Stereotypes In 'I M Am' By Richard Connell

There is not one single person in this world who does not fit into a stereotype. Whether it is a mean wealthy person, a popular cheerleader, or a “large and in charge” black woman. While we in the modern century do our best to avoid these preconceived ideas about a human being’s existence, it can sometimes be too hard not to indulge in them. Literature constantly shows examples of these stereotypes. Authors often create flat or stereotypical characters to create relatability between the readers and characters. However, these traits are frequently subtle, as the authors create the character’s persona through indirect characterization. The author can create a character that we already know by just using a simple sentence through the projection of a situation, an action, dialogue, etc. By using indirect characterization, authors can feed into our perception of stereotypes. Luella Bates Washington Jones is a main character in the story “Thank You m’am”. The author creates a change in how she is viewed through indirect characterization in her actions. Hughes creates a setting that practically screams out “I AM A STEREOTYPE”. The story takes place in an urban town, where a
large woman walks around in the dead of night, and a young delinquent tries to steal her purse. The reader understandably assumes that this is a bad neighborhood, full of juveniles and misfits. It is no surprise that Luella Bates Washington could be viewed as a harsh, “large and in charge” woman. Hughes depicts her this way in the very first sentence. “She was a large woman with a large purse that had everything in it but hammer and nails”. Just after Hughes describes her, a young boy tries to steal her purse. “The large woman simply turned around and kicked him right square in his blue-jeaned sitter. Then she reached down, picked the boy up by his shirt front, and shook him until his teeth rattled” (Hughes 1). This is an example of indirect characterization because based on her response to her purse being stolen, any reader can assume that Luella is the kind of person you don’t want to mess with. Edgar Allen Poe depicts this same type of characterization in his short story “The Cask of Amontillado”. Poe creates a character that we all know too well in the story. A run of the mill drunk. This character was also a protagonist, named Fortunato. In the story Fortunato prides himself in his knowledge of wines, and as you can imagine, he likes to drink often. One of the first examples of this is when the narrator, Montresor, has his first encounter with Fortunato in the story, “ he accosted me with excessive warmth, for he had been drinking much” (Poe 1). Through the indirect characterization of Fortunato’s actions, The reader can tell that Fortunato fits the stereotype of the clingy, lovey, drunk. Much like other works of literature, Poe enhances the story through Fortunato. Famous author Richard Connell also portrays these stereotypes in his short story “The Most Dangerous Game”.
“The first thing Rainsford's eyes discerned was the largest man Rainsford had ever seen--a gigantic creature, solidly made and black bearded to the waist” (Connell 4) Connell uses such descriptive imagery to create a character that the reader could only assume to be one thing, a body guard. Bodyguards are constantly portrayed as being huge, undomesticated men with mean eyes. This specific character is a “Cossack”, and is ready to kill or be killed for his master at any given moment. The protagonist sees this character once he gets washed up onto a cruel hunter’s island, and is seeking shelter. Based on all of these examples, it is clear that authors use stereotypes to enhance their
stories. Authors often use indirect characterization to play into a reader’s perception of stereotypes, and ultimately enhance the story. Stories contain stereotypes and cliches to enhance the story in many ways. They can underscore a hidden meaning, keep the reader on track for the story, so they don’t have to spend too much time figuring characters out, or to create a character that the reader can relate to. Regardless, there are millions of examples of this in literature all around the world. Among these are, “Thank you m’am”, “The Cask of Amontillado”, and “The Most Dangerous Game”. These short stories are very enjoyable for the reader because they feed into our perception of stereotypes as readers.