Because of Winn Dixie | Setting & Analysis

Winn-Dixie Grocery Store

This is a very important place in Because of Winn-Dixie. Opal first meets her dog, later named Winn-Dixie, at the store. The dog is a stray, who has somehow entered the grocery store and is running from employees, causing a large commotion. Opal sees that the dog is scared and alone; she immediately feels for him because she too feels scared and lonely. She convinces the grocery store clerk that the dog is hers, and when he asks her what his name is, she replies, "Winn-Dixie."

Gloria Dump's Home and Yard

Opal's favorite place to be that summer is at the home of a woman, whom the Dewberry Brothers, the town bullies, told Opal is a witch. This woman is Gloria Dump. She is actually a sweet older lady who has a hard time seeing. Opal describes her yard as an overgrown jungle. She is a recovering alcoholic and has a tree in her backyard where she hangs glass bottles on the branches; she calls the tree the "Mistake Tree". She tells Opal that the bottles hanging in the tree keep the ghosts from the past from returning. Gloria, Opal, and Winn-Dixie share many long talks over peanut butter sandwiches in her yard. At summer's end, Opal and Gloria host a party, turning the jungle into a fairyland where, "even somebody with bad eyes can tell it looks good."

The Herman W. Block Memorial Library

Miss Franny Block's father, Herman W. Block, built the Herman W. Block Memorial Library, for his daughter because she wanted one for her birthday. Opal becomes good friends with Miss Franny. It's easy to listen to Miss Franny's stories, but not so easy to keep cool, because the air conditioning doesn't work well and Winn-Dixie always hogs the only fan.

The story of how Miss Franny meets Winn-Dixie is a comical part of the book. Opal goes in to look for a book and to talk to Miss. Franny. Winn-Dixie looks in from a window. Miss. Franny looks up, she sees Winn-Dixie in the window, she thinks Winn-Dixie is a bear, and she panics.

Gertrude's Pets

Gertrude's Pets is the pet store where Opal does light work in exchange for some items for Winn-Dixie, like his new leash. She becomes friends with Otis, the owner of the store. Gertrude is Otis's pet bird who does not like Winn-Dixie. Otis is a musician, and he lets all of the animals out of their cages in the mornings while plays for them. Otis is also lonely since many of the townspeople think he is dangerous. Otis tells Opal about his trouble with the law when he was younger, but Opal is not afraid of him and enjoys listening to his music.

The setting of a story is the time and place that is described in the story. Through clues given in the Because of Winn-Dixie we can guess that the story happens sometime in the years between the 1950s and the 1990s. The story of Winn-Dixie takes place in the summer in the small town of Naomi, Florida.

The story takes the main character to places such as her home at the Friendly Corners Trailer Park , the Open Arms Baptist Church of Naomi, the Herman W. Block Memorial Library, Gertrude's Pets, and her friend, Gloria Dump's, home and yard.