Consequences (Cather story)

1915 short story by Willa Cather

"Consequences"

Short story by Willa Cather
Country| United States
Language| English
Genre(s)| Short story
Publication
Published in| McClure's
Publication type| Magazine
Publication date| November 1915

"Consequences" is a short story by Willa Cather. It was first published in McClure's in November 1915.[1]

## Plot summary

[edit]

Kier Cavenaugh picks up his neighbour Henry Eastman on his way back to their apartment building in New York City. Back in his flat, Eastman needs a German language dictionary to prepare a case. He goes down to his neighbour's to ask if he can borrow his, and there a man seems to have just left his apartment through the window. Eastman leaves unfazed, too busy with work.

On New Year's Eve Eastman decides to stay in, and Cavenaugh comes along. They talk about suicide, especially bachelors like them who have committed suicide. Cavenaugh explains how he first met the man who is stalking him. His car had broken down and the man was supposed to help him tow him home. The man was delirious but seemed to know everything about him, every single detail even from schooldays, any memory likely to put him down. Eastman suggests moving to Montana for a while - that way the stalker would get bored and leave him alone.

A couple of days later, Cavenaugh tells Eastman he shall follow his counsel. However, the next day he is found to have killed himself in his apartment.

## Characters

[edit]

* Henry Eastman, a lawyer in his forties.
* Kier Cavenaugh, Eastman's neighbour.
* Rollins, Eastman's servant.
* the stalker
* Dudley, a late friend of Eastman's.
* Rosina, Dudley's wife.
* Dr Johnson
* Wyatt, a rich bachelor who decided to spend all his money and commit suicide.
* Anna Karenina, a woman who attempted to commit suicide.
* Captain Jack Purden, a married man who decided to commit suicide.
* Charley Burke
* Brian, Cavenaugh's late twin brother. He died when he was sixteen years old.
* Harry, Cavenaugh's driver.

## Major themes

[edit]

* Suicide

## References to other works

[edit]

* Lancelot is mentioned in passing.

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Uncle Valentine and Other Stories: Willa Cather's Uncollected Short Fiction, 1915-29, University of Nebraska Press; Dec 1973, page 84

## External links

[edit]

* Full Text at the Willa Cather Archive

* v
* t
* e

Willa Cather

Novels|

* Alexander's Bridge
* O Pioneers!
* The Song of the Lark
* My Ántonia
* One of Ours
* A Lost Lady
* The Professor's House
* My Mortal Enemy
* Death Comes for the Archbishop
* Shadows on the Rock
* Lucy Gayheart
* Sapphira and the Slave Girl
* Hard Punishments

Short stories|

* "Peter"
* "Lou, the Prophet"
* "The Elopement of Allen Poole"
* "A Tale of the White Pyramid"
* "A Son of the Celestial"
* "The Clemency of the Court"
* "The Fear That Walks by Noonday"
* "On the Divide"
* "A Night at Greenway Court"
* "Tommy, the Unsentimental"
* "The Princess Baladina – Her Adventure"
* "The Count of Crow's Nest"
* "The Burglar's Christmas"
* "The Strategy of the Were-Wolf Dog"
* "A Resurrection"
* "The Prodigies"
* "Nanette: An Aside"
* "The Way of the World"
* "The Westbound Train"
* "Eric Hermannson's Soul"
* "The Dance at Chevalier's"
* "The Sentimentality of William Tavener"
* "The Affair at Grover Station"
* "A Singer's Romance"
* "The Conversion of Sum Loo"
* "Jack-a-Boy"
* "El Dorado: A Kansas Recessional"
* "The Professor's Commencement"
* "The Treasure of Far Island"
* "A Death in the Desert"
* "A Wagner Matinee"
* "The Sculptor's Funeral"
* "Flavia and Her Artists"
* "The Garden Lodge"
* "The Marriage of Phaedra"
* "Paul's Case"
* "The Namesake"
* "The Profile"
* "The Willing Muse"
* "Eleanor's House"
* "On the Gulls' Road"
* "The Enchanted Bluff"
* "The Joy of Nelly Deane"
* "Behind the Singer Tower"
* "The Bohemian Girl"
* "Consequences"
* "The Bookkeeper's Wife"
* "The Diamond Mine"
* "A Gold Slipper"
* "Ardessa"
* "Scandal"
* "Her Boss"
* "Coming, Eden Bower!"
* "Uncle Valentine"
* "Double Birthday"
* "Neighbour Rosicky"
* "Two Friends"
* "The Old Beauty"
* "Before Breakfast"
* "The Best Years"

Short story
collections|

* The Troll Garden
* Youth and the Bright Medusa
* Obscure Destinies
* The Old Beauty and Others
* Five Stories

Collection of poems|

* April Twilights

Collaborations|

* The Life of Mary Baker G. Eddy and the History of Christian Science

Adaptations|

* A Lost Lady (1934 film)
* O Pioneers! (1992 film)
* My Antonia (1995 film)
* The Song of the Lark (2001 film)
* O Pioneers! (2009 opera)

Related|

* Willa Cather Birthplace
* Willa Cather House
* Edith Lewis
* Willa Cather Foundation
* WILLA Literary Award

*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template