Gone with the Wind by Margaret
Mitchell, published in 1936.
Gone with the Wind is a sweeping,
romantic story about the American Civil War from the point of view of the
Confederacy. In particular it is the story of Scarlett O'Hara, a headstrong
Southern belle who survives the hardships of the war and afterwards manages to
establish a successful business by capitalizing on the struggle to rebuild the
South. Throughout the book she is motivated by her unfulfilled love for Ashley
Wilkes, an honourable man who is happily married. After a series of marriages
and failed relationships with other men, notably the dashing Rhett Butler, she
has a change of heart and determines to win Rhett back.
Margaret "Peggy" Mitchell was born on November 8, 1900 in
Atlanta, Georgia. Her father was a historian and lawyer, and her mother was a
suffragist. When she was 15, she wrote, "If I were a boy, I would try for
West Point, if I could make it, or well I'd be a prize fighter - anything for
the thrills."
In 1918, Mitchell graduated from Washington Seminary and began to study medicine at Smith College.
In 1918, Mitchell graduated from Washington Seminary and began to study medicine at Smith College.
She was hit by a speeding taxi cab on August 11, 1949. She was in the process of crossing the street
with her husband, John Marsh, to see Canterbury Tales when a
drunk driver hit her.
Margaret Mitchell was taken to Grady Memorial Hospital in Atlanta, Georgia, where she died five days later on August 16, 1949.
Margaret Mitchell was taken to Grady Memorial Hospital in Atlanta, Georgia, where she died five days later on August 16, 1949.
