Frontier Reflection

The Notorious Jumping Frog of Calaveras County

While reading “The Notorious Jumping Frog of Calaveras County” I noticed a certain element of characterization. I also noticed the distinct writing style of Mark Twain and how it is humorous and included diction.


Characterization seems to be an important part of this story in the way that the author portrays his characters and their personalities. For example, when the author is describing Smiley he says, “Any way that suited the other man would suit him-any way just so’s he got a bet, he was satisfied. But still he was lucky, uncommon lucky; he most always come out winner” (Twain 526). This shows that Smiley was a gambler and a very tricky man who would try to bet people out of their money. Another character that is described is the narrator. When the narrator had just finished hearing the story of Jim Smiley and all of his crazy antics, he began to listen to the tale of his strange cow, “‘[the narrator] did not wait to hear about the afflicted cow, but took [his] leave’” (Twain 529). This shows that the narrator was a very educated and sophisticated man and that he did not have time to listen to the nonsense that Wheeler was telling. For this reason he left the room and left Wheeler talking by himself.


Twain’s writing is quite informal and has been given an element of humor and diction. An example of this is shown when Smiley starts to wonder what is wrong with Dan’l Webster, his frog and says, ‘“I do wonder what in the nation that frog throw’d off for-I wonder if there ain’t something the matter with him-he ‘pears to look mighty baggy…”’(Twain 529). Through Smiley’s dialect we can understand his personality and the confusion that he is in. Little did he know that his frog had been sabotaged and weighed down by bullets. Therefore, this story had an abundant amount of characterization. It also has a great deal of diction, along with some humor.

Reflection

The Outcasts of Poker Flat


When reading “The Outcasts of Poker Flats,” I noticed an abundant amount of characterization between the different characters in the short story. I also saw a good amount of imagery of the setting along with a certain essence of irony. Another concept that struck me as interesting was the main character’s view of Fate and Luck.

Mr. Oakhurst was a successful gambler who lived his life according to poker and Luck. Mrs. Oakhurst or the “Duchess,” was a kind woman who cared for the people around her. “Mother Shipton” was a woman who was thought of being a witch. “Uncle Billy” was suspected of stealing gold and being a drunkard. Tom Simson was also called the “Innocent.” He was a young man who was traveling with his fiancée, Piney Woods. All of these people were driven out of Poker Flats by “A secret committee [who] had determined to rid the town of all improper persons” (Harte 535). In a sense these people were criminals and outcasts of the town.

Bret Harte uses a good amount of imagery in the story to describe the setting in which they are staying which is a makeshift cabin. An example of this is shown by saying that “…over drifted walls of dazzling white that towered twenty feet above their heads” (Harte 540). This shows that they are surrounded by a wonderland of snow.

Mr. Oakhurst lived his own life by Luck and believed that Fate needed to be accepted. For example, during one point of the story Mr. Oakhurst “struck a streak of bad luck on the 23d of November, 1850…” (Harte 541). This shows that Mr. Oakhurst and his companions were in bad shape because of the weather. This resulted in his death which is ironic because most of the characters in the story had hope that they would reach the city in time. Therefore, I have observed many different literary elements in “The Outcasts of Poker Flats.”