Little Lord Fauntleroy

I think knowing if the author is male or female changes the way we read and understand the text. I believe that if you can’t tell whether the author is a male or female you can most likely figure it out from the way the author writes and the way the characters are portrayed in the stories. At first when I read Little Lord Fauntleroy and I thought Frances Hodges Burnett was male, I thought it was a little strange the way he portrayed Cedric’s character because it was not the “typical” boy that we saw previously in Ragged Dick or Tom Sawyer. It seems to me that male authors wanted to portray boys as rough and tough, rather than sensitive characters. Ragged Dick and Tom Sawyer were both very independent and did what they had to do to be successful, whatever that meant to them. They were not measured by their looks at all and there was no focus on being “good”, but it was important to make money and have ambition.

I thought Cedric was described more like a girl during the 19^th century than a boy. “In the first place, he was always well, and so he never gave any one trouble; in the second place, he had so sweet a temper and ways so charming that he was a pleasure to everyone; and in the third place, he was so beautiful to look at that he was quite a picture” (Burnett 444). From the beginning of Little Lord Fauntleroy Cedric is described over and over as being beautiful or pretty, not something that boys were usually valued for.

“And then they went into the carriage and Cedric sat very close to her, and as she looked back out of the window, he looked at her and stroked her hand and held it close” (Burnett 500). Cedric loved his mom so much and would do anything for her. He worried about her after his father’s death even though he did not completely understand. Cedric read to her and kept her company all the time. This reminds me of Ellen in a Wide Wide World because she would read to her mom, spend time with her, and comfort her because she cared about her so much.

Tom Sawyer

I would like to focus on the idea of “showing off” to others. We discussed this a little in class, but I would like to discuss it in greater detail. Mark Twain brings up “showing off” twice in this story.

When Tom sees the new girl in the garden at the Thatcher’s house, he reacts in a somewhat peculiar way, but for a boy his age his reaction was probably normal. “He worshiped this new angel with furtive eye, till he saw that she had discovered him; then he pretended he did not know she was present, and began to “show off” in all sorts of absurd boyish ways, in order to win her admiration. He kept up this grotesque foolishness for some time; but by and by, while he was in the midst of some dangerous gymnastic performances he glanced aside and saw that the little girl was wending her way toward the house” (Twain 419). I thought this was a really funny scene because little boys really do do strange things to try to get girls attention. After reading a couple stories about the American boy and their role in society I find it a little ironic that they are supposed to be the authoritative figure over women and make decisions in and out of the home, yet they can not express their emotions. Perhaps this goes back to the idea that men did not need as much “training” as women so they do not really know how to properly express themselves. When Tom looks to make sure no one is around when he picks up the flower, this I thought this showed that men do not like to show weakness, but rather they must be strong, independent individuals.

Later in the story when Tom is at church showing off is introduced again. There is a whole passage about how the different people in Sunday school show off for their visitor. “The young lady teachers “showed off”—bending sweetly over pupils that were lately being boxed, lifting pretty warning fingers at bad little boys and patting good ones lovingly. The young gentlemen teachers “showed off” with small scoldings and other little displays of authority and fine attention to discipline…”(Twain 434). I think this confirms, again, the role of men and women in society. Women are there to teach the children and love on them, while the men are above the women and have control of the classroom.

Ragged Dick

There were three things that I kept noticing as I was reading Ragged Dick. We somewhat discussed them in class, but I would like to expand on the ideas. I found that boys are more assertive and confident than we have seen in girls, can raise themselves without a strong parental figure, and boys seem to be able to improve more easily than girls.

Boys are definitely more assertive than girls in this story. Dick does not appear to be afraid of anyone. He exhibits confidence in all he does. He is a go-getter in his boot-blacking business. “I keep my eyes open, --that’s the way I get jobs. You’re lazy. that’s what’s the matter” (Alger 346). He is not afraid of being shut down, and stands for what he believes like in the incident of the counterfeit money.

Ragged Dick’s father is an alcoholic who does not play a big part in his life. He raises himself without much help of any authority figure. I believe that boys matured a lot quicker than girls in the sense that they could be independent. “It is not uncommon to see a little boy, too young to be out of his mother’s sight, smoking with all the apparent satisfaction of a veteran smoker” (Alger 341). No girl that we have read about would be out of any parent’s sight doing such a thing. Ellen could barely survive on her trip to the store when her mom could not go with her.

In the second half of the story Frank gives Dick new clothes to wear and lets him clean up, so he looks more presentable. “It reminds me of Cinderella,” said Dick, “when she was changed into a fairy princess” (Alger 365). Frank agrees that he looks so much better and is now able to be a “proper guide”. Just by looking clean he has completely changed. To Mr. Whitney, Frank’s uncle, Dick seems to be a respectable boy and only needed a little changing. I think this is different from girls because they needed so much training in everything to be a proper young lady, whether it be in their appearance, the way they acted, or their duty as a housewife.

There are obvious differences between the American boy and the American girl. I think this shows that men are the dominant figures in society. They are more independent and ambitious and they make decisions not only for themselves, but also their families and society.