Winesburg, Ohio

Winesburg, Ohio is a short story cycle by the American author Sherwood Anderson. The work is structured around the life of protagonist George Willard, from the time he was a child to his growing independence and ultimate abandonment of Winesburg as a young man. It is set in the fictional town of Winesburg, Ohio. In 1998, the Modern Library ranked Winesburg, Ohio 24th on its list of the 100 best English-language novels of the 20th century. The major themes of Winesburg, Ohio largely concern the interaction between the individual citizens of Winesburg and the world around them. As each of the book's stories focuses primarily (though not exclusively) on one character, the narrator develops these themes continuously, sometimes adding new insights about previously introduced characters (Elizabeth Willard's relationship with Dr. Because George Willard is a fixture in much of the book, his character arc becomes just as important a theme of Winesburg, Ohio as that of the rest of town's inhabitants.