Within the story “Thank You, M’am” by Langston Hughes, two very contrasting characters are presented. One character Mrs. Luella Bates Washington Jones, is a very independant and strong woman. Whereas, Roger is a poor and frail young man. Although they are brought together by a less than desirable situation, both of the character’s attractive personalities are shown throughout the story through indirect characterization. Mrs. Luella Bates Washington Jones is a very intriguing character. She is “a large woman with a large purse that had everything in it but hammers and nails” (120).She is like a mother; a caring, amiable, and generous person. Mrs. Jones offers a poor boy food and gives him ten dollars, so he could buy a pair of blue suede …show more content…
Jones, his second character is even more captivating. Roger is a poor young man who “looked as if were fourteen or fifteen, frail and willow-wind, in tennis shoes and blue jeans” (122). He looks like an ordinary boy, but his actions tell a different story. While Mrs. Jones is walking along, Roger comes out and tries to snatch her large purse. His attempt eventually fails and Roger is placed in the precarious situation of dealing with Mrs. Luella Bates Washington Jones. Even though his actions portray him as a thief, his words show that he is a polite and respecting young man and not a thief. Roger’s politeness is shown when he call Mrs. Jones “ma’am” and when he offers to fetch items that she may need. His respectfulness is shown throughout the story when he does not speak unless spoken to. Even though Roger’s actions depicts him as a thief, his words and reactions show him to be polite and respectful person. Although the way Mrs. Luella Bates Washington Jones and Roger meet is not under ideal circumstances, they both reveal their superior and attractive characteristics. Both of them prove to be polite, amiable, and decent people. These interesting characters both face situations, whether in the present or past, but they both overcome them and let their great personalities shine through. Langston Hughes did an amazing job in creating these charming characters and showing them through indirect
Ms. Luella Bates Washington Jones is her name. She is a very strong, influential, and kind. She works at a beauty shop. She is large and carries a large purse containing everything she needs in it everywhere she goes. When she was walking down the street, a boy named Roger came behind her and tried to snatch her purse. The bag was too heavy, therefore he lost his balance and fell down. In page 1, paragraph 1, lines 3-5, the author states "...a boy ran up behind her and tried to snatch her purse. The strap broke with the single tug the boy gave it from behind. But the boy's weight and the weight of the purse combined caused him to lose his balance so, instead of taking off full blast as he had hoped, the boy fell...". Ms. Luella then took him to her house to teach him a lesson. Her accent suggests that she's African-American.
Mrs. Jones purse was part of an attempted larceny by the young Rodger. At that point she didn't make too big of a scene. She lectured him, but then brought him home, without giving it any further consideration. Most people would punish, shame, or denigrate a thief, but Mrs. Jones decided to bring him home and sit him down for a meal, and showed him why appropriation is wrong. By doing this she is showing a new trend, once again showing her leadership. Rodger confused by her actions, in seeing how she reacted we can inference that he might want to follow in her footsteps. Mrs. Jones is leading new ideas, and shaping the children of tomorrow.
The central meaning of Langston Hughes' story is that kindness, empathy, and understanding, have greater impacts on the lives around us than cruelty does. Hughes demonstrates this concept by using Mrs. Luella Bates Washington Jones interactions with Roger. From the first time they meet, when Roger tries to steal Mrs. Jones purse, to the end when she gives him ten dollars for a new pair of blue suede shoes, she never ridicules or truly punishes him for his actions. Instead, she asks him why he tried to steal and uses kindness to show him that there are other ways to survive, without resorting to stealing. The clear message here is that we shouldn't judge a book by its cover. By not immediately judging
"The large woman simply turned around and kicked him in the blue jeaned sitter," Though it may not seem like this is a story of learning and positive influences, so begins one of many such stories about a child being positively influenced by a parental figure in a way that will affect every decision he/she will ever make. Parents have an enormous impact on what their children do and what ideals said children believe in. Without parental interaction, children may become lost or come to accept mistaken ideals such as the rightfulness of stealing which Roger, a main character symbolizing a child, actually agrees with when the reader originally reads the story. While some children might find their way if left alone, many would become overwhelmed and their young minds would perish. In this article, two texts will be discussed that express this topic: "Thank You, Ma’am" by Langston Hughes and "Fish Cheeks" by Amy Tan. In the Modern Era, it is all the more important to
Jeanne Wakatsuki Houston, the author of “farewell to manzanar”, and Langston Hughes the author of “I,too” display many similarities throughout their work. Each author use of imagery and the tones convey allow the reader to understand the magnitude of what was going on and the
Langston Hughes is one the most renowned and respected authors of twentieth century America not simply one of the most respected African-American authors, though he is certainly this as well, but one of the most respected authors of the period overall. A large part of the respect and admiration that the man and his work have garnered is due to the richness an complexity of Hughes' writing, both his poetry and his prose and even his non-fictions. In almost all of his texts, Hughes manages at once to develop and explore the many intricacies and interactions of the human condition and specifically of the experience growing up and living as a black individual in a white-dominated and explicitly anti-Black society while at the same time, while at the same time rendering his human characters and their emotions in a simple, straightforward, and immensely accessible fashion. Reading the complexity behind the surface simplicity of his works is at once enjoyable and edifying.
In Langston Hughes's short story "Thank you, Ma'am," Mrs. Luella Bates Washington Jones shows the reader her many personality characteristics. First, she is strict. Mrs. Luella Bates Washington Jones dragged Roger over to her home, and with a loud voice makes him wash his face. Next, she is incredibly bossy. When Roger tries to steal her pocket book she said very angrily to pick it up. Finally, she is a caring person. Mrs. Luella Bates Washington Jones offered Roger dinner, and even though Roger did try to steal money for shoes she still gave him the money anyway. So at the end of it all Mrs. Luella Bates Washington Jones maybe bossy and strict, but there is a nice caring person inside of
His desire to steal the purse was driven by the strong want to buy blue suede shoes. This desire of the shoes can be compared to Macbeth’s desire of the throne. Both characters did evil deeds to reach their ultimate goal. Roger, however, is unable to successfully steal the purse and learns an important lesson through his failure. After Roger’s failed attempt, the story explains the woman’s initial actions, “... she reached down, picked the boy up by his shirt front, and shook him until his teeth rattled” (Hughes, 1). This quote shows her aggressive behavior that masked her knowledgeable and caring personality. Roger is made to go back to her house to clean up and have a meal. The theme of patience is learned during his visit to her house, “The woman did not watch the boy to see if he was going to run now, nor did she watch her purse which she left behind her on the day-bed. But the boy took care to sit on the far side of the room where he thought she could easily see him out of the corner of her eye” (Hughes, 3). This quote expresses the amount of respect and trust built by both Roger and the woman in this short amount of time. She later explains to him that she understands his motive to steal as she has done wrongful deeds as well. She finished her talk with him by saying, “And next time, do not make the mistake of latching onto
Hughes’s childhood was an extreme struggle. His father left the family just after Hughes was born. His mother struggled to support their little family. “He spent many years living with various relatives and family friends as his mother traveled in search of work. When she was remarried and secure in 1914, he joined her in Cleveland, Ohio. At Central High School, he proved himself as a student and an athlete, and began writing poetry and short fiction for the school's literary magazine” (“Langston Hughes” Exploring Short Stories). Critics of his time suggested that because of his father’s absence, Hughes was so bitter about the reality of life and following dreams.
The character introduced as Celia Foote is immediately eschewed by the socialites of Jackson despite her positivity and eagerness to become a part of the League. Although, Hilly has a disliking towards her caused by a conflict involving Mrs. Foote’s husband and Hilly’s past relationship with him. Furthermore, Hilly’s acrimony towards Mrs. Foote enhances the idea that the enrichment of power in a social setting can be used to drive out those deemed unworthy of certain rights, not only because of skin color but social involvement as well.
Langston Hughes is an extremely successful and well known black writer who emerged from the Harlem Renaissance (“Langston Hughes” 792). He is recognized for his poetry and like many other writers from the Harlem Renaissance, lived most of his life outside of Harlem (“Langston Hughes” 792). His personal experiences and opinions inspire his writing intricately. Unlike other writers of his time, Hughes expresses his discontent with black oppression and focuses on the hardships of his people. Hughes’ heartfelt concern for his people’s struggle evokes the reader’s emotion. His appreciation for black music and culture is evident in his work as well. Langston Hughes is a complex poet whose profound works provide insight into all aspects of black
“Compassionate people are geniuses in the art of living, more necessary to the dignity, security, and joy of humanity than the discoveries of knowledge.” -- Albert Einstein
The whole process of the civil rights movement was to get African Americans equal treatment as American citizens. Hughes shows his reader the struggle of African American’s treatment through many of his poems. In “I,Too”, the reader sees the dream that the young servant dreams of every day, “They send me to eat in the kitchen When company comes, But I laugh, And eat well, And grow strong. Tomorrow, I’ll be at the
This paper examines the perspective of Langston Hughes and how his style of writing is. It looks at how several interrelated themes run through the poetry of Langston Hughes, all of which have to do with being black in America and surviving in spite of immense difficulties. Langston Hughes is one of the most influential writers because his style of work not only captured the situation of African Americans; it also grabbed the attention of other races with the use of literary elements and other stylistic qualities. Langston Hughes became well known for his way of interpreting music into his work of writing, which readers love and enjoy today.
Langston Hughes’s life contained key influences on his work. As a child, Hughes witnessed a divorce between his parents and the subsequent death of his grandmother, his primary caretaker at the time. Hughes’s childhood was also marked by the constant transition of moving from city to