Imagery in Ragged Dick
Imagery plays a big part in the success of a novel. Different writers have different styles. The good thing about imagery is it makes room for the reader to put things together. The reader is allowed to interpret the story the way that they like. "Ragged Dick", Horatio Alger, Jr. did a great thing with imagery. While reading the novel readers had a change to envision many things that were mentioned in each chapter. Algar interconnected the appearances of the main character to his living arrangement. He also connected these things with the character's attitude.
"Ragged Dick" is about a young boy, name Dick Hunter, who earns his living by shining shoes in New York. He is a very street-smart young boy. All thought the story *censored* was treated according to his appearance. In the beginning of the novel Dick was working on someone shoes when he overheard a conversation between a young boy name Frank and his uncle. Frank wanted to take a tour around the city but his uncle was to busy. Dick interrupted the conversation and said he will give Frank a tour. Before they left for the tour Frank thought Dick need a new suit. While Dick gave Frank a tour, Frank gave Dick something's to think about. He talked to Dick about everything from shining shoes to where Dick was going to live.
Dick did not have a home. "His bedchamber had been a wooden box half full of straw . . ."(pg4). He ate whatever he could afford. Looking at his clothes one would assume he was poor. " His pants were torn in several places, and had apparently belonged in the first instance to a boy two sizes larger than himself. He wore a vest, all the buttons of which peeped a shirt which looked as if it had been worn a month. ...
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... little better. " I think we can afford to leave Moot Street now," he continued. " This house isn't as neat as it might be, and I should like to live in a nicer quarter of the city."(P184) Dick agreed and decided the sooner the better. He wanted to start the very next day, since he retired from boot blacking.
In society today appearances are very important. People associate nice clothes with money. You can see in Ragged Dick that is not always the case. In the beginning of the story Dick did not really care where he lived but after he got new clothes he started thinking differently. He wanted to live in a better place. The connect Algar make was good. It makes people aware of the things we do. People concentrate to much on appearances and not personality. I do believe nice clothes may make a person feel better about them, partly because people treat them better.
“...Helene Tucker, a light complexioned little girl with pigtails and nice manners.” the author applies devices such as imagery to illustrate her nice features. Helene Tucker wasa jewel in his eye. Her character is used as a comparison to the author. He was the complete opposite of her. He wasn’t light complected, wealthy or clean. She had these qualities that he didn’t have because she wasn’t in poor like Gregory. Living in poverty, during the story Dick Gregory had to struggle with hunger and lack of the main necessities to live. He explains that his struggle he said he had no water “id get a pot and go over to Mr.Ben's grocery store to scoop out some chopped ice, and that if the ice melted, he would wash his clothes in that water,” meaning that he had no water so he had to walk miles just to go and get water to support his
The utilization of imagery has dependably been a common path for authors to convey essential issues to general society. It is not remarkable to peruse a straightforward youngsters' story and find hidden political or good messages, for instance, Horatio Alger's novel Ragged Dick. This story was composed after the Civil War, when America encountered a time of immense modern development. The free enterprise hard working attitude had turned into an all inclusive thought in the North, and accordingly the Government consented to stay bankrupt issues, taking after the modern arrangement of "free enterprise." This enlarged the hole between the rich and poor people, making it troublesome for a less lucky individual to work his way up in the public
A homeless, fourteen year old named Richard becomes a male Cinderella. His tale from rags to riches excites readers to read more. In the book Ragged Dick, Richard (Dick) lives as a homeless boy as usual during the time. His story of adventures are of him going through situations and getting into fights that he should not be. The transition from being a slum child to a proper gentleman is shown in the text. However, Dick was not such a hero. He was sorta a mooch. He would take the credit of what a Hero would have done. On a special day a man named, Mr. Whitney, basically grants Dick with a life of riches. The new suit, from the old clothes he was wearing allowed him to become a proper gentleman. Mr. Whitney, calls him Aladdin. For being clever
Imagery is when the author presents a mental image through descriptive words. One prime example of imagery that the author uses is in paragraph 3; where she tells of a moment between a man and a woman. In this narration she states the time, year, outfit of each character described, and what the female character was doing. These details might come across as irrelevant, or unnecessary, but this is Didions way of showing what the blueprint of notebook it. Using imagery reinforces the foundation of the essay, and what the essay’s mission was.
In Dick’s case, the reader can safely assume that he plays the “man” role in the relationship with Perry. Dick is considered the traditional masculine figure, “Dick was very literal-minded, very—he had no understanding of music, poetry,” (p.18). Dick represents the famous American macho figure with “his literalness” and “ his pragmatic approach to every subject” . He does not need to know music or poetry but he possesses the masculine and benevolent essence that makes people respect and even trust him completely. That is the reason why Perry is greatly
Dickman’s poetry is not rated PG; nevertheless, he talks about sexual relationships in a tasteful way. Poetry can be used as a way of expressing passions, as Dickman expresses in his body of work. The lines, “When the woman I’m sleeping with/ stands naked in the bathroom, / brushing her teeth, the slow dance of ritual is being spit/ into the sink.” from “Slow Dance” are a small example of Dickman expressing a sexual relationship and making a connection to something in his subconscious mind.
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Alger illustrates that Dick is not a perfect man, but when compared to other characters of the novel such as Maguire, Dick appears to be a saint. Nevertheless, throughout the novel Dick would prove time and again that he is aware of the difference between what is right and what is wrong. There are probably a dozen examples of this moral awareness in Ragged Dick. The first example being when Mr. Greyson only had 25 cents to give our hero when Dick had no change. Richard Hunter wasn’t the type of young man to take the change from this man, and eventually returned to Mr. Greyson’s office to return the money which was owed. This mindset is viewed by other individuals who choose to assist Dick in his path to respectability and give him advice that contributes to the success that Richard Hunter ultimately falls
Imagery is a figurative description or illustration. This tool plays a big role in two more short stories, and is used all throughout his works to make the stories more interesting, appealing, and to be able to make a better mental picture in your mind of what is happening as you read on. For instance, in the story, “A Sound of Thunder,” there is a sign on the wall in the beginning of the tale. But somehow it stays in your mind until the end of the story. Why? Because the imagery he uses helps us remember that sign. It is an extremely important part of the story, and as we read what the sign says, we make a mental picture in our mind to help us see it clearer and to remember it until the end of the story. “Eckel’s glanced across the vast office at a mass and tangle, a snaking and humming of wires and steel boxes, at an aurora that flickered now orange, now silver, now blue.” (A Sound of Thunder) In this quote of the story, it helps us see what the office looks like as Eckel’s is becoming familiar with all of his surroundings. This initially creates a picture in our mind of the office and helps the reader get a better idea of where Eckels is and what kind of situation he is getting himself into. Lastly, there is a quote from “The Pedestrian,” that shows a different kind of imagery within the text. “There was a good crystal frost in the air, it cut the nose and made the lungs blaze like a Christmas tree inside; you
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