The Devil and Daniel Webster
"The Devil and Daniel Webster," by Stephen Vincent Benet is truly an exemplary short story which instills upon the reader the very difficult struggle between good and evil, heaven and hell. The purpose for writing this piece was to convey the message that, at times, it is necessary to gamble everything one has in order to improve his or her life and that of their families. Benet manages to convey this message in the story through his many uses of literary techniques such as foreshadowing and characterization. He also uses the element of plot to develop the climax and turning point of the story. The characters in this story each play a significant role in developing the story as a whole. As stated by David Peck, "The Devil and Daniel Webster" has a wide array of characters, each with a distinguished personality, yet an overall temperament that would be fitting of a New England community." The main character is Jabez Stone, a poor washed up farmer recently turned into senator of New Hampshire. He had started out as a farmer, but moved up in life and, when he was about thirty years old, he married a woman by the name of Mary Stone. The fiddler, who, for the most part was not that important in this story, was a key character in
The conflict between the Powers of Darkness and the powers of an American Statesman has irresistible national appeal, and Benet had the shrewdness to add to the story not only regional humorous touches but universal human significance. Jabez then summons the devil and makes a deal with him, negotiating that Jabez would have all around great success in everything, and that in seven years time, he would give up his soul to the devil, known as "Scratch" or "Mr. And, because he'd wanted to change it, now he was going to be punished for all eternity". " A "genuine American hero" is what Webster is truly portrayed as in this narrative. The story is truly a credit to the true Daniel Webster, as David Peck very nicely noted: "The story tapped America's love for folklore and legend, it re-created the story of a genuine American hero. Basically, it was a wedding reception. Throughout the beginning of the story, Jabez is frustrated with the illness of his wife, the condition of his animals, and his unproductive crops. A very key character in this story is the devil himself, which took the name of Scratch (that was what he was called in New England communities). However when the time comes for Jabez to give the devil what is legally his, he manages to get a three year extension. When he said, "But the very devil's got into that fiddle of mine," he was foreshadowing the coming of the devil to disturb the "good times". The story starts out in the home of Jabez and Mary Stone, right after their wedding. It was a fierce debate, though it did remain calm and easy. " Peck also noted that "The story is praise not only for Daniel Webster, however, but also for his country, for the two are inextricably intertwined. That is what leads to Webster's strong point for his defense of Jabez Stone, "Then he turned to Jabez Stone.
Common topics in this essay:
Daniel Webster,
Jabez Stone,
American Statesman,
Vincent Benet,
Mary Stone,
David Peck,
Cider Barrel,
Scratch Scratch,
Jabez Stonean,
daniel webster,
Benet Webster,
devil daniel webster,
devil daniel,
jabez stone,
parry stroud,
david peck,
mary stone,
improve life,
noted story,
scratch scratch,
convey message,
genuine american hero,
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Acceptance Essays
