Mrs. Littlejohn

Submitted by sfr on Sat, 2019-08-03 13:50
Character Key Number: 
443
Display Name: 
Mrs. Littlejohn
Sort Name: 
Littlejohn, Mrs.
Ever Present in Yoknapatawpha?: 
Yes
Biography: 

The two-story Frenchman's Bend boarding house that Mrs. Littlejohn owns appears in five different texts. She herself appears in three of them - "Spotted Horses," The Hamlet and The Town - as a witness to the hapless efforts of "them fool men," as she puts it in the first story, to buy the Texas ponies (174). And she is not simply a spectator: when one of the horses invades her house, she breaks a washboard over its head. She plays her largest role in The Hamlet. Described there as a "man-tall, man-grim woman" wearing a "faded wrapper" (219), Mrs. Littlejohn provides kindness and various kinds of support for those whom she believes are deserving, such as the severely handicapped Ike Snopes or Mrs. Armstid (whose handicap is a foolish husband), and even the injured Henry Armstid.

Linked Characters