What now? : Willa Cather\u27s successful male professionals at middle age

This thesis examines three male characters from Willa Cather\u27s writing that epitomize the American Dream of professional and material success but they find no contentment once they achieve it. This disillusionment is particularly so with Cather\u27s driven male professionals, Bartley Alexander (an architectural scholar), and Clement Sebastian (a critically acclaimed, international opera singer). Cather situates these characters at middle age and at the peak of their professional careers, which makes the examination of them an interesting study as to the effects of the encroaching modern age on successful men. This thesis begins with a brief overview of Cather\u27s work, including scholarly criticism of each novel, progresses to the examination of her successful male characters, and concludes with the investigation of Cather as a Modernist writer