What Katy Did by Sarah Chauncey Woolsey Literary Analysis Essay Example

Greetings and good day to the honourable judges and members of the floor. Today, I am going to introduce a book called What Katy Did. What Katy Did is a children's book written by Sarah Chauncey Woolsey under her pen name, Susan Coolidge. She edited The Autobiography and Correspondence of Mrs Delaney (1879) and The Diary and Letters of Frances Burney (1880). She is best known, however, for her classic children's novel, What Katy Did. The fictional Carr family was modelled after the author's own, with Katy Carr inspired by Susan herself, and the brothers and sisters modelled on Coolidge's four younger Woolsey siblings. This book is published in 1872 and contains 13 chapters.

Plot summary

12-year-old Katy Carr lives with her widowed father and her siblings in a small town called Burnet. Her father, Dr Carr, is a very busy doctor who works long hours; so the children are under the care of his sister Aunt Izzie, who is very old-fashioned and particular. She often scolds the children because she does not understand their ways, although she has a heart of gold. The story continues with the children spending their afternoon at the bottom of a field which the children called ‘Paradise’ for the first time after winter. 

During school break, Cousin Helen comes for a visit. Katy is amazed by her beauty and kindness despite being unable to walk because of an accident years ago. On the day of Helen's goodbye, she promised to follow in Helen's footsteps. The next day, however, Katy quarrelled with her aunt and pushed her little sister so hard that she fell half a dozen steps. Afterwards, feeling sad and miserable, Katy decides to try out the new swing in the woodshed although Aunt Izzie has forbidden it. Then, as she tries to reach the roof with her toes, she falls hard and bruises her spine.

The lively Katy is now paralyzed and suffering terrible pain and bitterness. Her room is dark and cluttered with medicine bottles; when her siblings try to comfort her, she usually drives them away. However, a visit from Cousin Helen shows her that she must either learn to make the best of her situation or risk losing her family's love. Helen tells Katy that she is now a student in the "School of Pain" where she will learn lessons in patience, cheerfulness, hopefulness, neatness, and making the best of things.

With Cousin Helen's help, Katy makes her room tidy and nice to visit and gradually all the children come to see her whenever they can. She becomes the heart of the home, beloved by her family for her unfailing kindness and good cheer. After two years Aunt Izzie dies and Katy takes over the running of the household. At the end of four years, in a chapter called "At Last", she learns to walk again.

Fav character

Based on the novel, the character I admire is Katy Carr. She is the eldest among the Carr children and the novel’s protagonist. At the beginning of the book, she is a twelve-year-old tomboy who much prefers running around outdoors and so tears her clothes every day and is always untidy; however, she longs to be good. The reason I admire her is that although she is only twelve, she is responsible. When her mother died four years before the story began, Katy promised to be a little mother to her siblings: in practice, she is the kind of big sister who is sometimes impatient or crosses with them but leads them into all sorts of exciting adventures. I myself am the eldest in my family, so I can relate to Katy for having the responsibility to take care of my little brother.

Message

One of the important themes from the novel What Katy Did is maturity. Katy Carr is impatient and has a difficult time controlling herself in the first half of the book. She gets upset whenever she is criticized even in the slightest. She cannot control herself in any of these circumstances. It is not until Katy is forced to accept that she may never walk again that she becomes patient and learns self-control. However, this experience matures her a great deal, as she is mature by the end of the book.

Opinion

I would recommend What Katy Did by Susan Coolidge to my friends because I think they will enjoy reading it. This is a story about the adventures of a twelve-year-old American girl, Katy Carr, and her family who live in the town of Burnet in the 1860s. Katy is a tall untidy tomboy, forever getting into scrapes but wishing to be beautiful and beloved. When a terrible accident makes her unable to walk, her illness and four-year recovery gradually teach her to be as good and kind as she has always wanted. Each chapter has a new adventure which adds to the excitement. It teaches us to be (ADD).