The Ponder Heart

The Ponder Heart (1967), a novel by American author Eudora Welty, follows Daniel Ponder who is publicly accused of murdering his wife. The story is narrated by Daniel’s niece, Edna Earle Ponder, who addresses readers personally as if they were visiting the hotel she runs in town. Like Welty’s other works, the novel focuses on themes of personal difference, the suspension of truth, and the ways in which money and other transactional socialities can ruin relationships.

The novel begins with a description of Uncle Daniel. A rich but unintelligent man, he is a bachelor and dresses neatly. Edna associates his immaturity, which borders on innocence, to his coddled upbringing. He has gifted Edna an entire hotel, which she operates during the events of the story. Edna relates that Daniel is known for giving things away, which often includes things he actually needs. In Edna’s opinion, Uncle Daniel is so giving because he is incredibly lonely. Grandpa Ponder, annoyed by his habit, sets Daniel up with Miss Teacake Magee, a widow who has nothing in common with him. Within months, the marriage fizzles out, sending Daniel straight back into his old routine.

When Grandpa Ponder dies, Edna is effectively charged with watching out for Uncle Daniel. She does not tell him what he is allowed to give away, since he clearly does not care about maintaining a certain standard of wealth. She frequently discusses his funny stories with people who come in and out of the hotel. This goes on until one day when Uncle Daniel disappears and gets married to a salesgirl at a local store before Edna can figure out what happened. Edna is skeptical about this new marriage given the fact that Daniel was unable to nurture his last one. Nevertheless, Daniel assures her that this marriage is merely “on trial.”



Uncle Daniel and his new wife, Bonnie Dee Peacock Ponder, remain married for five years before she vanishes. Edna eventually confides in her listener that she is self-conscious about her own social status as operator and caretaker, and jealous of Uncle Daniel’s easy life. She also reveals that she resents the Peacock family, but is unable to reject them, since Uncle Daniel married into it. The ensuing narrative follows the search for Bonnie Dee, who eventually returns and manages to oust Uncle Daniel out of his own home, stealing much of his wealth. She proceeds to purchase a number of useless objects, including an electric washing machine rendered unusable by the house’s lack of a power grid. Later, Bonnie Dee dies mysteriously.

Only once he is about to go to trial does Uncle Daniel finally realize the role that his wealth has played in the relationships that have come and gone in his life. On the day the trial is scheduled, he goes to the bank and withdraws all of his money, putting it in his pockets before going to the courthouse. The strangeness of the trial causes most of the town to convene, as well as the entirety of Bonnie Dee’s family, who arrive from abroad. Edna Earle and her attorney try to prevent Uncle Daniel from defending himself by exploiting his track record of deference. However, the gravity of the trial finally brings out his voice: after listening carefully to his opponents’ case, he begins to throw his money around the courtroom, giving it to the listeners. Even Bonnie Dee’s family backs down, realizing his good nature.

Despite Uncle Daniel’s victory in court, the novel’s conclusion is nevertheless sad and isolating. Having nothing left to give the world or with which to elicit its greed or attention, Uncle Daniel is lonelier than ever. Edna relates that no one ever truly understood Uncle Daniel, except, perhaps, in the spare moments when he used his voice. The Ponder Heart thus suggests that a purely virtuous life is alienating and unintelligible at the level of community, framing it as morally lopsided and tragic.