Gone With the Wind by Margaret Mitchell — book cover

Book details

Gone With the Wind

by Margaret Mitchell

1936 · Warner Books

About the book

Scarlett O'Hara begins as the pampered daughter of a Georgia plantation owner, but her world collapses during the American Civil War and the subsequent Reconstruction era. The narrative follows her desperate efforts to save her family estate, Tara, from starvation and seizure by Union forces. Amidst the fall of the Confederacy, Scarlett navigates a volatile relationship with the cynical blockade runner Rhett Butler while maintaining an unrequited obsession with Ashley Wilkes. She switches from socialite to businesswoman, resorting to manipulation and manual labor to endure poverty and social upheaval.

Historical fiction enthusiasts read this account to witness the collapse of the agrarian South through the eyes of a protagonist who rejects traditional Victorian morality. Readers gain a detailed perspective on the economic devastation of the 1860s and the practical realities of wartime survival. The book provides a look at how social hierarchies shift when wealth vanishes, leaving behind a character portrait of persistence in the face of total displacement. It serves as an archive of the period's cultural tensions and romanticized internal conflicts.

Details

Published
1936
Publisher
Warner Books
ISBN
9780446365383
Language
EN