By the Shores of Silver Lake

Charles Ingalls is Laura’s optimistic, generous, and hardworking father. He sees the best in everything and everyone, and his good humor and jovial nature are infectious: “Pa’s laugh was like great bells ringing; it made you feel warm and happy” (137). The hardships that face the Ingalls at the start of the novel are enough to subdue even his hopes, but the job offer from Aunt Docia and Uncle Hi rekindles them: “A kind of tightness smoothed out of Pa’s thin cheeks and his blue eyes lighted up” (4). While Ma is reluctant to uproot the family again, Pa remains hopeful that a wonderful future awaits them in the West. Pa strives tirelessly to secure this brighter future for his loved ones. Whether hunting to feed his family, constructing buildings to sell, toiling away long evenings in the railroad company’s store, or digging a well on the homestead, Pa spends much of his time in the novel hard at work. Although caring for his wife and four children is no small feat in the dangerous and demanding world of the prairie, Pa generously helps whoever he can. In several chapters, Pa comes to the aid of complete strangers. As a result, some of these chance acquaintances, such as Mr. Boast, become dear friends. Pa leads and looks after the Ingalls family with heart, hopefulness, and hard work.

As the head of the Ingalls family, Pa makes important contributions to the novel’s plot and themes. Laura is the focal character, but Pa’s decisions guide the action and determine the settings. Some of his most important choices in this book include going west to South Dakota, working in the railroad camps, and selecting a homestead near Silver Lake. In addition, Pa plays a significant role in the theme of The Strength of Family Bonds. Despite the differences in their personalities, Pa and Ma love one another deeply and work together to take care of their children. Pa is also very close to Laura, who shares his love of travel, innovation, nature, and adventure. Given his many excellent traits, it’s no surprise that Laura admires her father so greatly: “[N]ot even railroad men were bigger or better than Pa, and she did not really want him to be anything but what he was” (31). Some of the protagonist’s happiest moments in the novel are spent helping her father with his work and singing along while he plays his fiddle. The understanding, love, and security Pa gives Laura help her feel safe and at home on the prairie, contributing to the peace and joy that permeate the mood of much of the novel. Pa and Laura’s closeness adds dimension to the theme of family and helps the reader better understand the story’s protagonist.

Caroline Ingalls is the protagonist’s cautious, resourceful, and stoic mother. Unlike her husband, Ma has no love of “wild, rough places” (95) and no desire to travel westward. However, she stoically subdues her concerns and agrees to follow her husband to Dakota Territory: “It seemed a long time before Ma said gently, ‘Well, Charles, you must do as you think best’” (5). Her sense of self is based on the roles of a dutiful mother, loyal wife, and devout Christian. Raising a family on the frontier forces Ma to summon all her resourcefulness and self-sufficiency. Although she has access to limited ingredients, she consistently prepares filling and delicious meals for her family. She also shows quick thinking when she finds presents for Mr. and Mrs. Boast when the young couple unexpectedly joins the Ingalls for Christmas. While Ma gains some friends, such as the Boasts, she remains cautious of strangers throughout the novel. When the surveyors’ house becomes a temporary inn, Ma instructs Laura to bar the girls’ bedroom door with a piece of wood and tells her, “I want the door to be locked. Don’t come down till I call you tomorrow morning” (225). This shows her protective love for her children and her distrust of strangers. Relocating to the prairie is difficult for Ma, but she reins in her feelings and vigilantly watches over her family.

As Laura’s mother and one of the novel’s most important supporting characters, Ma plays a key role in the themes of The Strength of Family Bonds and Adaptation to Change. Laura sometimes struggles to live up to Ma’s expectations, which clash with her free-spirited personality. For example, Ma subscribes to rigid gender norms and wishes for Laura to conform her behavior accordingly: “She said that she wanted her girls to know how to behave, to speak nicely in low voices and have gentle manners and always be ladies” (95). Laura is a natural-born adventurer who would rather frolic through a field than wear a fine dress, but she tries to subdue her impulses and obey her mother’s wishes. Most notably, Laura agrees to become a teacher even though she has no desire to do so. Although Ma’s expectations stir up inner conflict for Laura, she resolves to fulfill her mother’s life dream, showing the strength of the bonds between them. In addition to providing insights into the theme of family and the protagonist’s characterization, Ma adds depth to the theme of Adaptation to Change. Out of the Ingalls family, she is the most reluctant to relocate at the novel’s start, but she adapts to this new lifestyle. Some other ways she adapts include transferring her dream of teaching from Mary to Laura, finding a new way for Mary to receive an education, and charging the travelers who take food and lodging at the surveyors’ house. Ma offers an example of a pioneer woman who creates a new life for her children on the frontier while holding onto her long-held family values.

The responsible, patient, and gentle Mary Ingalls is Laura’s older sister and one of her dearest friends. She is 14 at the start of the novel. Right before the novel begins, Mary contracts scarlet fever. Although she survives, the disease’s impact remains with her for the rest of her life: “Her blue eyes were still beautiful, but they did not know what was before them, and Mary herself could never look through them again to tell Laura what she was thinking without saying a word” (2). While other characters lament Mary’s blindness, she makes no such complaint. Laura admiringly describes her older sister as “still patient and brave” (2). Similarly, Ma praises her daughter’s fortitude in Chapter 23: “Mary is a great comfort to me, Brother Alden. She has never once repined” (217). One reason for Mary’s impressive resilience is her sense of duty as the eldest sibling. She spends much of the novel looking out for her sisters, particularly Grace. While Mary and Laura are very close, the two girls have contrasting personalities. Mary is gentle and reserved, while Laura is inquisitive and free-spirited. When Laura returns from her wonderful afternoon watching the railroad’s construction with Pa, Mary tells her, “I really don’t know, Laura, why you’d rather watch those rough men working in the dirt than stay here in the nice clean shanty. I’ve finished another quilt patch while you’ve been idling” (106). The mild-mannered Mary favors Ma while Laura is more like Pa: The former wants to settle down quietly, while the latter loves the wilderness and adventure. Mary helps the reader better understand the protagonist through their contrasting personality traits.

Mary contributes to Laura’s motivation and the novel’s major themes. Throughout the story, Mary learns how to function with her blindness, which involves refining skills she already possesses, illustrating the theme of Adaptation to Change. For example, she teaches herself how to “see with [her] fingers” (159) and sews more beautifully than Laura by the middle of the novel. Mary also develops the keenest hearing in the family. In multiple scenes, she is the first character to notice someone’s approach. Mary also develops the theme of family. The strength of Laura’s family bonds is tested by her parents’ expectation that she become a teacher, a career she dreads. Eventually, Mary motivates the protagonist to accept this future. Laura promises Mary that she will work hard and become a teacher so that Mary can afford to attend college. In Chapter 26, Laura keeps this purpose in mind as she reflects on the money she and Ma earned by providing meals and lodging to travelers: “If they could save it, Laura thought, it would be that much toward sending Mary to college” (243). Laura’s love for her older sibling is an important source of motivation for her. Mary shows how people can respond to change with courage and how strong the bond between sisters can be.