Humanism in Sydney Potter
K. NAGA RAJA RAO
Jawahar
Bharati, Kavali
There
may be many who do not know that Sydney Potter and O. Henry are one and the
same, but no one conversant with the short story in English, ever denies a
place of pride for Sydney Potter. Having worked for sometime in a drug store
and later as a teller in the bank and owing to errors in calculations, either
intentional or accidental, Henry had been out of the job. He spent his
prison-term at
If
one were to hit the nail on the head, it would be foolish to brush aside
Henry’s short stories, bearing close resemblance to life, as no more than
stories with twists. Henry brought to bear in all his stories, pity and
kindness for humanity, especially for the underdog and the castaway.
“A
Gift for Christmas” may, for the superficial observer, be a story with an
unexpected ending. Jim and Della, the husband and wife, do away with their most
valuable possessions, the watch and the curly hair. Each one wants to surprise
the other. Jim buys a set of silver combs by disposing of his watch, Della buys
a watch-chain, by selling her locks of hair, But no
sooner does Jim arrive at home to present the combs, then he finds Della too
has an unexpected present for him.
Christmas
is a festival, connected with Jesus, symbol of love and sacrifice. There can be
no greater satisfaction for the husband and wife, than to learn to their
heart’s content that each has sacrificed the most valuable possession, to make
the other happy. One should lead a life not exclusively for his own, but at
least for the others, may be for the life-partner. Thus the spirit of sacrifice
one of the cherished traditions, underlines the story.
“The
Last Leaf” is another short story, dealing with human psychology and at the
same time, indirectly hinting at the sacrifice one should make towards others and they
require not merely material possessions as in “A Gift for Christmas” but the
most valuable possession, the life itself.
Kosie’s is an abnormal psychological case; she is under an
illusion that her life force is connected with the falling of the leaves from
the branches of a tree nearby. Thanks to the untiring efforts of the painter,
it appears as if the last leaf clings for ever, to the bough. It creates hope
in the patient longing for life. Berham, the painter,
has withstood the heavy rain all through the night, to make use of his art and
create an impression that the last leaf near falls. The happy news of Rosie’s
safe recovery and survival, is followed by the sad
news of the death of the painter, owing to a fit of pneumonia. Henry seems to
suggest that the be-all and the end-all of art is nothing but human happiness.
Art devoid of human happiness is nothing.
“Twenty
years after” is another short story, deserving special mention. Jims and Bob
had been very intimate friends. Twenty years ago they left each other,
promising to meet at a particular place, twenty years after. A policeman
enquires Bob and learns that he is waiting for his friend. Later, a man in
overcoat comes and handing over a letter to Bob, asks him to march to the
police station. The letter is from Jim, who has come on time, but as Bob has
lighted his cigar, Jim observes that it is the face wanted by the Chicago
Police. As the friend cannot do this he sends a plain-clothes-man, to do the
job.
Friendship,
as Clutton Brock writes, is divine. One should
continue to love one’s friend, whatever be the other
qualities of the friend. O. Henry lays stress on supreme loyalty. Like Brutus,
sacrificing Caesar for the sake of the country, the friend hands over Bob to
the police, in the interests of law and order. There should be no mincing of
matters and duty-first-principle takes the upper hand.
In another story “Make
the Whole World Kin”, Henry shows that a thief also at his bottom of heart, is a human being with tender feelings of pity and
kindness. Though he is a thief by profession, there are occasions when the mask
falls off. A thief breaks into the house of a man, but finds the man
suffering from rheumatic gun and unable to move his hand. The thief, also a
victim of the similar disease in the past, advised him to try winter green oil,
Chiselum’s pills and the like. The thief asks the man
to purchase an excellent medicine at a particular shop. The patient follows the
thief, turns back and says he has forgotten to bring money to purchase the
medicine. The thief tells him that he has money with him and the patient need
not worry about it. Thus the portrait of a thief, who forgets the darker side
of his life, on seeing a companion in distress, is delineated with great skill.
The humanistic element in the
robber comes to light, as he himself offers money to purchase the cure, let
alone his changed intention not to resort to stealing.
Still
in another story, Henry points out to the machine age and how it kills the
individual instinct in man, Man is and should be, “more of an individual and
less of a machine.” A business magnate spends all his time in calculations and
business. Towards the concluding part of the story the businessman goes to his
personal steno Miss Leslie, and tells her that he has loved her and wants to
marry her. He adds that he does not find time to tell her that he loves her.
The steno addresses him affectionately and in a mild and admonishing tone that
the business has eaten the brain in his head. She reminds him of the fact that
he and she were married at the church at eight o’clock the previous night.
A
human being should not become too busily absorbed in business, to allow his
individuality to shine. Man may be a multimillionaire or a prince. But if his
concern is only for business and earning, and if he does not have time to think
even for a moment that he is essentially an individual, life loses all its
charm. “What is this life, if full of care, we have no time to stand and
stare?”–so writes W. H. Davies.
“The
Cap and the Anthem” speaks of the bitter life, the have-nots and the outcasts
have to lead. In times of utter helplessness, it is not unusual for people to
think of welcoming “the father-in-law’s house”, where food, clothing and
shelter is provided. Soapy makes a number of breaches
of law, but the hand of law fails to catch him. Unfortunately and tragically, Soapy
is caught, when he wants to end his vagrant life and decides to open a new
chapter in his life. Soapy’s case is similar to that
of many individualists, who find it insulting to accept charity from philanthrophic institutions, which amounts to sell
personal dignity or honour. Such men would rather
prefer to be caught red-handed and sent to prison, than to be at the receiving
end of the alms. One might laugh at Soapy’s efforts
to get caught, but only when one thinks of the curses of poverty, Soapy’s case does not appear to be uncommon.
We
find in real world, those committing graver offences are allowed to go
scot-free, whereas men for the little mistakes they commit are punished
severely. “Friends in San Rosario” is autobiographical in character, in that
the punishment meted out to the banker is “out of all proportion to the
importance of the original lapse.”
Humanism
occupies the pivotal position and human being is always at the centre in
Potter’s short stories.