Anne of Green Gables is most commonly classified as children's literature. This story's simple prose and youthful protagonist make it ideal for young readers. It is also cited as a bildungsroman (a coming-of-age story) because it chronicles the upbringing of Anne Shirley, a precocious 11-year-old adopted by Marilla and Matthew Cuthbert of Green Gables. Anne's story appears in 10 subsequent novels that chart the course of the rest of her life.
Written at the end of the Victorian period, this novel also contains many depictions of strict moral lessons. Not all of these lessons are true or necessary; for example, Anne feels stifled by the repetitive maxim that "children should be seen and not heard." But other lessons are more helpful. For instance, in the first part of the novel, Marilla considers sending Anne back to the orphanage before having an empathetic change of heart. And in the novel's final chapters, Gilbert Blythe relinquishes his seat at the local school so that Anne can teach in Avonlea. This particular pattern of moral conflict and resolution helps readers understand how empathy and self-sacrifice enhance the characters' lives. It also makes the novel ideal for young people because it is both entertaining and instructive.
