A Retrieved Reformation
AFTER ten months in prison, Jimmy Valentine finally breathed in the air of freedom. He was wearing a cheap suit that the prison had given him, and he had five dollars in his pocket with which to start a new life.
Valentine was not ready to let go of his old life, though. His first stop was the apartment over a café where the police had arrested him for robbing banks. There, he retrieved a suitcase filled with the most beautiful safecracking tools that anyone had ever seen.
“Are you off on a bank job, then?” asked the café owner, who was well aware of Valentine’s occupation.
“Who ? Me?” Valentine answered. “I’m just a traveling salesman of biscuits and crackers.” Then he left with his heavy suitcase. Over the next few months, safes all over the Midwest were opened and emptied of their valuable treasures. Ben Price, the policeman who had put Valentine away before, saw a pattern. “Jimmy Valentine is working again,” he said to himself. “I’m going to put him away for good this time.”
Valentine ended up in the small town of Elmore. As he strolled casually through the streets, he happened to pass the town’s only bank. That is where his life changed. A beautiful woman walked by him, and though their eyes only met for a second, it made him into a new man. He circled back to the bank’s door and asked a boy, “Who was that young lady?”
“That’s Annabel Adams. Her dad owns the bank,” the boy replied. Valentine gave him a little money to tell him about the woman. He then went to a hotel and checked in under a fake name.
“What brought you to Elmore, sir?” the chatty clerk asked. “I’m looking to set up a shoe business,” Valentine replied, and he did exactly that. Using the new name, Valentine opened a shoe store in Elmore, and it really took off. More importantly, he won the heart of the beautiful Annabel, and the two planned to marry. Valentine only had one thing left to do—get rid of his suitcase of precious safecracking tools. Then he would be free of his old life.
Although Valentine made plans to give his suitcase of tools to a criminal friend, fate had other ideas. On his way to the train station, he stopped by the bank to visit with his future family.
Meanwhile, Valentine’s old enemy, Ben Price, walked into the bank lobby. He had tracked Valentine down and was ready to arrest him. Before he could, though, tragedy struck. The granddaughter of the bank owner became locked in the new vault. The combination had not yet been set, so there was no way to get her out.
Annabel turned her teary eyes to Valentine. “Can’t you do something?” she begged. “My niece will surely die from lack of air!”
Silently, Valentine said goodbye to his new life and opened his special suitcase. Within ten minutes, the little girl was free, and Valentine was staring at Price. “Well, take me in,” he told the policeman.
Having seen that the old safecracker would risk his own happiness and safety for that of a child, Price just shook his head. “Guess you’re mistaken,” he told Valentine. “I’ve never seen you before in my life.
1. . A Retrieved Reformation O. Henry
2. 2. Warm Up Can people change their behavior so much that they become like
different people, or are such changes never true and lasting? Support your opinion with reasons and examples in at least 5 sentences. Do you think love can change a person for the better? Explain.
3. 3. Inferences • Detectives use inferences to do their job. Think about a famous
detective (or imagine one, if you don’t know any). Explain their methods. How do you think they solve the crime? •As we watch the clips, think about how Sherlock is able to analyze a person by paying attention to the smallest details.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ElH3aVXLZoo
4. 4. Drastic Life Change Think of some situations that would make a person
drastically change their life from bad to good? (For example: go from a life of crime, to honest work)
5. 5. Analysis Pg. 255: What is revealed about Jimmy Valentine through how he
reacts to his pardon, what he says to the warden, and how he says it? Look at his behavior after he gets released (256) and make some inferences about his character based on his actions.
6. 6. Ben Price How does the detective know so much about Jimmy? What does
he think about Jimmy’s work? What kind of a person do you think Ben is?
7. 7. Rebirth “Mr. Ralph Spencer, the phoenix that arose from Jimmy Valentine’s
ashes - ashes left by the flame of a sudden and alternative attack of love - remained in Elmore and prospered” (259). Why is Jimmy/Ralph compared to a phoenix? What initiates the change in Jimmy? Do you think he has changed forever?
Explain. What do the people of Elmore think about Ralph? What does this suggest about Jimmy/Ralph? What do we learn about his character in Elmore?
8. 8. Decisions…Decisions Should Jimmy tell Annabel about his past? Give reasons.
9. 9. Evidence What evidence is there that Jimmy has truly changed his life? What
external conflict does Jimmy confront? What internal conflict? Why do you think O. Henry chose a bank robber to be the hero of his story? What do you think is the theme of this text? Explain with some examples from the text. What events help show the theme?
10.10. Conclusion Why does Jimmy ask Annabel for the rose? Why does Jimmy
begin to walk away after his heroic rescue of the girl? Why does Ben Price let him go? Do you think Jimmy will go back to his life of crime? Why or why not?
11.11. Warm Up Would you make the right choice if you could get punished for it?
Explain in several sentences. Have you ever tried to do the right thing only to get yourself in trouble. Describe the situation and the consequences. Was it worth it?
