Thank You Ma Am Analysis

"Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy." Matthew 5:7. Whether they give it or receive it, people will always need mercy. Love is a prerequisite of mercy. Forgiveness connects people in ways that might benefit all concerned because if people can forgive each other for their mistakes, they offer mercy to each other. Trust results from showing mercy. If people can trust one another, then they can show mercy in different aspects of other people's lives. Mrs. Luella in "Thank you Ma'am" and Sherlock Holmes in "The Blue Carbuncle" both give mercy to someone they did not even know because they overflow with love, forgiveness, and trust. To begin with, both figures in the two stories show love to people they have never met before. They offer the culprits mercy by displaying love to them even though they might not deserve it. In "Thank you Ma'am" by Langston Hughes, Mrs. Luella Bates shows love to a boy she caught in the act of stealing her purse. She had something in mind for
Luella and Sherlock trust the culprits. They show trust by knowing that the thieves will not do wrong. In "Thank you Ma'am” Mrs. Luella shows trust in Roger when she lets him go and wash his face in the sink. "Then, roger, you go to that sink and wash your face," said the woman, whereupon she turned him loose—at last. Roger looked at the door—looked at the woman—looked at the door—and went to the sink." She let him have the choice of running out or going to the sink, but the boy decides to receive whatever Mrs. Luella has to give him. Additionally, Sherlock Holmes shows trust in James Ryder. "...but it is just possible that I am saving a soul. This fellow will not go wrong again; he is too terribly frightened." Sherlock knows that Ryder will not commit the crime again because of Ryder's character, thus he trusts in him to do exactly so. Both characters take a leap of faith in trusting the thieves, but have confidence the culprits would not do it