So Big

So Big, by Edna Ferber, is a 1924 Pulitzer Prize-winning novel. The novel tells the story of Selina Peake DeJong, a strong and resourceful woman who navigates the challenges of poverty and hardship to build a meaningful life for herself and her son, Dirk, in late-19th and early-20th-century Illinois. So Big has been adapted for film, television, and radio.

This guide uses the 2024 Amazon edition of So Big.

Content Warning: The source material and guide feature depictions of child death and gender discrimination.

Plot Summary

So Big begins with Selina Peake, a young, idealistic girl growing up in Chicago in the late 19th century. Selina is the only daughter of Simeon Peake, a widower and professional gambler with an adventurous spirit and a penchant for storytelling. Simeon’s tales inspire Selina’s curiosity and foster a romanticized view of life. When she grows up, she hopes that she will be a novelist and travel the world. Regardless of his fortunes, Simeon always ensures that Selina is able to attend a private girls’ school. There, she meets a young woman named Julie Hempel, whose father, August, runs a meatpacking business in Chicago. Julie’s mother—like many other mothers whose daughters attend the school—looks down on Selina. Selina’s world is upended when her father is accidently killed in a gambling dispute, leaving Selina orphaned and penniless.

Despite her sudden change in circumstances, Selina’s optimistic and independent nature propels her forward. She wants to be a teacher but knows that she must gain experience in a rural school before she can teach in the city. With the help of August Hempel’s farming connections, she finds work as a schoolteacher in High Prairie, a rural Dutch farming community outside Chicago. There, Selina is struck by the harsh, monotonous lives of the farmers, who struggle to make ends meet. She lives with the Pool family. While Klaas Pool is a traditional farmer, his son has romantic, artistic inclinations. Roelf sees the world as Selina sees it, much to his father’s disapproval. Selina’s romantic notions of pastoral life are quickly challenged by the unrelenting toil she witnesses. However, Selina refuses to be deterred and maintains her belief in the beauty of the world, even in the most ordinary things. She tries to encourage Roelf’s artistic sensibilities, and she is impressed by his artwork and his woodworking.

While teaching in High Prairie, Selina befriends and eventually marries Pervus DeJong, a humble and hardworking farmer. Pervus is a widower like Selina’s father, having lost his young wife and young child some time before. His fortunes are bleak, as his farm is set on unproductive land and he is too stubborn to do anything other than what he has always done. Pervus is kind but lacks ambition, content to labor on his unproductive land without seeking improvement. Selina tutors Pervus, and they fall in love. After their marriage, Selina dreams of transforming their farm into something more fruitful and beautiful. Pervus is dismissive and patronizing of her innovative ideas. When their son, Dirk, nicknamed “Sobig,” is born, Selina’s resolve to create a better future for him becomes her driving force.

Selina’s life on the farm is marked by immense hardship. In addition to doing the housework and raising the child, Selina wants to help in the fields so as to save Pervus from the toil. Their second child dies in childbirth, but Selina resolves to move forward. The relentless physical labor, financial struggles, and isolation take a toll on her. This comes to a head when Pervus, in an effort to save money, sleeps in the cart while selling produce in Chicago. A sudden downpour soaks Pervus and leaves him with a fever from which he never recovers. Pervus’s premature death further tests Selina’s resilience, leaving her a widow with a young child to support. 

Undeterred, Selina takes charge of the farm, determined to succeed despite the odds. She wants to dedicate her life to giving Dirk the future she wanted for herself. During her first trip to Chicago, however, Selina discovers that the male farmers do not want to see a woman succeed. She struggles to sell her produce, and as she is about to be arrested for selling door-to-door in a wealthy neighborhood, she is unexpectedly reunited with Julie Hempel. Julie enlists her father to help fund Selina’s big ambitions for the farm. Selina’s innovative approach to farming, including experimenting with new crops like asparagus, eventually pays off, making the farm more prosperous.

As Dirk grows up, Selina wants to instill in him a deep appreciation for beauty, art, and learning. She encourages him to pursue his dreams and not to settle for a life of mediocrity, but she is determined not to interfere in his life and to allow him to make his own decisions. However, as Dirk matures, he becomes increasingly drawn to material success and social status, values that clash with Selina’s ideals. He spends time with Paula and Eugene, Julie Hempel’s children, and feels very poor in comparison to his wealthy friends. He becomes gradually more materialistic, telling himself that he wants to make money so that his mother will no longer need to toil on the farm. He attends a university in Chicago, where he quickly betrays his newfound friends to move among the more elite social circles.

Dirk initially follows his mother’s wishes, studying architecture, a field that combines artistic creativity with practicality. He works in an architecture office after graduating but is constantly frustrated by the lack of responsibilities and the low salary. Paula, who has married a wealthy older man, offers to help Dirk find a job in her husband’s bank. Dirk is too proud to accept her help until after he is drafted into the military in World War I. After the war, he eventually abandons this pursuit for a lucrative career in banking, working for the bank partly owned by Paula’s husband. The move symbolizes his rejection of his mother’s values and her vision of a life driven by passion and creativity. Dirk becomes wealthy and successful, but his life feels hollow and unfulfilled.

Meanwhile, Selina continues to live a modest, purposeful life, finding joy in her farm and her small acts of artistry. She contrasts sharply with her son, whose life revolves around superficial success. During her visits to Chicago, she makes friends with local people and explores the city, while Dirk limits his activities to the social elite, even though their company constantly disappoints him. He spends more and more time with Paula, causing rumors to spread that they are having an affair, even though they are not.

As Dirk’s career advances, he becomes romantically interested in an artist named Dallas O’Mara. Dallas is a talented and independent artist who shares Selina’s values. Through his interactions with Dallas, Dirk begins to recognize the emptiness of his life and the wisdom of his mother’s teachings. Dallas, however, ultimately rejects Dirk, unwilling to compromise her own values for a man whose life is rooted in materialism. 

In the closing chapters, Dirk visits Selina and reflects on her strength, resilience, and unwavering commitment to her ideals. Roelf, returning from France, goes with them. He reunites with Selina, who treats him like a long-lost son. Meanwhile, Dirk realizes that Dallas and Roelf are likely in a romantic relationship. He realizes that he has abandoned his mother’s teachings and that—in spite of his immense wealth and massive success—he has lost sight of what will make him happy. He returns to his lavish apartment and ignores Paula’s calls, finally reflecting on the decisions that have brought him to this point.