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The unfinished picture: Willa Cather's "The Marriage of Phaedra."

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From: Studies in Short Fiction
Date: 19930322
Author:Zitter, Emmy Stark

'The Marriage of Phaedra' can be seen as the precursor to many of Willa Cather's later stories in its portrayal of a female character who refuses to accept the prevalent notion of women as non-creative. Lady Ellen, the wife and caretaker of the male artist, fits the stereotypical mold of 'weak woman as wife of powerful man' throughout much of the story. When her husband dies, however, she makes a conscious decision to exert influence over an artistic work, selling his unfinished painting against his dying wishes. The implications of the Phaedra of the classical story and her parallels with ...

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