The Professor's House by Willa Cather

The Professor’s House, written by Willa Cather in 1925, is widely considered to be her most successful novel. The novel follows the life of Professor Godfrey St. Peter, a professor of history at the fictional West Tributary College. After twenty-five years of working at the college, St. Peter has achieved a respected status within the academic community and is on the verge of retiring with his pension. Shortly after his retirement announcement, St. Peter experiences a mid-life crisis and simultaneously longs for a sense of freedom and the ability to escape the stifling academic world he’s been part of for so long.

The novel begins with St. Peter looking back fondly on the days before his academic career and the environment that surrounded his childhood. St. Peter had spent much of his teenage and adult years living in the midwestern town of West Tributary, which he remembers as a rural and peaceful place. St. Peter had been taught to value intellectual study and achievement, which began in his childhood and stayed with him for the remainder of his life.

As St. Peter moves through his career, he experiences growing fatigue in the academics that were once a source of passion for him. He remembers the personal and intellectual life he had experienced before the death of his wife, and is critical of the modern world of academia, which he perceives as overly materialistic and impersonal. St. Peter begins to increasingly yearn for a more “simple life” in which he can detach himself from the trappings of academia.

St. Peter’s thoughts come to a turning point when he decides to purchase his own house, a decision that allows him to establish his own “personal domain” away from West Tributary College and the students and colleagues that he has come to resent. In his new house, St. Peter finally is able to reclaim his own life and interests, gradually building relationships with his indigenous, Mexican, and American neighbors.

St. Peter, who is known to be a serious and traditional academic figure, opens his house to the public to explore new forms of creativity, art, and music that are largely unfamiliar to him. St. Peter is “transformed” by his house and Red Butte, the nearby rock formation that often inspires him. In his house, St. Peter looks to the past, present and future, experimenting with the lives and customs of different cultures, and exploring a variety of new ideas and philosophies.

The novel concludes with St. Peter looking back on his life and reflecting on his accomplishments, which extend far beyond his career and accomplishments in academia. St. Peter appreciates the beauty of the Midwestern landscape and rediscover his strong personal and family ties to the past. As Professor St. Peter pours himself a cup of tea, we are reminded that he has satisfied his longing for a sense of freedom and rebirth, allowing his own creativity, curiosity, and intellectual curiosity to be exercised in a new and unexplored environment.

The Professor’s House is an absorbing account of Professor St. Peter’s mid-life crisis and his subsequent journey of self-discovery. The novel provides an insightful exploration of the impact of academia in an individual’s life, and the importance of discovering meaningful relationships outside of the traditional academic circles. Cather’s vivid description of the Midwestern landscape allows readers to share in Professor St. Peter’s thoughtful contemplation of his past and future, as he seeks to reclaim a sense of identity and purpose outside of his academic career.