After You, My Dear Alphonse

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“After You, My Dear Alphonse!” Racism comes in many different ways but the outcome is normally the same. It can make the victims feel intimidated, unworthy and unwelcome. Because of racism, the minorities are often seen as poor people with inferior housing, bad education, no promotions and in worst case no job. Also many cities have ‘ghettoes’ where the majority of the inhabitants are ethnic with poor living conditions and a lot of unemployed people. This is one of the main themes in the short story “After You, My Dear Alphonse!” written by Shirley Jackson in 1943. “After You, My Dear Alphonse!” is about Johnny whom is a boy who brings home his new friend Boyd whom is African – American, for lunch. Mrs. Wilson whom is Johnny’s mother assumed that Boyd’s family was poor and did not have enough money to buy food and clothes because they are ethnic. Mrs. Wilson says to Boyd that he can eat as much as he wants to. She also wants to give him some of her old clothes so Boyd’s mother can sew some new clothes for his family. Mrs. Wilson also asks into his father and sister, and Boyd tells that his sister is studying to become a teacher and his father is a foreman in a fabric. The narrator is an omniscient 3rd person. Which reveals the mothers character because we do not have her direct thoughts of the characters. Boyd’s Mother is at home taking care of the children and the house while his father is working. Because of that the setting could be in the 18-19th century. It takes pace in America where the inhabitants often are ignorant and small-minded in small-town communities. One may think that Mrs. Wilson is a woman with many prejudices. She judges people from their background and their looks. She has an attitude that makes her feel better than Boyd. Mrs. Wilson do not know exactly how to handle all the things with Boyd because her first thought about

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