영어로 읽는 고전 _ 에드나 페버의 소 빅
"So Big"은 1924년에 출간되어 1925년 퓰리처상을 수상한 에드나 페버의 대표작입니다. 이 소설은 시카고 근교의 네덜란드계 이민자들이 운영하는 농장 지역을 배경으로, 셀리나 피크 데용의 삶을 통해 예술과 물질적 성공의 의미를 탐구하는 작품입니다.
주인공 셀리나는 아버지의 죽음 후 시골 학교 교사가 되어 농부 퍼브스 데용과 결혼하게 됩니다. 작품은 그녀가 척박한 농장 생활 속에서도 삶의 아름다움을 발견하고, 아들 더크(소빅)를 예술적 감수성을 지닌 인물로 키우고자 하는 노력을 그립니다.
페버는 이 작품을 통해 19세기 말부터 20세기 초까지의 미국 사회 변화를 포착하면서, 예술적 가치와 물질적 성공 사이에서 고민하는 인간의 모습을 깊이 있게 탐구합니다. 특히 어머니 셀리나와 아들 더크의 대비되는 삶의 태도를 통해 진정한 성공의 의미를 성찰합니다.
이 소설은 강인한 여성 캐릭터, 세대 간의 가치관 충돌, 예술과 상업의 대립 등 복잡한 주제들을 다루면서도, 페버 특유의 섬세한 묘사와 따뜻한 시선으로 깊이 있는 이야기를 전달합니다. 작품은 인생의 진정한 가치와 성공의 의미에 대한 보편적인 질문을 던지며, 이는 오늘날까지도 독자들에게 깊은 울림을 주고 있습니다.

Reading Classics in English _ So Big by Edna Ferber
"So Big" is Edna Feber's masterpiece, published in 1924 and winning the Pulitzer Prize in 1925. Set in a Dutch immigrant farming area near Chicago, the novel explores the meaning of art and material success through the life of Selina Pieck de Jong.
After her father's death, the main character Selina becomes a rural school teacher and marries a farmer, Purves de Jong. The novel depicts her efforts to discover the beauty of life even in the harsh farm life and to raise her son Dirk (So Big) as an artistically sensitive person.
Through this work, Feber captures the social changes in America from the late 19th century to the early 20th century, and deeply explores the human struggle between artistic value and material success. In particular, she reflects on the true meaning of success through the contrasting attitudes toward life of mother Selina and son Dirk. The novel deals with complex themes such as strong female characters, conflicting values between generations, and the conflict between art and commerce, while conveying a profound story with Faber’s characteristically delicate descriptions and warm perspective. The work raises universal questions about the true value of life and the meaning of success, and these resonate deeply with readers to this day.

Summary
"So Big" by Edna Ferber is a novel written in the early 20th century." The story follows Selina DeJong, a young woman navigating life on a truck farm in Illinois after a tumultuous upbringing with her gambler father. As she balances her aspirations and the struggles of rural life, her character evolves against the backdrop of a predominantly Dutch immigrant community. "The opening of "So Big" introduces us to Selina DeJong's childhood and family background." Born to a tumultuous life with an absent mother and a gambling father, Selina bears the nickname "So Big," a term of endearment from her mother that she fought to escape. The narrative reveals her early life spent in Chicago and the various cities her father took them to, culminating in her eventual move to High Prairie. Here, she becomes a schoolteacher amidst Dutch farmers and struggles with the stark contrast between her dreams and her new reality, highlighting themes of ambition and the quest for personal identity. The emotions of her upbringing and her complexities as a woman in a challenging environment set the stage for her transformative journey throughout the novel.

Contents
CHAPTER I. Until he was almost ten the name stuck to him
CHAPTER II. Selina had thought herself lucky to get
CHAPTER III. The Klaas Pools lived in a typical High Prairie house
CHAPTER IV. Every morning throughout November it was the same
CHAPTER V. High Prairie swains failed to find Selina alluring
CHAPTER VI. The evenings turned out to be Tuesdays
CHAPTER VII. They were married the following May
CHAPTER VIII. By October High Prairie Housewives told each other
CHAPTER IX. Dirk was eight
CHAPTER X. Perhaps the most poignant and touching feature of the days
CHAPTER XI. It would be enchanting to be able to record
CHAPTER XII. The best thing for Dirk
CHAPTER XIII. If those vague characteristics called (variously) magnetism
CHAPTER XIV. Throughout Dirk’s Freshman year there were
CHAPTER XV. In town he lived in a large front room
CHAPTER XVI. As it turned out
CHAPTER XVII. Between these girls and the girls
CHAPTER XVIII. Paula had a scheme for interesting women
CHAPTER XIX. The things that had mattered so vitally
CHAPTER XX. General Goguet and Roelf Pool had been in Chicago
CHAPTER XXI. They had had tea in the farm sitting room