The Ransom of The Red Chief by O. Henry

-Characters

Sam: Narrator who works alongside his dad Bill Driscoll as a criminal.

Johnny Dorset: 10-year-old boy who is taken captive for ransom money.

Bill Driscoll: Criminal, along with his colleague they have made several robberies and crimes.

Ebenezer Dorset: Wealthy businessman. He is johnny`s father.

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Plot Elements:

Exposition: Sam and Bill plan to kidnap a child of a wealthy man for a ransom of two thousand bucks.

Rising Action: They kidnap a 10-year-old kid whose name is Johnny and bring him to a cave refugee

Climax: Johnny`s father rejects to pay the 2 thousand cash ransom, but Bill and Sam are happy to get paid at any cost to get rid of the little imp.

Falling Action: They bring back Johnny to his father and they accept the $250 bucks as ransom. Johnny is sad that his friends left him.

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Brief Summary

There were two minor criminals Sam and Bill who were looking for two thousand bucks. They ended up kidnapping a child whose name was Johnny Dorset; son of a wealthy man. They took the kid to a cave hideout; however, the kid was a professional hellion who kept Sam and Bill annoyed all time with fantasy games. Ebenezer Dorset (Johnny`s father) declines the offer to get his son back, so Sam and Bill end up reducing the ransom to $250 cash to get rid of the little demon. Johnny preferred to be with his old pals rather than his own dad when they left him.

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Thoughts & Feelings

I enjoyed this short story because it was about crime and had somewhat of comedy. I think it is funny because of Johnny`s immaturity which drove Sam and Bill crazy to the point that they could not handle it anymore. It is unexpected, because one never expects that a father would not look for a way to get his son back, and that the child would prefer the criminals' company than his own family. It also portrays how some people choose money above anything else. 
This story shows how some families are fractured because they are focused on money and material things. The father, even though he was a wealthy man, he was not willing to pay for his son's ransom. On the other hand, it also shows how the bandits received their punishment for doing such a bad thing, when they had to deal with the insolent child.