscape. Through Everett's observations, we meet his fellow passengers: a large, worldly, and well-kept traveling salesman, and two bedraggled girls returning from the Chicago Exposition. The passage establishes a vivid contrast between the passengers' diverse backgrounds and the oppressive, dust-covered environment of the wilderness they are traversing.