Mr. Shimerda Character Analysis in My Antonia

Ántonia's father. A tapestry weaver from Bohemia, he is not suited to the harsh climate and hard physical labor of the farm. He becomes depressed, homesick, and frail, and is found dead in his barn during his family's first winter in Nebraska. It's unclear if his death was a suicide or a murder.

Mr. Shimerda Quotes in My Antonia

The My Antonia quotes below are all either spoken by Mr. Shimerda or refer to Mr. Shimerda. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:

I never forgot the strange taste; though it was many years before I knew that those little brown shavings, which the Shimerdas had brought so far and treasured so jealously, were dried mushrooms. They had been gathered, probably, in some deep Bohemian forest...

Related Characters: (speaker), , , , ,

Page Number and Citation: 59

Explanation and Analysis:

The road from the north curved a little to the south; so that the grave, with its tall red grass that was never mowed, was like a little island; and at twilight, under a new moon or the clear evening star, the dusty roads used to look like soft grey rivers flowing past it. I never came upon the place without emotion, and in all that country it was the spot most dear to me."

Related Characters: (speaker),

Related Symbols: , ,

Page Number and Citation: 84

Explanation and Analysis:

Mr. Shimerda Character Timeline in My Antonia

The timeline below shows where the character Mr. Shimerda appears in My Antonia. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.

...bread and provisions to the immigrant family they met on the train—their new neighbors, the Shimerdas. Jim's grandmother tells him that another of their neighbors, Peter Krajiek, a distant relative of... (full context)

When they arrive at the Shimerdas' home, they find a sod "cave" dug out among rough red hills. They meet the... (full context)

...her the words for "blue sky" and "eyes." When they arrive back at the dugout, Mr. Shimerda , in broken English, begs Jim to teach Ántonia the language. (full context)

In those first weeks, the Shimerdas isolate themselves and avoid town because Krajiek tells them they will be cheated out of... (full context)

...avoided because they were rough-mannered and spoke an unintelligible language. A few months after the Shimerdas' arrival, Ántonia takes Jim to visit the Russians. Only Peter is home. Jim is surprised... (full context)

Just then, Jim and Ántonia see Mr. Shimerda walking toward them. He has shot three rabbits, but he seems sad, and Ántonia tells... (full context)

Mr. Shimerda , Ántonia, and Jim stay at Pavel's bedside. Aware that he is dying, Pavel confesses... (full context)

...grown on his farm. Ántonia and Jim vow never to disclose Peter and Pavel's secret. Mr. Shimerda is depressed without Peter. (full context)

Winter arrives, beautiful but bitterly cold. After the first snowfall, Jim rides to the Shimerdas' house on a sleigh Otto has built for him. He takes Ántonia and Yulka on... (full context)

Jim does not see Ántonia for weeks. One night, the Burdens learn that the Shimerdas are taking turns wearing their one overcoat and are eating prairie-dogs to survive the winter.... (full context)

Mr. Shimerda is embarrassed by his family's poverty, and says that in Bohemia they had a lot... (full context)

To Jim's grandmother, it's obvious that the Shimerdas are suffering because they haven't properly prepared for the winter by storing food or making... (full context)

Mr. Shimerda comes to visit the Burdens to thank them for the presents. As they sit in... (full context)

Before he leaves, Mr. Shimerda kneels before the tree and crosses himself. Jim knows his grandfather is uncomfortable with other... (full context)

...is surly, and is disgusted that he is considered the most important person in the Shimerdas' family. (full context)

...with Ambrosch asleep on a bench behind the stove. Otto explains that the night before, Mr. Shimerda had dressed in clean clothes, hung up his coat, and shot himself in his barn.... (full context)

With his chores done, Jim sits down to read. He wonders if Mr. Shimerda's spirit is in the room with him, since Mr. Shimerda liked the Burdens' house so... (full context)

...adults return that night, they tell Jim that a lighted lantern has been kept over Mr. Shimerda's body until the priest arrives to bless the dead. (full context)

..."bright" eyes and cheeks and warm personality. Anton says he had wanted to visit the Shimerdas months ago, but he had been hired to husk corn and then had been going... (full context)

Otto, once a cabinet-maker in Austria, makes a coffin for Mr. Shimerda while the men debate Mr. Shimerda's burial. They're not sure they can get the body... (full context)

Mr. Shimerda's funeral occurs five days after his death, just as a new snow storm approaches. Nevertheless,... (full context)

Mr. Shimerda is buried at the corner of the Shimerda's land. Jim says that years afterward, roads... (full context)

The Shimerdas now have a new log house, which the Burdens and other neighbors helped them build.... (full context)

Jim starts school and sees less of Ántonia. One Sunday, Jake takes him to the Shimerdas to retrieve a horse-collar Ambrosch has borrowed. But when Ambrosch hands over the collar, it... (full context)

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Mr. Shimerda Character Analysis

Mr. Shimerda Quotes in My Antonia

Mr. Shimerda Character Timeline in My Antonia

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