Throughout My Antonia, there is one constant symbol that never changes, but brings about change in the characters. This symbol is simply the Nebraskan landscape. The vivid detail that Willa Cather uses in her writing paints a very expressive picture of what living on the frontier in the 1880’s is like. Although all characters are affected by the land they live on, Jim Burden connects on a deeper level of understanding with nature. From a broad perspective, it can truly symbolize Jim’s character as a whole, such as how he believes happiness comes to oneself. The relationships that Jim forms with the people he lived with also show this same symbolic meaning. Jim’s thoughts about himself are portrayed well throughout the books such as when he