A White Heron

Unlike Sylvia, the hunter is extroverted, forward, and confident. He talks to Sylvia without self-consciousness, admitting without shame that he’s “lost his way” while hunting (671). Though he kindly tells her not to be afraid, he also directs Sylvia to “speak up” (671) and tell her name, and he asks if he can stay at her house. His masculine, commanding character takes charge in conversations. He describes his background in hunting and collecting birds, but he doesn’t listen carefully to Tilley or Sylvia—except when she talks about the heron. When Mrs. Tilley describes her sadness over missing her son Dan, the “guest did not notice the hint of family sorrows in his eager interest in something else,” for he’s more concerned that Sylvia knows “all about birds” (673). The hunter isn’t as empathetic as Sylvia or her grandmother, though he’s described as “delightful,” “handsome,” and “charming.”

The hunter-ornithologist is passionate about his bird collection, for he “can’t think of anything” he would “like so much as to find the heron’s nest” (674). He seems to have an obsessive personality, for he even offers money to find the heron. He’s a goal-oriented, adventurous, attractive, and outgoing character who perhaps doesn’t realize the effects his actions have on the greater natural world. He’s well-educated and tells Sylvia “many things about the birds and what they knew and where they lived and what they did with themselves” (674). Though Sylvia wonders how he can kill the birds he adores, the hunter doesn’t view his actions as hypocritical or wrong. The girl thinks his gun is scary and violent, but the hunter thinks his weapon is a tool for scientific advancement. He also sees Sylvia as a tool to find the heron, and he leaves “disappointed” at the end without any farewell or a deeper connection with Sylvia.

Sylvia’s grandmother is “kind” and “busy,” and also displays traits like generosity, sentimentality, drive, and family loyalty. Mrs. Tilley adopts Sylvia so the girl can live in a place where she will feel safe rather than fearful. She also appreciates Sylvia’s aid and comments that she is thankful “she had Sylvia, nowadays, to give such valuable assistance” on her farm (670). Mrs. Tilley couldn’t keep the farm going without Sylvia’s help. She loves her granddaughter deeply, as shown by her frantically searching for Sylvia when she “disappeared” to climb the pine tree.

She doesn’t discourage Sylvia from befriending animals, connecting to the woods, or being shy. She accepts Sylvia, though she’s dismayed when the girl doesn’t reveal the heron to the hunter. Though Mrs. Tilley enjoys living in the countryside too, she disagrees with Sylvia’s decision due to their financial situation. Her logical mind cannot fathom why Sylvia chooses the bird’s survival over money, so she “fretfully rebukes her” (679).

Mrs. Tilley is also unsuspecting of strangers, as she doesn’t “comprehend the gravity of the situation” and mistakes the hunter “for one of the farmer-lads of the region” (671) when he arrives. She offers the hunter milk, dinner, and lodging. Her welcoming nature relates to the time and region since people seemed to trust each other easily. She suspects the hunter is a neighbor, and even when she learns he’s not, she welcomes him, treating him with respect and warmth. Her dialogue also displays a significant use of dialect, for she uses words like “ma’sh” for marsh, “o” instead of or, and “ain’t,” and other regional pronunciations and words.