Oscar Bergson Character Analysis in O Pioneers!

Oscar is Alexandra’s younger brother and the eldest son of John Bergson. He is solidly built, but a slow thinker. He doesn’t mind hard work, as long as it is part of his routine. Oscar and Lou stick close together, and they both resent Alexandra’s unconventional ways and relationship with Carl Linstrum.

Oscar Bergson Quotes in O Pioneers!

The O Pioneers! quotes below are all either spoken by Oscar Bergson or refer to Oscar Bergson. 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:

). Note: all page numbers and citation info for the quotes below refer to the Penguin Classics edition of O Pioneers! published in 1994.

The conversation at the table was all in English. Oscar’s wife, from the malaria district of Missouri, was ashamed of marrying a foreigner, and his boys do not understand a word of Swedish. Annie and Lou sometimes speak Swedish at home, but Annie is almost as much afraid of being “caught” at it as ever her mother was of being caught barefoot.

Related Characters: , ,

Page Number and Citation: 67

Explanation and Analysis:

“Hard on you? I never meant to be hard. Conditions were hard. Maybe I would never have been very soft, anyhow; but I certainly didn’t choose to be the kind of girl I was. If you take even a vine and cut it back again and again, it grows hard, like a tree.”

Related Characters: (speaker), ,

Related Symbols:

Page Number and Citation: 114

Explanation and Analysis:

Oscar Bergson Character Timeline in O Pioneers!

The timeline below shows where the character Oscar Bergson appears in O Pioneers!. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.

...ever since she was twelve—she has always been more resourceful than her brothers, Lou and Oscar. (full context)

John Bergson calls to Alexandra and tells her to bring her brothers, Lou and Oscar. He makes her promise that she will keep the land and take charge of the... (full context)

...penchant for preserving and pickling. She misses the old country’s fish diet, making Lou and Oscar go out to the river once a year to catch fish. She does her best... (full context)

...way he talked to the horse while doctoring her, and the description makes everyone laugh. Oscar expresses scorn and skepticism about Ivar’s animal doctoring skills, but Alexandra defends him. She describes... (full context)

...strayed far from the ocean and seemed to be very mournful. Ivar gives Lou and Oscar permission to water their horses at the pond and then leads Alexandra and Emil inside... (full context)

...must build a shed for them and bring them clean water and feed. Lou and Oscar overhear this conversation from the doorway and accelerate their departure, worried that Alexandra will get... (full context)

Alexandra worries that Lou and Oscar will become even more discouraged when they hear the news, and Carl offers not to... (full context)

Lou and Oscar sit down moodily to dinner. They have grown to become more like themselves over the... (full context)

Self-sacrifice vs. Temptation Theme Icon

Alexandra opens the discussion by mentioning Carl’s news, and Lou and Oscar jump in to argue that they too should quit. They mention that many of their... (full context)

The next day, Lou and Oscar sulk in the morning, and Alexandra encourages Carl to play cards with them in order... (full context)

...thing to do is to mortgage the homestead to buy more land—an idea Lou and Oscar object to. Alexandra calmly explains that in six years, the land will be worth much... (full context)

Before bedtime, Oscar goes out to fetch a pail of water and doesn’t return, prompting Alexandra to go... (full context)

On Sunday, Lou and Oscar go to Alexandra’s for dinner. Alexandra asked the Hanover furniture dealer to furnish her dining... (full context)

The conversation at the table proceeds in English, as Oscar’s wife is ashamed of having married a foreigner, and none of their children understand Swedish.... (full context)

...get a bathtub herself, but that first she wants to buy a piano for Milly. Oscar looks up and asks what Milly wants from a piano, causing Annie to become flustered.... (full context)

After dinner, Lou and Oscar go to the orchard to pick cherries, while Annie gossips with Alexandra’s kitchen girls, and... (full context)

...Carl admires the farm, marveling at all Alexandra has done to the land. Lou and Oscar approach warily, but become more cordial once Carl tells them about his plans for Alaska.... (full context)

...that she’s been asking him to pay them a visit for years, and Lou and Oscar express their disapproval of Carl’s wandering ways. Annie calls back that Alexandra must bring Carl... (full context)

...That’s the reason she worked so hard on the farm. Carl asks about Lou and Oscar, and Alexandra replies that she doesn’t see much of them now that they have farms... (full context)

...and Carl when they were younger. A circus had come into town, and Lou and Oscar drove them in to see the parade, though they were too poor to enter the... (full context)

While Emil and Carl are away, Lou and Oscar pay Alexandra a visit. They approach very seriously, telling her that people are talking about... (full context)

Lou and Oscar argue that the land rightly belongs to the men of the family, since they’re the... (full context)

Lou and Oscar say that Alexandra shouldn’t marry Carl, since she is only making a fool of herself... (full context)

...he plans to go to the Mexico City instead, and he suspects that Lou and Oscar will be sore about it. (full context)

Alexandra mentions that Lou and Oscar are very angry with her as well, and Emil absentmindedly asks what they’re angry about.... (full context)

...looking tired and worn from his anger. He says that he has seen Lou and Oscar, and Alexandra takes this to mean that Carl will be leaving soon. Carl admits that... (full context)

...their father was a very quiet, intelligent man, not at all small-minded like Lou and Oscar. She recalls that their father belonged to a choir in Stockholm, and she used to... (full context)

Eventually, Emil speaks up again, saying that Lou and Oscar might have been happier if they’d been poor. Alexandra smiles at this and says that... (full context)

...the French Church, but he had gotten so angry over his argument with Lou and Oscar that he forgot to mention it to Alexandra. Carl tells Alexandra not to be so... (full context)

...and understand it. She doesn’t understand how she can will the land to Lou and Oscar’s children. Carl asks her why she is thinking of such things, and Alexandra responds that... (full context)