Hannah Coulter

Agrarianism is a social and philosophical belief system that positions rural life, agriculture, and the stewardship of land as the foundation for a good and meaningful society. At its core, agrarianism holds that working the land, primarily through small-scale, sustainable farming, cultivates responsibility, frugality, and a community-minded approach. The agrarian life Berry portrays in his Port William series offers not just a system of communal agriculture but a way of being in relationship with the world. Hannah says, “There are only two reasons to farm: because you have to, and because you love to” (142), emphasizing that the people of Port William farm not for money or ambition, but to provide for their families and neighbors. This way of living, Berry suggests, fosters stewardship of the earth, promotes local economies, encourages simplicity, and cultivates interdependence among people. Through Port William, Berry provides a vision of the ideal rural life, which offers values that modern, urban society has abandoned. 

Hannah’s story uplifts the rhythms, responsibilities, and relationships found in rural communities as life-giving and emotionally sustaining. She grapples with the ways moving away from a rural way of life leads to a disconnection from nature, meaningful work, communal support, and an enduring sense of place. Berry employs Hannah’s reflective voice to explore what has been lost in the transition to a more industrial, urban-centered society, explicitly connecting the growing mechanization of farming to a loss of agrarian values and community identity. For example, Hannah reflects that “[…] looking back, it seems clear that when the tractors came, the people began to go” (105). Although new machines and technologies making farming more efficient and profitable, she feels the loss of the rhythms of farm life, like shared labor, observing seasonal patterns, and the mutual reliance on neighbors who knew each other’s stories. She fears that they have traded these treasured traditions for efficiency, profit, and speed. Through scenes like the arrival of tractors and the rise of men like Kelly Crawley, who seeks to profit from the death of farmers, Berry offers a sharp critique of modern economies that view land as a commodity rather than a trust, turning farming into factory work, severing it from the ethical responsibility that once bound farmers to their soil and their communities.

Berry’s novel asserts that rural life, when lived attentively and responsibly, fosters a sense of belonging, humility, and sustainability. Hannah describes her and Nathan’s relationship with their land as one of mutual care: “By our work we kept and improved our place, and in return for our work the place gave us back our life” (102). Hannah mourns the severing of individuals from the places and communities that give life meaning. The dignity of agrarianism, she believes, lies in its care and devotion to a place. As these values disappear, so too do communities like Port William. 

Berry’s portrayal positions Hannah’s story not as a romanticization of rural life but as a nuanced picture of the challenges and rewards of investing in one’s land and community. Early in the narrative, he establishes the hardships of rural life through his depiction of Hannah’s early childhood and the poverty she experienced as the daughter of a tenant farmer during the Depression. He balances those hardships with the joy Hannah and Nathan find in working their land well, allowing it to sustain them, their family, and their community. Berry portrays the people of Port William not as morally superior, but as committed to a way of living that thrives best in rural settings, where care for the land, loyalty to the community, and ethical restraint take precedence over economic prosperity.