Thank You Ma Am Essay

When great teachers are mentioned, most people think of biology instructors, football coaches, Girl Scout leaders, and others in similar positions. However, some of the greatest teachers may be individuals not normally classified as teachers. Roger, a characters in the short story, “Thank You Ma'am,” by Langston Hughes, encounters such an unusual teacher on a city sidewalk. Roger was being a thief and Mrs. Jones encounters it in a polite way. The story tells only of the encounter, but also the kindness Roger experiences following the encounter. Because she is a fearless, trustful, and generous woman, Mrs. Jones teaches Roger a lesson he will remember. Roger is a would-be thief. About at eleven o’clock at night, he runs up behind Mrs. Jones and tries to snatch her purse. When he falls down on the sidewalk, Mrs. Jones “simply turned around and kicked him right square in his blue jeaned sitter.” While some women would have avoided confronting a stranger under similar circumstances, Mrs. Jones does not. She shook Roger “until his teeth rattled” and then …show more content…
Jones display courage, but she also proves to be a trusting person. She decides that Roger needs to wash and to eat and that she will take him to her home to do so. “I got a great mind to wash your face for you,” she tells Roger. “You ought to be my son. I would teach you right from wrong. Least I can do right now is to wash your face. Are you hungry”? In just a few words, she assumes the role of a teacher and a mother substitute. She not only takes Roger home but she also continues to display a trusting nature once they arrive. When she gets up to prepare supper, Mrs. Jones “did not watch the boy to see if he would run now, nor did she watch her purse which she left behind her on the daybed”. Roger responds to Mrs. Jones in a positive way. The author tells the readers that Roger “did not want to be mistrusted now”. Her trust in Roger is beginning to create a relationship between