Social Values
Both of these characters are young, and come from a lowly socialstatus. Their values, as they grow older and become more successful,change from survival to living, and there is quite a difference. Theuniverse of the poor on the streets in these two novels is violent andgeared only to their surviving another day, as Crane notes in "Maggie," "Insuch a universe one can either internalize the laws determining natural andsocial focus or be their victim"(Crane 18). Both of these characterschoose not to be the victim of their circumstances, but choose to betterthemselves however they can. Dick educates himself, because he seeseducation as one of the keys to success. Socially, the educated are valuedmuch more highly than the uneducated, Dick understands this, and thispassage illustrates his success. "Dick wrote, in a free, bold hand, thename Richard Hunter. He had very much improved his penmanship, as hasalready been mentioned, and now had no cause to be ashamed of it" (Alger214). Conversely, the social standards of the day did not apply to
In the other, the young femalecharacter does not have any many choices open to her because of the socialvalues of the time, which kept women ignorant and gave them little hope forthe future if they were not married and middle-class. Unfortunately, the very characteristics that make Dicksuccessful make Maggie vulnerable, and she dies in the end, illustratinghow social values can affect the lives of even those who are determined tobetter themselves. Conversely, Maggie's brother Jimmie does not attempt to break out ofhis low place in society. He conforms to what societyexpects of a child of the slums, and so, he actually makes theirpredictions come true. He shows how society kept the poor rightwhere they were, and only extended a helping hand to a few who dared todream, dared to be different, and dared to challenge their place in thesocial strata of the time. In conclusion, these two novels portray the same type of social valuespresent at the turn of the century, but in very different ways. He does not better himself, and he represents allthe downtrodden people of the world that have listened to society insteadof their own dreams and desires. It is much more difficult for Maggie to get an education, and so,her job opportunities are limited. He conforms, and therefore he survives, but hegives up his individualism in the process. The social values of the times dictatedthe outcome of both these stories, and point out the vast differencesbetween men, women, and social values in Victorian society. She turns to prostitution as a means ofsurvival. Maggie had money, but she did not have social status oreducation, and so, she could not become what society considered a success,she was a prostitute, and a failure. In one,the young male character chooses to create a new life for himself, andbecomes the classic "rags to riches" story of a young street urchin whocrawls upward to a new and successful life.
Common topics in this essay:
Maggie's Jimmie,
,
Richard Hunter,
social values,
create life,
social status,
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