3. BIOGRAPHY
Banks County, GA - July 17, 1924
Parents: Ruby Celestia Hight and William
Arnold Burns
Youngest of four
Dad failed at farming
Macon high school; 9th teacher
5. COLLEGE AND WORK
Mercer University/University of South
Carolina
Journalism
Atlanta Journal and Constitution from 1947 to
1967; “Amy Larkin”
Andy Sparks/1956
Daughter and a son
6. A MOTHER’S ILLNESS
1971 - Ruby had surgery for stomach cancer.
Olive Ann begins family history
1972 – Ruby dies; Olive Ann used her dad’s
recollections to finish the history
7. A FATHER’S TALE
Grandpa Power
Daughter protests
Great start to a novel!
8. CANCER STRIKES CLOSE
1975 - cancer
Began Cold Sassy Tree
8.5 years (60)
Father’s youth in Commerce.
Grandpa Blakeslee = Grandpa Power
Will Tweedy (the narrator) = her dad.
However, the story is fictional.
9. THE BOOK IS A HIT
Published in 1984 - instant success
Compared to classics
Opera & Movie
Fans begged Burns to write a sequel –
started Leaving Cold Sassy
Cancer returned
Died in 1990
Published posthumously.
11. CHARACTERISTICS OF SOUTHERN LITERATURE
Cold Sassy Tree falls in the genre of Southern
Literature. The characteristics of this genre are:
the importance of family
a sense of community (descriptions of “local
color”)
the importance of religion
the importance of time and place
an exploration of the past (describes historical
importance of the town)
a sense of human limitation (moral dilemmas)
the use of Southern voice (usually written using
dialect)
12. COMING OF AGE STORY
A type of novel where the protagonist is
initiated into adulthood through
knowledge, experience, or both, often by a
process of disillusionment. Some of the shifts
that take place are these:
from ignorance to knowledge
from innocence to experience
from a false view of the world to correct view
from idealism to realism
from immature responses to mature
responses
13. BILDUNGSROMAN
A Bildungsroman or “novel of self-
cultivation" is a novelistic form which
concentrates on the spiritual, moral,
psychological, or social development and
growth of the protagonist usually from
childhood to maturity. These themes are now
often portrayed in films as well as novels.
"Bildungsroman." Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 5 Nov 2007, 03:29 UTC. Wikimedia
Foundation, Inc. 5 Nov 2007
<http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Bildungsroman&oldid=169302011>.
14. THEMES
Family – What makes a family?
Setting – How does our environment influence us?
Race – How do humans relate with those who look
different than they do?
Social Class – What makes a person
“respectable”?
Progress – How does one balance moving forward
with holding on to traditional values?
History – What is the legacy we are leaving
behind?
15. OUR GUIDING QUESTION
“How does environment inform and shape
our understanding of the world?” Answer
this question and support your answer with the
text.
Born in Banks County, GA on July 17, 1924, on land originally farmed by her great-great-grandfather.Parents were Ruby CelestiaHight and William Arnold BurnsYoungest of four childrenArnold tried to support the family by farming, but in 1931, they could no longer afford the farm and they rented it out while they lived with Arnold’s mother in Commerce, GAWent to high school in Macon, where in 9th grade her teacher inspired her to become a writer
Attended Mercer University, but moved to University of South Carolina as a sophomoreEarned her degree in JournalismWorked for the Atlanta Journal and Constitution from 1947 to 1967; several years she wrote under the pseudonym “Amy Larkin” as an advice columnistMarried Andy Sparks, another AJC journalist, in 1956; they had a daughter and a son
In the fall of 1971, Ruby, Olive Ann’s mother, underwent surgery for stomach cancer.This prompted Olive Ann to begin a family historyMom died in 1972, but Olive Ann used her dad’s recollections to finish the history
One of her father’s favorite stories was about his Grandpa Power, who remarried soon after his first wife died. When a daughter protested that her mother had been dead for only three weeks, Grandpa Power said, “Gosh a’mighty, she’s dead as she’ll ever be, ain’t she?”She always thought that would be a great start to a novel, but never really thought she’d write it
Her perspective changed when she was diagnosed with cancer in 1975To keep her mind off her illness she began Cold Sassy TreeIt took eight and a half years to finish. She was 60 years old.It was modeled on her father’s recollections of his youth in Commerce. Grandpa Blakeslee is based on Grandpa Pwer; Will Tweedy (the narrator) is based on her dad.However, the story is fictional.
Published in 1984, Cold Sassy Tree was an instant successIt has been compared to Mark Twain’s The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and Harper Lee’s To Kill a MockingbirdIt has been made into an opera and also a movie starring Faye Dunaway.Fans begged Burns to write a sequelShe began Leaving Cold Sassy, but the cancer came back and she died in 1990 without having finished it. It was published posthumously.
