The Four Winds

In the Roaring Twenties in Dalhart, Texas, Elsa Wolcott sits in her room with her novels and her dreams of adventure. A childhood bout with rheumatic fever has left her “fragile and solitary” (5). Tomorrow is her 25th birthday. Unmarried, she is already considered too old, a spinster. She is not considered pretty, and, at six feet tall, she is taller than most of the men. Her two sisters are married, but it is too late for her. As her family comes home, she announces she wants to attend college in Chicago. Her father, Eugene, a farm equipment salesman, dismisses the idea as “ridiculous.” Retreating to her room, Elsa resolves to create a life for herself somehow.

Held prisoner by protective parents and the shadow of an illness from which she recovered long ago, Elsa searches for an answer in her books. As she walks to the library, she notes the effects of the post-war boom on Dalhart: Good weather and strong commodity prices have allowed the farm town to prosper. She stops by the mercantile and buys herself some ruby-red silk fabric—an extravagance she would usually never indulge in, but she thinks of her grandfather, a larger-than-life figure full of exuberance and stories: “He would have told her to buy the red silk for sure” (13). Determined to change her life, Elsa returns home and cuts her hair in the popular bob style of the day. When her mother sees it, she forbids Elsa from leaving the house until it grows out.

Elsa stays in her room under the pretense of feeling unwell, but she spends the time sewing a dress from the red silk, a dress “for the kind of woman who danced all night and didn’t have a care in the world” (15). With her family downstairs, she curls her hair, shaves her legs, applies makeup, and dons the red dress. She strides downstairs and informs her shocked parents that she’s going to the “speakeasy” tonight. They forbid her, but she defies them, dashing out the door before she loses her confidence. She knocks at the speakeasy door, but she is refused entrance. Her family reputation precedes her, and the door keeper fears trouble from her prominent father.

As Elsa walks through town, she encounters Raffaello Martinelli, an 18-year-old from the neighboring town of Lonesome Tree. They commiserate on their mutual loneliness, and he leads her to his new truck, suggesting they take a ride. He drives out to an abandoned farm and spreads a blanket in the truck bed, and they lie together, looking at the sky and discussing the future. Raffaello—Rafe—kisses her, and they make love. Elsa, ever lonely, harbors romantic notions, but their lovemaking is brief, and Rafe drives her home immediately afterward. When she enters the house, her father is waiting. He slaps her for her disobedience, and she runs upstairs to her room. She decides in that moment to suffer any beating, any indignity for the sake of love. The next morning, her mother, Minerva, comes to her room. She is concerned about her daughter’s reputation, and Elsa lies about the previous night, insisting she’s still “a good girl” (24). Minerva, stern and unrelenting, tells Elsa to accept her spinster fate.

Dalhart prepares for the annual Fourth of July celebration while Elsa, chastened by her parents’ disapproval, isolates herself in her room. On the Fourth, the Wolcott family attends the town party at the Dalhart Grange Hall. While the men drink and discuss the future of the town and the women tend to the food, Elsa notices Rafe with his family and “a pretty, dark-haired girl” holding his arm (29). Torn between longing and heartbreak, Elsa feigns illness and leaves the party. Outside the Grange Hall, Rafe catches up with her. The girl, he tells her, is Gia, their marriage arranged by their parents years ago. He dreams of Elsa—Els, he calls her—and asks her to meet him that night at midnight.

Elsa rides her bicycle to the rendezvous, waiting nervously by the old barn. She fears Rafe won’t show up, but after a tense few minutes, he drives up with flowers and a bottle of gin. They make love in the back of the truck. Afterward, Rafe tells her that his parents are sending him away to college, although he would rather travel the world. Elsa confesses that she wishes she had the courage to fight for something, but she doesn’t know what. Rafe is set to leave for college the following month, and they agree to keep seeing each other.

Elsa is pregnant. Minerva confronts her about her constant vomiting, asking her if she’s been with a man. Elsa can’t imagine the few, very brief encounters with Rafe could result in pregnancy, but, as she is a spinster, her mother has never discussed the finer details of sex with her. When her father finds out, he erupts in rage, vowing to find the man who “ruined” his daughter. Elsa, defiant and angry over her parents’ disregard for her happiness, mentions Rafe by name.

After some private discussion between her parents, Elsa packs a suitcase, and her father, Eugene, drives them to the Martinelli farm. Furious, he accuses Rafe of dishonoring the Wolcott name and tells the boy to “make this right” (43). When Rafe admits to being the father, Eugene disowns Elsa and drives away, leaving her with the Martinellis. Despite his wife’s protests, Tony Martinelli tells his son to marry Elsa. This is what’s right. Their dreams for their son are over.

In the midst of the anger and recriminations, Elsa remembers the single bright spot: She is having a child. She turns to leave, but Rose Martinelli stops her, asking her if she will convert to Catholicism. Elsa agrees but demands love for her child in return. Elsa can tolerate the shame and disapproval of her family. These are sacrifices she is willing to make for the sake of her baby.