The Farm (novel)

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The Farm ( A Painted House ) is a novel by John Grisham . He describes some dramatic months in the life of Luke, a 7-year-old boy from a cotton farming family.

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The novel takes place in Arkansas at the time of the Korean War . The story begins with the trip to the nearby market town, where migrant workers are to be recruited for the upcoming cotton harvest. These come from the Ozarks ("Hillbillies", backwoods) or, more recently, from Mexico .

Eventually, a group of ten Mexicans and a family from the Ozark Mountains are recruited. In contrast to earlier times, migrant workers are no longer so submissive. Hank, the strong son of the Ozark Spruill family, makes fun of the impoverished cotton farmers and boasts that his house has been painted (the original English title is A Painted House ) while the farmers live behind rough plank walls. In the course of the story, Hank kills one of the Sisco brothers, an anti-social family from the area. Luke witnesses this incident as well as the birth of an illegitimate child whose mother comes from a poor tenant family with no land of her own. Interestingly enough, Luke's 19 year old uncle is said to be the father. However, this is in the Korean War, which of course, in addition to the poor economic situation, contributes to the concern of the family.

After an argument between Hank and a Mexican, Hank is stabbed to death. Again Luke, who this time spying on the Backfisch Spruill daughter Tally, is a witness to the crime. More dark clouds are brewing over the family as the cotton harvest falls into the water after thunderstorms and floods. Despite all the worries and dark secrets that he is not allowed to or will not pass on, Luke manages to paint the house white after the Spruills' disabled son, Trot, who cannot take part in the cotton harvest, secretly started it. Eventually, Luke's parents decide to leave the farm to find work in the northern US industry.

Autobiographical traits

This novel is clearly autobiographical: Grisham came from a small background, was born in Jonesboro , Arkansas (the area where the story takes place) and dreamed of becoming a professional baseball player. Like Luke and his family, Grisham is a Baptist Church . As in Grisham's other novels, he describes the situation of the common people in the United States and their struggle for a modest happiness in life. This time, however, the main character is not a lawyer.

literature