#madisonbeadle

[americanmythspring19-blog]

In honor of Valentines Day:

[americanmythspring19-blog]

Innocence in poverty

I want to take this opportunity to talk about our main character, Dick, and his innocence purity in the world he lives in. Now I understand that when thinking of his character, and the activities he condones in you would not immediately attach the word pure or innocent onto him. However, this is exactly why I want to share my thoughts. Dick is introduced to us as a hardworking, young boy living on the streets. He lives in a box and has only one outfit to his name. He shines shoes for a starting fee of 10 cents and does it to the best of his abilities, an honorable act for someone in his situation. Now it is mentioned that he spends all the money he earns on cigars, the theatre, and gambling which are definitely not good habits to have. He is around 14 years old and he has already accumulated so many bad habits it is hard to see him as anything but careless and impure. I want to look past that. He had to raise himself on the streets, he lives in a box, he is still generous and has a good sense of humor despite his situation. Most people in his shoes (haha shoes, get it? Because he shines shoes?????) would be miserable and lose all their sense of joy in life. Dick holds on to the simple joys in life and just lives in the ways that benefit him. It is not his fault that he was not taught to spend his money wisely, he was raised by himself, so he learned from what was around him. All the bad habits he has were due to his surroundings. He is pure in the sense that he did not consciously choose to take on these bad habits because he wanted to have them. He saw those around him doing it and he followed their example because that was all he was able to see. He was not able to see the wealthier children getting an education and living healthy lifestyles, he only saw what those like him were doing. They were smoking cigars at 14 and gambling their earnings away as soon as they got them. However, his purity helped him keep his humanity. He still has morals, and an honor he upholds for himself. He says it himself that nobody will ever catch him stealing, like some of the other boys his age who live on the streets. He does not like being “mean” which is pure to me, as the word mean shows how young he is. His innocence shines through as he is still a 14-year-old boy who needs the right guidance in life. He fed Johnny Nolan a meal when he realized he had no money, another respectable thing to do when you are low on money. He does things that show his goodness compared to the few bad habits he has picked up. His innocence shines through his wrongful actions and that is what I want people to see in this boy.