Hard work and perseverance being two central themes of the "American Dream" is very evident throughout the novel "Ragged Dick". The author expresses clearly throughout the novel, that he believes that through one's hard work an individual can lift himself or herself out of any class of society. The idea that if one simply works hard enough that they will succeed has always been a central theme to the American public. Hard work and perseverance are stressed heavily through Ragged Dick's conversations with not only Mr. Whitney, but also with Fosdick. Mr. Whitney says, "I entered a printing-office as an apprentice... After a while I was lucky enough to invent a machine, which has brought me in a great deal of money." (Chapter 11). This statement from Mr. Whitney is the first time Ragged Dick hears from someone else that through hard work and perseverance, one can climb the social ladder. He is inspired by this and realizes that changes in his life are necessary.
This particular conversation, as well as the one that took place between Ragged Dick and Frank, causes Ragged Dick to have a changed sense of self. Ragged Dick now realizes that if he continues living in the way that he had been, he will never achieve his dream of becoming "spectable". This sets Ragged Dick on a new path and is the catalyst for the set of events that will allow Ragged Dick to achieve some semblance of the American Dream.
Ragged Dick's displays his newfound fervor for hard work when he stumbles across Fosdick. Ragged Dick told Fosdick, "If you teach me readin' and writin' every evenin's, you shall sleep in my room every night" (Chapter 15). Ragged Dick shows that he understands he cannot receive an education on his own and needs the help of someone else. He found someone who was knowledgeable and in need of something, a place to sleep, and he smartly offered that to pay his rent he could tutor Ragged Dick. Ragged Dick knows very little, which is evident when he says, " Yes; I went two days" in reference to attending school (Chapter 16). On page 77 the author comments that Ragged Dick "was ignorant...moreover he had perseverance." Through his perseverance he will continue to develop himself into a respectable individual, begin attending church with Mr. Greyson, and finally saving Mr. Rockwell's son which will allow him to climb out of living in squalor on the streets to moving off Mott Street at the end of the novel.
I find it quite interesting that over the last 150 years since Ragged Dick was written, the central theme of the American Dream has not changed. Even in 1867, if one had the ability to work hard and persevere, then they will find success in America. I believe those two themes still hold central to the American Dream, albeit if luck is more involved in each person's individual story today.
I agree that the American Dream has always been hard work and perseverance and that is one of the big themes in Ragged Dick. Ragged Dick had a conversation about hard work and perseverance with Mr. Whitney and Fosdick, but he also had a conversation like this with Frank too. Ragged Dick doesn’t believe that he will be rich one day when Frank tells him he could be. Frank explains to Ragged Dick that Steward wasn’t always rich. He states, “When he first came to New York as a young man he was a teacher, and teachers are not generally very rich. At last he went into business…and worked his way up by degrees. But there was one thing he determined in the beginning: that he would be strictly honorable in all his dealings, and never overreach any one for the sake of making money” (Alger, 34). I think Frank tells him this story because Steward and Ragged Dick are similar in the way that they are always honorable. I realized while reading this novel that hard work and perseverance were a theme, but I had never thought about relating it to the American Dream until I read this blog post. This strengthened my view that hard work and perseverance are a continuing theme in the American society.
ReplyDeleteIt is very reassuring that the American Dream has remained constant and extremely prominent in lives of many. The concept of the "American Dream" is so present in society that people immigrate to the United States in pursuit of a better life because they have full faith in the American Dream. While the American Dream stresses hard work and dedication, Alger's portrayal of this theme is slightly too embellished. It is evident that Ragged Dick indeed works very hard throughout the novel to earn his money and status at the end. Examples of these are his grit and willingness to earn and save money however and whenever he can. Specifically, when he overhears Frank's uncle talking about how Frank needs a tour guide of the city, Dick does not hesitate to volunteer to do so. However, while Dick does embody hard work and diligence, his luck plays a large role in his success- and the understood attributes that lead to the American Dream (hard work, diligence, dedication, grit) do not incorporate luck. It is true that Dick did jump overboard to save a drowning child, but what are the odds that the father of that child would end up giving Dick a job that pays $10 a week as a clerk in a bank? That seems like pure luck to me. Again, I feel that Alger is portraying to readers how wonderful the American Dream may be, but we must put Dick's story into a more realistic perspective to understand that hard work and dedication can only take us so far... Sometimes we need luck to be on our side to achieve true success.
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