In 100-150 words, briefly comment on one of the following writing prompts: 1) explain the importance of the frame story in Twain's "The Notorious Jumping Frog of Calavares County," or 2) examine the character traits of Jim Smiley. Comment responses are due by 11:59 p.m. tonight.
Explain the importance of the frame story in Twain's "The Notorious Jumping Frog of Calvares County".
ReplyDeleteI believe that the frame story is to just show the kind of people in the story. Mr. Wheeler who is a common old man is telling the story and his dialect and what kind of person he is, is shown in his form of speech. Also, this frame story shows you what kind of story is about to be told. It gives you a glimpse of the character that is Leonidus/Jim Smiley. Therefore, by the end of the story/tall tale, you can figure that Smiley is of a small town. The frame is merely a precursor to the story that is read.
#2 Characteristics of Jim Smiley
ReplyDeleteThish-yer Smiley, Leonidas or Jim, had a great history of luck and skill. He was good at both finding something to bet on and finding animals that could drag out a bet. He was not a cheater but very clever with an eye for the deceitful. I see Smiley as a bard or dandy. He lives with a carefree, artistic renown.
He thrives through competition and had been famously successful. I do not consider Smiley dishonest and being cheated was not the end I saw coming. I suppose risk takers and gamblers especially have to improvise insurance against loss. I wonder if there is any allegory to the time of Twain.
#2 Characteristics of Jim Smiley
ReplyDeleteJim Smiley is the main character in the tale and was mostly known for his compulsive gambling. He would bet on anything no matter how bizarre it would seem. He would even bet on the losing side just to bet on something. Smiley was a lucky man and usually won all of the bets. He would take the wimpiest looking animals and train them to become winners. Jim Smiley once made a bet with a stranger because he believed his frog could jump higher than any other frog in Calaveras County; a bet that he lost. Smiley later examines his frog and notices that the stranger filled his frog with quail shot. He was very disturbed by his findings and scurried off to chase the stranger who was long gone.
#2 Characteristics of Jim Smiley
ReplyDeleteJim Smiley is the main character in this story and was known for blowing money and gambling. I can say if he was truly addicted or just really, really fancied the thrill of it but he did do it constantly as stated. I guess it wasn't too bad since he seemed to have a lot of good luck cause he won a lot of times. To tell the truth, Jim had a special talent for fooling people. I mean, he didn't trick them; he just played on them because they believed they could look at someone and underestimate them. He leads people on by pretending to be a different person who knows nothing about how to bet, but he never deceives them. When he loses the bet on the frog, I really felt bad for him a little bit,because he’s not a sore loser. When he finds out he’s been cheated, his anger is completely understandable. It kinda seems like karma.