Victoria Jonczyk The Random of Red Chief 28 February 2012 I.

Introduction

English 1A

Price

A. O. Henry once said, Write what you like; there is no other rule (Shelokhonov 2). B. The Ransom of Red Chief is a well known story by O. Henry. It consists of a different style of writing and also a not expected ending. C. O. Henry (also known as William Sydney Porter), who was born in the late 1800s, was influenced by his alcohol abuse which greatly affected his writing. (Shelokhonov 1-2). In O. Henrys short story, The Ransom of Red Chief the authors strange style comes across as an average story of a boy being kidnapped by two men, but in the end is not quite what it seems. II. Brief Bio. of author A. Childhood 1. At the young age of only three years old, O. Henrys mother died. He was raised by his aunt and grandmother. Father was a medical doctor. Left school at only fifteen and then had a number of jobs, including bank clerk (Shelokhonov 1). 2. Left school at fifteen. His only real education was at the school of his Aunt Lina (Shelokhonov 1). 3. At age 34 was falsely accused of embezzlement. Sentenced to 5 years in jail. After doing 3 of the 5 years, was released for good behavior (Shelokhonov 1).

B. Life as a writer 1. Published 12 stories while in prison. (Shelokhonov 1). In 1887, married Athol Estes. 10 years after her death, married Sarah Coleman but separated a year later. Occupied with many jobs, including a licensed pharmacist and a columnist (Lombardi 1). C. O. Henry had a difficult life. From being an alcoholic, to the death of family, to being in jail, turning to alcohol seemed to be the only option for him. His life had an unexpected outcome, just like his stories do. III. Brief summary of the short story A. Sam and Bill have the idea to kidnap a little boy. It seems to be a good idea to them at first. Theyd give the boys father a price to get the boy back. In the end, the boy, Ebenezer, or Red Chief, seems to be such a hassle that the men end up paying the boys father to take him back (O. Henry 1-6). B. O. Henry had a very significant way of getting his theme across. The Ransom of Red Chief isnt a story that points out the theme obviously; it takes some thinking. Karma is the theme. As Bill and Sam seem to have a whole planned out idea, in the end it backfires. It shows that doing intentional bad things will lead to a bad future for oneself. IV. Discussion of style A. The syntax of this story is original. The sentences come off as complex and difficult at first, but after reading over again, it is easier to read and is noticeable that the word order is complex, not difficult. Such as, We were down South, in AlabamaBill Driscoll and myself when this kidnapping idea struck us (O. Henry 1). B. The author uses very appropriate word usage in this story. Along with the complex syntax, it has fantastic diction. This makes it very easy to read and comprehend, but also makes

you think. The author provides suspense to make the reader want to keep reading. For example, It looked like a good thing: but wait till I tell you (O. Henry 1). C. The imagery in The Ransom of Red Chief is very detailed with a wide range of similes. The author provides a great amount of description to make the story more enjoyable for the reader, but also lets the reader imagine quite a lot. Such as, The kid was a boy of ten, with bas-relief freckles, and the hair color of the cover of the magazine you buy at the news-stand when you want to catch a train (O. Henry 1). D. Critic William Peden says, " O. Henry brought verve, excitement, and humor to the genre. Enormously interested in people, he is capable of swift and compassionate insights into the average person, and his sympathy for the underdog, the little man or woman dwarfed in the maze of contemporary life, to a degree accounted for his enormous popularity" (Peden 2). V. Tying it all together A. After reading stories by O. Henry and learning some things about the authors life a person may conclude that he is an author who has achieved greatness through writing. B. In The Ransom of Red Chief the author lets the reader think about what the theme really is. It is a story of imagination and twists along the way. C. As O. Henry once said, Write what you like; there is no other rule (Shelokhonov 2).

Lombardi, Esther. O. Henry (William Sydney Porter). Classic Literature. <http://classiclit.about.com/cs/profileswriters/p/aa_ohenry.htm>. 26 February 2012. O. Henry. The Ransom of Red Chief. Read Book Online. <www.readbookonline.net/readOnLine/14988/>. 6 February 2012. Peden, William. O. Henry Overview. Criticism and Reviews. <www.orrt.org/ohenry/criticism.html>. 27 February 2012. Shelokhonov, Steve. O. Henry. IMDb. <www.imdb.com/name/nm0377958/bio/>. 25 February 2012.