Social Influence In 'I M A Fool'

Character: Social Influence

In Anderson’s short story, “I’m a Fool,” the narrator is a young man specified to be a “swipe at at a racetrack”, with no formal education. Through a series of events, he meets a young man, Wilbur Wessen, and his sister, Lucy. Upon introducing himself to the two, he lies about his real identity. He decides to appeal to what was socially respectable at the time in order to impress Lucy. It was made pretty obvious throughout the story that his real job and his lack of education were generally frowned upon. In fact, it’s heavily socially disapproved, judging by the reactions of his family.

Though it could partly be attributed to him drinking, it is mostly due to what society deemed acceptable at that time that he decides to deceive them. Being a horse dude without a formal education apparently was not what it considered desirable. Thus, he was compelled to lie about his identity, which ended up screwing things up for himself in the long run.

However, society shapes the characters in “Everyday Use” in a way that is considerably more profound than in “I’m a Fool”. All

She grew up with her head down and an instilled wariness of white Americans and the power they unjustly held over her. The effects of her upbringing are evident in the things she says (“Who can even imagine me looking a strange white man in the eye? It seems to me I have talked to them always with one foot raised in flight, with my head turned in whichever way is farthest from them.” p.6), as well as in her demeanor: she is meek, submissive to the demands of those with more dominant personalities (take Dee, for example), and tends to draw the attention away from herself. Due to this, she has resigned to what she has come to believe: that she is somehow less than a