Jimmy Valentine and His Background
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Questions and Answers

Why is Jimmy Valentine in prison?

For safe cracking

Why is Jimmy Valentine pardoned by the governor?

Governor grants Valentine clemency because he has many friends on the outside.

When out of prison, how does Valentine support himself?

He resumes his life of crime as a safe cracker.

Why does Ben Price start looking for Jimmy Valentine again?

<p>From the pattern of the robberies, Ben deduces that it must be Valentine and Price sets out to bring Valentine to justice.</p> Signup and view all the answers

At what point does Valentine become another man?

<p>When he looks into the banker's daughter's eyes.</p> Signup and view all the answers

What caused Jimmy Valentine to change?

<p>A sudden and alternative attack of love.</p> Signup and view all the answers

Why does Jimmy Valentine use his old talents once again?

<p>When his fiancé Annabel's niece is accidentally locked in the vault.</p> Signup and view all the answers

Name three details that support the idea that Jimmy Valentine has changed.

<ol> <li>He abandons his plan to rob the bank in Elmore; 2) He remains in town and opens a successful shoe store; 3) He writes a letter to an old friend in which he admits to change and arranges to give away his burglary tools.</li> </ol> Signup and view all the answers

Why does Ben Price pretend to not know Jimmy?

<p>Ben observes that Jimmy has changed his life and is willing to allow the reformed criminal to continue leading an honest life.</p> Signup and view all the answers

Explain the meaning of the story's title.

<p>In saving the girl, Valentine throws away his new identity as a reformed man.</p> Signup and view all the answers

List and define the characters.

<ol> <li>Jimmy Valentine - a safe-cracker and thief; 2) Ben Price - a detective; 3) Annabel Adams - Jimmy's fiancé; 4) Mr. Adams - Annabel’s father; 5) Mike Dolan - Jimmy's friend and café owner; 6) Agatha - Annabel's niece; 7) May - Agatha's sister.</li> </ol> Signup and view all the answers

Name the setting.

<p>1903, Elmore, AR, prison, Little Rock, AR, Springfield, Illinois.</p> Signup and view all the answers

What point of view is the story told in?

<p>In third person.</p> Signup and view all the answers

Name the internal conflict.

<p>Jimmy had to make an important decision, to save Agatha or to just watch how she dies.</p> Signup and view all the answers

Name the external conflict.

<p>Jimmy vs. Ben Price.</p> Signup and view all the answers

State the major theme of the story.

<p>That people can change for the better.</p> Signup and view all the answers

State the climax of the story.

<p>When Jimmy had to make the life-altering decision of opening the safe to save Agatha.</p> Signup and view all the answers

What is Henry's real name?

<p>William Sydney Porter.</p> Signup and view all the answers

What is verbal irony?

<p>Irony in which a person says or writes one thing and means another.</p> Signup and view all the answers

What is situational irony?

<p>Irony involving situations where actions have an effect that is opposite from what is intended.</p> Signup and view all the answers

What is allusion?

<p>A reference to a well-known person, place, event, or work of art.</p> Signup and view all the answers

What is the prison warden's attitude toward J.V's future?

<p>He tells him to stop doing safe cracking and to live his life straight because he was a good person at heart.</p> Signup and view all the answers

Explain the irony of Jimmy having his tools with him when Agatha gets locked in the safe.

<p>He wanted to give them to his old friend but ended up using them.</p> Signup and view all the answers

What was the new acquisition of Elmore Bank?

<p>The Elmore Bank had acquired a new safe and vault with a new patented door.</p> Signup and view all the answers

Why do you think Ralph Spencer asked for the rose Annabel was wearing?

<p>He wanted a rose to remember her love in case he was arrested.</p> Signup and view all the answers

Study Notes

Jimmy Valentine and His Background

  • Jimmy Valentine, a skilled safe-cracker, serves ten months of a four-year sentence for robbery before being pardoned by the governor.
  • He resumes his life of crime upon release, indicating a lack of rehabilitation and intent to continue his previous lifestyle.

Characters and Their Roles

  • Jimmy Valentine: Protagonist, a thief who transforms into Ralph D. Spencer, a shoe salesman, after falling in love with Annabel Adams.
  • Ben Price: Antagonist and detective with a history with Jimmy, determined to bring him to justice after noticing a pattern in recent robberies.
  • Annabel Adams: Jimmy’s love interest, daughter of the Elmore Bank owner, whose affection sparks Jimmy’s transformation.
  • Mr. Adams: The wealth owner of the Elmore Bank and Annabel's father.
  • Mike Dolan: Jimmy's supportive friend, involved in organized crime and instrumental in securing Jimmy's clemency.
  • Agatha: Annabel’s niece, whose accidental entrapment in the bank vault ignites the story’s climax.

Themes and Conflicts

  • Major theme: The capacity for personal change and reform is explored, emphasizing that people can evolve for the better.
  • Internal conflict revolves around Jimmy's struggle between reverting to his criminal ways to save Agatha or preserving his new identity and life with Annabel.
  • External conflict emerges as Detective Ben Price tracks Jimmy after his parole, leading to a confrontation.

Plot Developments

  • Jimmy experiences a life-altering moment when he falls in love, prompting his reformation and the adoption of a new identity, Ralph D. Spencer.
  • Climax occurs when Jimmy must choose between breaking into the vault to save Agatha or maintaining his reformed identity.

Irony and Literary Devices

  • Verbal Irony: Occurs when expressions contrast with their intended meaning.
  • Situational Irony: Actions yield outcomes opposite to what was intended or expected, illustrated by Jimmy's chance to use his tools for saving Agatha instead of giving them away.
  • Allusion: References to notable concepts or figures without explicit explanation strengthen the narrative.

Setting and Perspective

  • Story set in 1903 in Elmore, Arkansas, and Springfield, Illinois, with trains as the primary mode of transportation.
  • Narrated in third person, allowing a comprehensive view of characters' thoughts and motivations.

Significant Moments and Symbols

  • Jimmy's efforts to abandon crime, such as planning to open a shoe store and maintaining a correspondence that highlights his transformation.
  • Ben Price’s decision to let Jimmy maintain his new identity signifies acceptance of change and the power of redemption.
  • The new vault at Elmore Bank symbolizes temptation and the potential for regression into criminal behavior.

Additional Insights

  • The prison warden’s sentiment towards Jimmy underscores the dual nature of his character; despite criminal past, he possesses goodness.
  • Jimmy's request for a rose from Annabel symbolizes his desire to hold onto the love that inspires his transformation amidst uncertainty regarding his future.

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Description

This quiz explores the characters and themes in the story of Jimmy Valentine, a talented safe-cracker turned shoe salesman. After being pardoned, his struggle between his past life of crime and love for Annabel Adams unfolds. Understand the roles and transformations of key characters in this tale of redemption and deception.

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