ipl-logo

Jimmy Valentine Character Analysis

1172 Words5 Pages

Lera Ramsay
Hour 5
District Performance Event
“You’re not a bad fellow at heart,” (Henry, page 1), were the words the warden of the prison said to Jimmy the day before he was released. Jimmy Valentine was a professional thief that could break through any bank vault he wanted. While in the small town of Elmore, he falls in love with with a girl named Miss Annabel Adams, the daughter of the man who owns The Elmore Bank. After that day, Jimmy stopped robbing banks and turned into Ralph D. Spencer. Jimmy Valentine was dedicated to living a moral life because he changed his life around for Annabel, he has integrity, and many people saw him as a good man after he changed.
Jimmy Valentine was dedicated to living a moral life because he changed his …show more content…

For example, Miss Annabel Adams knew him as such a good man that she agreed to marry him. If Annabel saw him as anything less, she wouldn’t have married him. Also, it only took a year for them to become engaged, which shows that Jimmy had to have been a good, kind man. Additionally, Ben Price let Jimmy go even though he knew about Jimmy’s past crimes. Ben Price, the man that had been searching for Jimmy for years and knew if all of his crimes, let him go after he saw him save Agatha’s life in the bank. It only took one encounter with Jimmy for Ben to know that, even after all he’d done, he had changed for the better. Not to mention the fact that the entire town of Elmore saw him as a good, trustworthy man. In the text, it states that Jimmy “...had won the respect of the community,” (Henry, page 3), within a single year. Jimmy had worked extremely hard to accomplish this, and the entire town knew that, they knew that he was a genuinely nice person. To sum everything up, Jimmy was committed to living an honorable life because he was truly a good man and many people knew him as …show more content…

To start off, people might think that Jimmy wasn’t dedicated to living a virtuous life because he continued to rob banks after he got out of jail. While this is true, Jimmy did eventually stop robbing banks after he was released. In addition to this, some may claim that Jimmy was not devoted to living a moral life because he broke open the vault at the end of the story. Although Jimmy did break into the bank vault, he didn’t do it to steal money. The reason he broke into the vault was to save Agatha. Lastly, some people might say that Jimmy was not committed to living a moral life because he married Annabel just to get easy access to her father’s bank so that he could rob him. While this is just an inference that cannot be backed up by textual evidence, Jimmy would have no reason to go through with this elaborate plan. Jimmy has easily broken into bank vaults before and has never had to use a lengthy, unnecessary plan. Unless he truly wanted to change his life, he wouldn’t have followed through with a plan like this. Overall, it can be proven that Jimmy Valentine was truly devoted to living a dutiful

Show More
Related

  • Lieutenant Jimmy Cross In The Things They Carried By Tim O Brien

    265 Words  | 2 Pages

    After Ted Lavender died, Jimmy burned Martha’s letters and photos and promised himself never to get distracted again. Jimmy realize that he was living a fantasy and that it was time for him

    Read More

  • Jimmy Valentine Research Paper

    534 Words  | 3 Pages

    The first reason that proves Jimmy Valentine was truly dedicated to living a moral life was that he changed his name. His new name is Ralph Spencer. Jimmy did this because he wanted to become a new person and live a new life. Also Jimmy Valentine is not there any more. His name got changed just as he wishes to change too.

    Read More

  • Jimmy Valentine Research Paper

    740 Words  | 3 Pages

    After Jimmy arrived in Elmore he was truly dedicated to living a moral life; Jimmy did not rob any bank for a year after he arrived, he was going to give up his very expensive robbing tool set, and he changed his name and personality because he was in love with Mrs. Annabel Adams. Once Jimmy Valentine went to in the very small town of Elmore, many things changed. One of those things was that he did not rob or steal anybody else’s money for over a year. “I've quit the old business--a year ago” (a letter Jimmy sent his friend Billy). The reason Jimmy did not steal anybody's money was because he was was too busy with Annabel.

    Read More

  • Jimmy Valentine Research Paper

    1255 Words  | 6 Pages

    It was a sacrifice he was willing to make because it meant him being able to be with Annabel. This is a giant step towards going down the correct pathway because the crimes Jimmy was doing were not small, but they were big, serious crimes that would cause huge punishment. Finally, Jimmy changed his identity to Ralph D. Spencer so that no one would recognize his past of robbing safes. Jimmy was giving himself a fresh new start towards success that could lead towards new

    Read More

  • The Great Gatsby Morality Quotes

    673 Words  | 3 Pages

    In the novel, The Great Gatsby, written by F. Scott Fitzgerald screwed morality is evident throughout the chapters five and six. Many characters in the novel depicted morality, however, most if not all twisted the morality to better accompany their needs. To begin, one of the characters that demonstrated screwed morality constantly would be Tom Buchanan. Throughout the novel, Tom Buchanan can be viewed as an antagonist due to the fact, he cheated on Daisy, his wife, with Myrtle Wilson. Screwed morality was evident in the quote,“ He frowned.

    Read More

  • Use Of Masks In The Great Gatsby

    696 Words  | 3 Pages

    Her motivation to do this is because she wants people to think she is rich just like Daisy’s motivation. The outcome of her having an affair makes her an unfaithful wife to her husband. Finally, Jay Gatsby, Daisy Buchanan and Myrtle Wilson are the characters in the novel that put on untruthful identity for them to cover their mistakes, and their motivations show what kind of

    Read More

  • Symbolism In The Things They Carried By Tim O Brien

    648 Words  | 3 Pages

    Jimmy Cross is the first lieutenant who carries pictures and letters from Martha, the woman he loves who—sadly—does not love him back. The pictures and letters from Martha symbolize Jimmy’s longing to be loved and comforted. It is ironic that although he is the first lieutenant who is expected to take charge and lead others, yet he never took charge of his own love life. This is a regret and burden Cross carries to the end of the story. “It was very sad, he thought.

    Read More

  • A Rhetorical Analysis Of The Great Gatsby

    1372 Words  | 6 Pages

    His rather indeterminate and shady manner of "business" with Meyer Wolfshiem and inability to explicitly explain, even to Nick, what trade he is in, demonstrates that his crisp, rich image is not what he says it is. The haze of the glorification of money hides this suspicious background, which is why Gatsby is so great in the beginning of the book, but falls utterly hard by the

    Read More

  • All Is Not Fair In Love And War Analysis

    1009 Words  | 5 Pages

    Cross blames himself, knowing “He had loved Martha more than his men, and as a consequence Lavender was now dead…” (p. 121). First Lieutenant Jimmy Cross is distracted by his infatuation for Martha, which ultimately results in Ted Lavender’s death, forcing Cross to realize his fantasies for Martha are wrong and that he is not fulfilling his duties as a lieutenant. Lieutenant Cross is inattentive to the war and his responsibilities because he is unable and unwilling to stop thinking about his adoration for Martha.

    Read More

  • Examples Of Money In The Great Gatsby

    1556 Words  | 7 Pages

    First, all the people in The Great Gatsby thought that the money they had could bring them the true happiness they wanted. Tom Buchanan was the worst of all though and always thought his money could get them out of any problem. He shows this when he says, "And what's more, I love Daisy too. Once in awhile I go off on a spree and make a fool of myself, but I always come back, and in my heart I love her all the time"(Fitzgerald 140). When he says this, he thinks the cheating he does is fine.

    Read More

  • Lieutenant Cross In Tim O Brien's The Things They Carried

    585 Words  | 3 Pages

    He couldn’t help it (432).” This tells you that he is still just a boy at this point, but he knows that he should not be thinking of Martha he should be worrying about the lives of his men. Even so, Lavender is now dead and Jimmy holds himself responsible: “He would dispose of his good luck pebble. Swallow it, maybe… (437).” Mainly he is trying to get rid of all feelings for Martha, he cared more for her and himself, but he does care also about his

    Read More

  • Johnny And Dally Character Analysis

    903 Words  | 4 Pages

    Johnny and Dally: Same Beginnings, Different Endings How can two friends grow up the same, with the same environment and type of parents, but one die as a criminal and the other as a hero? Dally and Johnny are the same when it comes to their parents and life in general. Although, completely different when it comes to how they died and their perspectives of Ponyboy in the novel “The Outsiders” by S.E Hinton. Johnny and Dally are very similar, for example, they both have abusive and neglectful parents that do not pay attention to them.

    Read More

  • Ambiguity In Tim O Brien

    934 Words  | 4 Pages

    Tim O’Brien states, “Lavender was now dead, and this was something he would have to carry like a stone in his stomach for the rest of the war” (O’Brien 16). In this quote, Tim O’Brien explains that since Jimmy Cross blames himself about Ted Lavender’s death, he will always be in lieutenant’s head. Thus, the lieutenant will always feel the guilt. With this, Tim O’Brien makes the reader think that Jimmy Cross is the person to blame since he is the head of the group and he has to pay more attention to his plans. Having questions about his love, Martha, in his mind instead of being careful about his men is the reason of him feeling guilty that “the lieutenant’s in some deep hurt” (17).

    Read More

  • Examples Of Love And Money In The Great Gatsby

    1219 Words  | 5 Pages

    Knowing that Daisy is the true reason behind Myrtle 's death tom did not want to put her in harm 's way because she was his wife and person he wanted to spend his life with. Tom could not bare to go through what george was going through so he lied to protect his love, Daisy. Love was not the only motivator for action, there was also money. Money was a motivator for action for many characters throughout this novel, but the person most driven by money was the Great Gatsby himself. James Gatsby, or Jay Gatz was not wealthy growing up like every other person he surrounded himself with.

    Read More

  • Romeo And Juliet Character Analysis

    1319 Words  | 6 Pages

    The Maturities of Romeo and Juliet It is a controversial topic whether youth is capable of handling a mature love. Romeo and Juliet, written by William Shakespeare by 1595, epitomizes this common topic. The main characters of the play are two teenagers who fall in love at the first sight, however, the hatred between the families of the two leads to their death in the end. In the adaptation of Baz Luhrmann’s Romeo and Juliet in 1996, Romeo and Juliet are portrayed more mature than in that of Baz Luhrmann in 1968.

    Read More

More about Jimmy Valentine Character Analysis

Open Document