American Literature From 1860, Essay Example

Question One: Discuss Mark Twain’s The Notorious Jumping Frog

The tall tale of the notorious jumping frog of the Calaveras county is not an original work of mark twain, but a narration he has heard in the mine camps and many other places he had frequented. By this story Mark Twain tries to satirize many aspect of the American life, directly to as the country bumpkin whose lengthy utterances about certain subjects whose meaning are different and unimportant and nonsensical from the real story. Mark persuades his quest in a small country side county and meets Simon Wheeler, whom is a local of this county and enquires the where about of one young Reverend Leonidas W. Smiley.

Wheeler narration to be Mark that there was once a fellow who lived in his neighborhood back in the winters of 49 or spring of 50 not sure about the exact date called Jim Smiley. Wheeler describes this chap as a very curious guy who would bet for anything. This he would do anything to get anyone to bet, he would do anything or compromise his stand on the bet just to get the other party in the bet (Cain, 28). In the bet whichever way suited his opponent suited him. However this chap would be viewed by Wheeler as abnormally lucky, and in most cases he did prosper in his dealings no matter his compromising situations or changing his stand to cover the opponent’s indulgence on the endeavor.

Wheeler acclaims how this chap would bet on anything, if there was a horse race he would bet, if he saw a dog fight he would bet someone to bet, if there happens to be a cat fight he would bet someone which cat would win, if he saw cock fight he would bet on them, he would even bet on camp meeting as the guy was obsessed with betting but he was always true in his bets and conceded defeat without much ado but they were on the minimal.

The irony in the betting obsession by Smiley was so immense that he even once did bet on a local chap Person Walker whose wife was bed ridden and Smiley calls to check on her and after enquiring about the health condition, mutters that he would risk two und a half that she don’t get well.

Smiley owned a mare whom the locals called fifteen minute nag, on the course the mare would start off with a pace so promising then fall back as the course unfolds and then near the end from nowhere this mare would reap to life and excitedly take the lead, panting and galloping loudly this was due to asthma or distemper or consumption for the reason was vaguely known to the locals of the cause of the peculiar habits of the mare.

Besides this mare Smiley also had a little small bull pup he called Andrew Jackson. This dog was not worth anything just to look at, but when he was betted upon he would turn all odds and beat the other dog in the fight. The determination on this small pup astonished many. One day this pup was put up a challenge with a dog with no hind legs and this was his winning strategy to lung on the hind legs not letting go till the opponent throws in the towel. From this encounter the little pup was badly wounded and died from these wounds.

This however did not kill the moral of Smiley, that he caught a frog one day and vowed to teach the frog some new ropes. This smiley took three month teaching the frog to do all sort of tricks including jumping, catching fly at height that no other frog could, he named this frog Dan’l Webster. He bet anyone all kind of task that the frog would do and relate to and Dan’l Webster would not let his master down for every task Smiley did bet on him he would come through winning his master lot of money from this bets. Smiley proudly acclaimed that the entire frog needed was education and he was ready to deploy any tactical skill on the creature. This became an attraction as people travelled far to come witness this amazing frog.

One day however a stranger encountered Smiley and prompted what he carried in the compartment he had, Smiley always in gambling mood told the stranger of the greatest frog in the whole county an that no other frog from anywhere could match the jumping skills of that frog. The stranger prompted a challenge to Smiley and he told him to go source for him a another frog to challenge Dan’l Webster, this made Smiley leave Dan’l Webster with the stranger who prized the frog mouth open and filled the animal full of quail shot near to his chin.

This made the frog loose the forty dollar bet they had agreed upon. Later Smiley still puzzled at how the frog did not move when patted on the back to urge it reap forward, he observed that the frog was awkwardly fat and after turning him upside down the frog belched out a double handful of shot, this made Smiley really mad and run to find the trickster who had long gone.

Question 2: Sense of Community and Innocence as Found in Bret Hart Story “the Outcast of Poker Flats

The story of the outcast of poker flats is an old time classic in the American literature; this short story first appeared on the Overland Monthly in the month of January 1869, this era saw Bret Harte as the editor of publication. The location setup for this town is California in the year 1850 between the month of November 23 and December 7. This is a town that grew from the influx of people search for fortune in gold mining. T

This particular town Poker flat lies on these steep mountains. Most of the locals from this town are native of the land who have come from different background societies as the story unfolds there in this set up Germans, French, Briton and Irish originates that all harbored by the quest for the search of the fortune of gold.

The hypocrisy of this town is best observed as they secretly establish a committee, this they plot to expel some local citizens who have also come to search for a fortune but he is a gambler (John Oakhurst) and other who have earned this designation.  The town detests him because of how he has won several bets leaving the locals loosing several thousand dollars, price horses and worthy citizen the plot is to hang two folk and banish the rest which included women from frequenting this region.

This they have the ill motive of hanging of John Oakhurst so as to get back their loses of the amount they had lost in the gambling expeditions. They also harbored the notion of hanging a local drunkard and thief known as Uncle Billy. The other group that was to be evicted was two prostitute the Duchess and the Mother Shipton whom the town secret committee planed to banish from the town of Poker Flat. The hypocrisy of this tiny town is also carried forward by a resident of this town one Jake Woods the parent to one Piney Woods who elopes with Tom Simson a young lad who admires the gamblers kindness as they had earlier encountered and lost $40 to him and this amount was later reimbursed back to this lad, the father of this prudent girl had detested this reunion and made the couple to run away from this town to the neighboring town for refuge and settlement there.

The town had no moral judgment and in their eyes they view this banishment of this outcast as just and in the case of the one Oakhurst, they had no moral to banish him out of the town for he had not robbed him anything but they had obliged and sat with him in those gambling session and lost their earnings lawfully (Cain, 44). When one character Jim Wheeler agrees that Oakhurst should be hanged and the amount they had lost be forcefully taken back to cover the damages the resident had gone in the hand of this gambler. In all moral judgment this fellow was maliciously evicted due to envy and the hypocrisy of this town folks.

The gambler was innocent of the crime against him, he is later in the story very compassionate around the young lad, and this is observed when he gave this young chap his snow shoes to walk back to the town to look for help and supplies. This act of unselfishness is best practiced by the kind nature of this gambler, when he sacrifices his life for the life of the young chap by offering the snow shoes which the boy uses to tread back to the town of Poker Flat.

The other kind of innocence and an act of selflessness is observed when one of the prostitute dying offers some supplies she had stored away for the young couple so as to sustain them through the storm. And then again this is observed when the Duchess cradled the young prudent girl the bride to be of the young Tom Simson from the scorching cold weather from the blizzard of the snowing storm outside the semi roofless cabin. However the cold is so extreme that its freezes the life out of both this women before help could arrive.

Both of this outcast women who were considered outcast in the society turned to be the caring surrogate mother to the young prudent girl Piney Woods, they both offer her help and are very considerate and goes on the extreme of even sacrificing their life for the life of this young prudent girl, without consideration of that the father of the girl is the one of the committee member who had advised the banishment of the outcast although they had no idea they were harboring outcast till the last minute.

The outcast in this story are considered to be humble and heroes as the story unfolds they are so human and caring toward the new occupant who joined the band wagon to the search of new settlement from the one they had both escaped from. Oakhurst although considered by the community in the small town of Poker Flat as a villain, he is a very considerate and compassion fellow. His compassion is so immense that he chooses to end his life so as to save the life of the young couple than save his.

Another sympathetic case of unconditional love is portrayed by the women who are in the eyes of the Poker Flat viewed as prostitute but later out of human compassion turn to be the surrogate mothers of the young girl, the first act of compassion is seen as the Mother Shipon hides some supplies for the young couples so they don’t starve to death. And the second act is seen when the Duchess as for prayers and then holds the young girl from the blizzard from the snow storm. This they both die nobly with peace in their faces that even the villagers after finding them are so ashamed and guilty as the picture portrayed is so peaceful.

The last outcast who is the drunkard and the thief who has no heart in the story and is the one who should have been condemned to death as he even stole from the young couples who had offered to help the outcast with supplies and recommended a place for taking refuge from the blizzard. This is the kind of person that the world should get rid off, for he takes opportunity and takes advantage of this in the wrong manner inconsiderate of the outcome of the rest of the outcasts.

Question 6: Connection of the Passage “What Then Is the American, This New Man?” From de Crevecoeur to the Readings Covered So Far.

St John De Crevecoeur who was a French Citizen in the letters from an American Farmer. Wrote the passage “What then is the American, this new man?” when he was emphasizing on the new American man who has been as a result of immigration of people from different races. He meant that today’s American are as result of intermarriage of many races which migrated to America mainly in search of Jobs. He specified that America is made up of a mixture of Irish, French, Dutch, Swedes, English, Scotch, Germans, Africans and other small races which have intermarried over the years.

The passage relate to the writings of Bret Harte in his writing of “Outcast of Poker Flat. Harte based his writing in California mining community during 1850 when the country towns grew with the influx of people who were seeking fortunes from the mining sites of gold (Cain, 47). The influx of people was from different races that were migrating to the regions where gold was being mined. Due to the increase of people in such regions town started to develop and the growth of towns brought in emergence of different races residing in the same place hence they intermarried.

Sense of community changed due to urbanization of the different communities which were residing in the same place. The different communities/races had to develop a common language and way of living therefore unknowingly they developed a common culture which they were able to relate with. Intermarrying made each race to loss its identity as a community as they intermarried from different races.

De Crevecoeur emphasized on how American people are unique as there isn’t any other country with such a combination of many races that have migrated to form a nation. The Americans were sometime scattered all over Europe and other continents before they migrated to United either in search of Jobs or as slaves. Hence, the diversity of its citizen has made the society unique in its operations and governance.

Work Cited

Cain, William. American Literature Vol. 2. Upper Saddle River: Pearson Education, 2004