Orchard Slope

Orchard Slope is the Barry family home, a farmstead situated on a slope beyond the brook that runs between it and Green Gables. It is the residence of Mr. and Mrs. Barry and their children, most notably Diana Barry, Anne Shirley's "bosom friend." The property is defined by its orchard, its garden, and its position overlooking the pond Anne renames the Lake of Shining Waters. For Anne, Orchard Slope is a place of profound emotional significance, the setting for the most intense joys and sorrows of her early friendship with Diana, and a site where her character is tested and ultimately vindicated.

Setting and Description

Orchard Slope is described as a place of natural beauty and domestic order. The house is a "little gray house peering around a white apple orchard" , visible from the crest of a hill near Green Gables. The garden is a "bowery wilderness of flowers," encircled by huge old willows and tall firs, with prim, right-angled paths bordered with clamshells and old-fashioned flowers growing riotously in the beds . The property includes a pond, which Matthew Cuthbert identifies as "Barry's pond" , and a kitchen roof with a ridgepole that becomes the site of a dangerous dare . The house itself is a place of formal hospitality, where Mrs. Barry keeps the "very best china set out" for special guests .

Events and Social Life

Orchard Slope is the setting for several pivotal events in Anne's life. It is where Anne first meets Diana and where the two girls solemnly swear eternal friendship . It is also the scene of Anne's greatest social disgrace: after mistakenly giving Diana currant wine instead of raspberry cordial, Anne is banned from the house by Mrs. Barry, who declares that Diana is never to play with her again . This prohibition is lifted only after Anne saves the life of Diana's younger sister, Minnie May, during a croup attack . Later, Anne and Diana accidentally jump into the bed of Diana's visiting aunt, Miss Josephine Barry, causing a family crisis that Anne resolves by bravely confessing her fault . The house also hosts a party where Anne is dared to walk the ridgepole of the kitchen roof, a stunt that results in a broken ankle .

Associated People and Relationships

The central figure of Orchard Slope is Diana Barry, Anne's "kindred spirit" and closest friend. Mrs. Barry, Diana's mother, is a "tall black-eyed, black-haired woman, with a very resolute mouth" who is strict with her children and initially disapproves of Anne . Mr. Barry is a more distant figure, but he carries Anne home after her fall from the ridgepole . Miss Josephine Barry, Diana's great-aunt, is a sharp-tongued but ultimately warm-hearted woman who becomes a firm friend of Anne's after the bed-jumping incident . The household also includes the younger children, such as Minnie May, whose life Anne saves .

Changes and Narrative Significance

Orchard Slope undergoes a significant shift in its relationship with Anne. Initially a place of welcome and joy, it becomes a site of exclusion and sorrow after the currant wine incident, when Mrs. Barry forbids Diana from playing with Anne . This estrangement is a source of deep pain for Anne, who mourns the loss of her friend. The turning point comes when Anne, using her experience from caring for the Hammond twins, successfully treats Minnie May's croup, earning Mrs. Barry's gratitude and a full reconciliation . From that point on, Orchard Slope is once again a place of welcome, where Anne is treated with respect and even honored with the use of the best china. The location thus serves as a barometer of Anne's social standing in Avonlea and a crucible for her growth in responsibility and courage.