2. Colleen Burke- Grades 9-11

3. Today you will be learning about the historical context in which Willa Cather's My Antonia was produced! Published in 1918, Cather's novel depicts the life of young pioneers living in Nebraska during the 1880s and 1890s, attempting to farm land given to them through the Homestead Act, as well as survive the cruel Nebraska conditions during pioneer times. The goal is that, by the end of this assignment, you will have developed a knowledge of the historical context in which Cather’s work was produced and a consideration for how that context affected the text itself. Michigan Standard CE 3.3.1 Explore the relationships among individual works, authors, and literary movements in English and American literature and consider the historical, cultural, and societal contexts in which works were produced.

4. A Federal law signed by Lincoln in 1862 Gave applicants up to 160 acres of land, with the agreement they farm the land. Farmers were given ownership of the land only if they proved they could farm the land and actually improve its quality. Roughly 40% of applicants succeeded in gaining ownership of the land. The other 60% either gave up or were unsuccessful at improving the land. Back to Quiz Click here to learn more about The Homestead ActThe Homestead Act

5. Store bought food was almost unheard of in pioneer times. Each family hunted, gathered, salted, smoked, canned, and dried food they could find around them. Family gardens supplied pioneers with peas, radishes, greens, pumpkins, beans, potatoes, and squash. Most settlers did not even have access to ice, foods that needed to be chilled were often stored in crocks placed in springs or wells. Don't eat me! Back to Quiz Click here to learn more about food on the frontierfood on the frontier

6. Pioneers often lived in sod houses because they were cheap, stayed cool in the summer, and stayed warm in the winter Sod houses were also dirty and most pioneers could not afford carpeting or wooden floors. Bugs, snakes, leaky roofs, and poor lighting were a constant problem. Click here to learn more about sod housessod houses Back to Quiz

7. Women were allowed to acquire land under the Homestead Act. Once a single woman acquired her land, she was free to marry or re-marry. Her land could be combined with her husband's, rented out, or sold. Employed pioneer women were most often teachers, although women were also employed writing poems and human interest stories for newspapers. Click here to learn more about pioneer womenpioneer women Back to Quiz

8. Worked doing household chores for their families Young children typically gathered eggs, fed animals, weeded gardens, made soap, and made candles. Older children typically tended cows, tended to horses, cooked, brought in wood, sewed, spun, and helped with the family laundry. Click here to learn more about pioneer childrenpioneer children Back to Quiz

9. A federal law that offered applicants ownership of up to 160 acres of land to farm A federal law that offered applicants ownership of up to 160 acres of land to farm A law giving farmers free houses A federal law that forced people into farming A state law that made children stay home from school to farm the land

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12. Arugula and broccoli Peas and squash Carrots and mushrooms Celery and cucumbers

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15. Wood houses Log cabins Primitive huts Sod Houses

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18. Were not allowed to own land under the Homestead Act Were not allowed to own land under the Homestead Act Were only allowed to own land under the Homestead Act if they were unmarried Were only allowed to own land under the Homestead Act if they were unmarried Were allowed to own land under the Homestead Act and could combine their land if they chose to marry Were allowed to own land under the Homestead Act and could combine their land if they chose to marry Were allowed to own land under the Homestead Act but could not combine their land if they chose to marry Were allowed to own land under the Homestead Act but could not combine their land if they chose to marry

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21. Worried more about schoolwork than helping around the house Worried more about schoolwork than helping around the house Helped around the house only after their homework was finished Helped around the house only after their homework was finished Didn't help around the house until they were at least 16 Didn't help around the house until they were at least 16 Gathered eggs, made soap and candles even as young children Gathered eggs, made soap and candles even as young children

22. You've successfully completed the quiz! Congratulations on your impressive knowledge of pioneer life!

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24. Now that you’re a pioneer historian, let’s think about what you’ve learned and look forward to how we will be applying your knowledge to Cather’s text. You mean I’m not done?! Let’s look ahead

25. A. You’ve learned what the Homestead Act was. How do you think the Homestead Act affected people like Jim and Antonia? B. You’ve learned about the difficulties pioneers had finding and preserving food. What evidence do you find in the text that Jim and Antonia dealt with this problem? C. You’ve learned about sod houses. Who lived in a sod house- Jim? Or Antonia? D. You’ve learned about some of the different roles women played during pioneer times. How does Antonia fit into this? Is her character historically accurate? E. You’ve learned about some of the different roles children played during pioneer times. Did Jim and Antonia both play these roles? Were their childhoods different because of their different economic classes?