Tuesday, November 20, 2012

In "Just Lather, That's All" and "Thank You, M'am" what are the morals?

Morals in these stories are shown by changes in character
or moral decisions that are taken by both of the major protagonists in these short
stories. Consider how Roger in "Thank you M'am" changes dramatically in his personality,
becoming a better person thanks to the meeting he has with Mrs. Jones. He starts off as
an isolated and neglected teenager who turns to crime to gain what he cannot afford to
get. Mrs. Jones, by taking him home and showing him love, affection and generosity,
makes him realise how bad what he did was, and he improves morally as a
result.


Likewise, the barber in "Just Lather, That's All,"
when he has the opportunity to kill the military leader that his rebel group is fighting
against, comes to a moral realisation of his place in the
world:



I don't
want blood on my hands. Just lather, that's all. You are an executioner and I am only a
barber. Each person has his own place in the scheme of
things.



Having had the
opportunity, he realises something intrinsic about who he is and his own moral base, and
leaves this experience a more self-aware individual.


Thus
both stories deal with the protagonists' moral growththrough interactions with
others.

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