Cold Sassy Tree Character Analysis

Throughout Olive Ann Burns’ Cold Sassy Tree, technology played a crucial role in the town of Cold Sassy and its advancement into the twentieth century. By the end of the novel, the translation from old to new is symbolized by a change in the town’s name, going from Cold Sassy to Progressive City. When that last sassafras tree, the same tree that Cold Sassy taken its name from, was cut down to make more room for roads, it marked the dawn of a new era. However, this development could not have gone without there being both positive and negative attributes of each machine. It is the acceptance of modern technology contributed to the growth of society. To begin, much of Cold Sassy did not have the luxury of expensive automated machines. It was not until Mr. Sheffield, the mill-owner, bought a Delco generator and installed twenty street lights and running wires that the entire town of Cold Sassy had the pleasures of electricity, everyone except Grandpa

It was Will’s father, Hoyt Tweedy, who was the first man in Cold Sassy to have a car. The Cadillac was all the folks in the town talked about. Whenever Will drove through the town, the loud noises it would make had everyone running to the porch to watch. Even Mr. Blakeslee, the man who was not keen of bicycles, said “Gosh a’mighty Peter Rabbit, Will Tweedy, these here artermobiles is something else and then some!” His opinion about automobiles changed after his trip to New York that revealed that the city was far more advanced for there were several kinds of cars, such as Pierces, Buicks, and Fords. He ended up not only buying one for himself and Miss Love but also decided to sell automobiles. It was that moment that Cold Sassy took its first great step towards a modern age. The only man in the small southern town who did not have a bathroom or lights was the man to distribute one of the greatest inventions of their time-