Cold Mountain

The two characters of Ruby and Ada are brought to the reader of Cold Mountain by Charles Frazier as an example of the strange and illogical way in which people were thrown together in times of desperation and uncertainty such as the American Civil War. The reader is enthralled as these two women find in each other the qualities to soothe their needs and for Ada, gain the appropriate education which is crucial in order for her even to survive. Frazier uses the relationship built between these two characters to impel the reader into feeling and understanding the desperation and hardships faced by the characters at the time of the novel and the utter importance of knowing nature and the workings of the natural world. The contrast between the two women is evident from the beginning of the novel from their individual appearances through to their motivations, priorities, life experiences and status economically and socially. It is however, the common drive, the need to survive, that brings Ruby and Ada together and Frazier uses this strange union to explore many intriguing themes and ideas.
We are first introduced to Ada in chapter two of the novel as she “sat on the porch of the house” (Frazier 39), writing a letter to her beloved Inman. An image of the woman is immediately conjured in the reader’s mind as being a lady of leisure and intelligence with time for worldly contemplation and art on her hands. Frazier allows the reader to view a passage from the letter she is writing to add a personal feel to the novel and to allow the reader to be not just a bystander, but included in this journey. This also gives Frazier an opportunity to reinforce the idea that Ada is a woman in control, using poetic language to express her innermost feelings. This sense of control and leisure initially created by Frazier is snatched away only a few paragraphs later in a technique which is used throughout the novel to lull the reader into believing the characters or the situation is a