Faithful to a Friend: Sarah Orne Jewett’s Short Story, ‘A White Heron’

A white heron is the focus of a story that examines loyalty. Victor Manuel Duran Mejia

In her short story “A White Heron,” Sarah Orne Jewett demonstrates the power and beauty of loyalty in an ever-shifting and changing world. Through Sylvia, who’s a young girl, Jewett shows that, even though loyalty may falter, it can return with renewed strength.

The Hunter

One June day in the beautiful New England countryside, Sylvia journeys home, guiding Mistress Moolly (a cow). She’s spent a lot of time searching for the cow, and night quickly approaches as they head into the woods.

On the way home, the cow stops at the brook along the road to get a drink. Sylvia herself steps into the brook to cool her bare feet, while reminiscing of times past.

Suddenly, a loud whistle interrupts Sylvia’s thoughts, and she scurries into the brush. But she is not quick enough, for the young man who whistled sees her. With a gun over his shoulder, he approaches and calls out, asking Sylvia how far the road is.

Sylvia timidly answers and draws herself out of the brush to continue her walk homeward. She leads the cow forward and the young man cheerfully follows, explaining that he is a hunter and needs a place to spend the night.

As they approach her grandmother’s house, Sylvia grows nervous about her tardiness and the stranger’s presence. But the stranger greets her grandmother cheerfully, again explaining that he is a hunter seeking lodging for the night: “Put me anywhere you like, [...] I must be off early in the morning.” The grandmother graciously offers him a bed and a meal.

The Heron

Soon they all sit down to eat and Sylvia’s grandmother begins telling the stranger all about the cow, farm life, her family, and Sylvia. She tells of Sylvia’s love of the woods and its animals: “There ain’t a foot o‘ ground she don’t know her way over [...] Squer’ls she‘ll tame to come an’ feed right out o‘ her hands, and all sorts o’ birds.”

The stranger is intrigued at this information, for he has been hunting a white heron which he saw fly this way. He is a bird collector (shooting and stuffing the birds) and wishes to add this beautiful bird to his collection.

The next day, the hunter and Sylvia tramp through the forest to find the heron, but with no luck. Charmed by and sorry for the hunter, Sylvia decides to help him find the heron. The next morning, she climbs the tallest pine tree, which stands high above the entire forest. At the top, she watches the sun rise and the birds wake. Excitement fills her tired limbs as she sees the heron fly from its nest, but she must decide whether she will tell the hunter where the heron lives or not.

Tested Loyalty

By following Sylvia’s journey with both the hunter and heron, Jewett’s story demonstrates the power and beauty of loyalty to one’s friends and beliefs. Such loyalty preserves the friendships one values the most and helps beauty flourish as the world seeks to change it.

Just like J.R.R. Tolkien wrote in “The Fellowship of the Ring,” loyalty exclaims, “You can trust us to stick with you through thick and thin--to the bitter end. And you can trust us to keep any secret of yours—closer than you keep it yourself. [...] We are your friends.”

Thus, loyalty upholds beliefs and preserves secrets worth keeping, allowing beauty to prosper and flourish, even in a forward-moving world.

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