Analysis of John Irving’s The Cider House Rules

By NASRULLAH MAMBROL on June 9, 2026

Frequently compared to Charles Dickens, critically acclaimed writer John Irving makes use of the bildungsroman genre in his sixth novel The Cider House Rules (1985). The novel follows the development of orphan Homer Wells, from his childhood during the early 20th century at St. Cloud’s orphanage in Maine, to his adult life at an orchard, and eventually back to St. Cloud’s, where he replaces Dr. Wilbur Larch, whose obstetrical work includes deliveries and abortions. However, Homer’s reasons for his return to St. Cloud’s, like the issue of abortion itself, are neither clear-cut nor easily reconciled. As Homer, Larch, and other characters try to live by inflexible rules “symbolized in the unread list of rules posted in the cider house,” Irving presents a forum for his readers to consider the many sides to the issue of choice.

The plot of The Cider House Rules develops sequentially, except for an early flashback into Larch’s life and background. His youthful experiences with a prostitute who gives him gonorrhea and also dies from a botched abortion, and whose daughter dies from another botched abortion, contribute to his developing conviction of the need for safe and legal abortions. At St. Cloud’s orphanage, Larch resolves: “He would deliver babies. He would deliver mothers, too” (75). In other words, he would deliver children and perform abortions, with the assistance of his loyal staff. The language Larch uses to describe his work has particular relevance. Whereas his medical colleagues refer to the birth delivery as “the Lord’s work” and abortions as “the Devil’s work” (75), Larch regards both operations as “the Lord’s work,” deliberately sidestepping the legal question of abortion and acting primarily on the level of practicality: as long as there are unwanted children in the world, Larch decides, abortion is necessary.

While the early chapters focus on Larch, who also maintains a lifetime ether addiction, most of The Cider House Rules focuses on Homer Wells, one of the orphans Larch delivers at St. Cloud’s. In the midst of equally complex characters, Homer’s development from child to adult in part seems to be what earns Irving the comparison to Dickens in that Homer’s story is one of becoming, although in a sense his story is a sequel to Larch’s. Under the doctor’s loving care and tutelage, Homer becomes a skilled obstetrician. It is Larch’s hope that Homer will one day perform “the Lord’s work,” all of it, when the doctor can no longer continue at St. Cloud’s. But after finding an aborted fetus, Homer decides that he is morally opposed to abortion: “Let Larch call it whatever he wants, thought Homer Wells. It’s his choice. If it’s a fetus, to him that’s fine. It’s a baby to me, thought Homer Wells. If Larch has a choice, I have a choice, too” (169).

Heartbroken, but hopeful that Homer will return one day to St. Cloud’s to perform “the Lord’s work,” Larch allows Homer to leave with his new friends, a happy, unmarried couple, Candy Kendall and Wally Worthington, who have sought Larch’s abortion services. While Wally is away fighting in World War II, Homer becomes increasingly aware of his love for Candy, who reciprocates only when they both believe that Wally has died in the war. Homer and Candy have a child, Angel, but when Wally does return home, paralyzed from the waist down, Candy marries Wally. Yet the three friends remain in Maine to raise Angel together at the Worthington family orchard, although the secret of Angel’s parentage is kept from the boy and Wally.

Homer settles into his unconventional family life, and for 15 years he resists Larch’s desire for his return to St. Cloud’s. However, Homer is confronted by the “necessity” of abortion when Rose Rose, the daughter of the orchard foreman, Mr. Rose, is impregnated by her father. Following the ether death of Larch, Homer performs an abortion on Rose Rose, and he and Candy reveal their secret to Wally and Angel. Then Homer resigns himself to sharing Larch’s view on the practical necessity of abortion: “[I]f he could operate on Rose Rose, how could he refuse to help a stranger? How could he refuse anyone? Only a god makes that kind of decision. I’ll just give them what they want, he thought. An orphan or an abortion” (535).

Homer’s resolution and the issue of abortion was secondary to the initial conception of The Cider House Rules, according to Irving, who explained how the issue first developed through Larch’s character: “[W]hat doctor would be most sympathetic to performing abortions but the doctor who delivered unwanted babies, then cared for them in an orphanage?” (quoted in Campbell, 107). Although Larch’s appearance in the novel initiates the underlying “conversation” about abortion, Irving extends this conversation to the challenges of principled living in a world fraught with ambiguity. Larch chooses to deliver babies and mothers, an ethical choice he makes based on his experiences as a younger man. Similarly, Homer must set the standards of his life by making his own choices and witnessing their consequences. After living with Candy, Wally, and Angel in the ambiguous state of “waiting and seeing,” Homer confronts his avoidance—and Candy’s avoidance—of making a definitive choice about their family life, which is as insular and loving as it is fractured and dishonest. Josie Campbell draws the parallel between Homer’s family and the issue of abortion: “The complexities of their triangular relationship are resonant of the complexities of the abortion debate. In neither case is there necessarily a right answer” (117–118).

Homer’s development as a character hinges on his perception of life’s ambiguities. Therefore, his development also depends upon his ability to negotiate rules, which he discovers can change as situations change. Homer, like Candy, Wally, Larch, Rose Rose, and Mr. Rose, make up their own rules when conventional “rules” and standards no longer fit the ethical choices they make. By the end of the novel, Homer finds resolution about where he belongs and about performing abortions, but readers may not find the same resolution as easily. Although choice is the underlying ethical stance in The Cider House Rules, Irving allows his readers to make up their own minds about abortion, using the complex lives of his characters to posit the difficulties of living moral lives in an ambiguous universe.

Sources

Campbell, Josie P. John Irving: A Critical Companion. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 1998.

Irving, John. The Cider House Rules. 1985. New York: Ballantine Books, 2001.