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Deion Fraire
Nathaniel Greenberg
English 211
24 April 2014
Final
In the story, Maggie, A Girl of the Streets, by Stephen Crane, there are two young lovers
named Pete and Maggie. Pete is a strong, confident man who is never afraid of a fight. Hes very
boastful of his ability to overpower any man in combat. He works as a bartender and makes
fairly good money. Petes an old friend of Jimmie and thats how he met Maggie. Maggie was
infatuated with him as soon as she laid eyes on him. His stories of how he throws men out of the
bar regularly were fascinating to Maggie. It seemed to make him seem more bold and manly.
Pete was somebody who could protect her and keep her safe from harm.
Maggie is a very nave young woman. She was uneducated and grew up in a house of
constant conflict. She often keeps to herself and is fearful of many things. Maggie works in a
sweatshop making collars for minimal pay. Despite growing up in an ugly, disgusting place like
Rum Alley, Maggie turned in to a beautiful young lady. Pete took a liking to her and began
taking her out. In her eyes Pete was a way to a better life. He was her way out of Rum Alley.
Their relationship, however, had critical turning points that greatly affected both of their lives for
the worst.
Petes turning point was meeting a woman from the past named Nellie. While Pete was
on a date with Maggie this enchanting, sophisticated woman got his attention. They sat together
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and chatted for a long time. They both seemed disinterested in their original dates as Maggie and
the boy that accompanied Nellie sat there in awkward silence. Nellie convinces Pete that he
should leave with her. Pete totally abandons Maggie leaving her confused and upset. It was
shocking to see Pete ditch her like that for this other woman. Pete seemed like a good guy who
really had an interest in Maggie. He was protective and even loving for her. Then with one
gesture he became the bad guy. A cruel man who strung Maggie along and got her hopes up just
to throw her away like she never mattered to him in the first place. Pete feels guilt but he
wouldnt allow himself to admit it. He knew what he did was wrong and he wasnt man enough
to face it. He just shut himself out of Maggies life in an instant. He ends up getting very drunk
and spending all his money on girls who only pretend to like him. During this he keeps
reiterating how good of a guy he is. He says how he always treats people right. This is an
expression of his deep feeling of regret. He needs to keep hearing that hes a good guy because
deep down he knows he is not. Pete ends up losing all his money and the girls just leave him
without a care. Nellie calls him a fool as she takes the rest of his money and leaves him there
passed out from too many drinks. Pete got what he deserved for basically ruining poor Maggies
life.
Maggie faces two major turning points in her relationship with Pete. The first is when she
leaves to be with Pete despite her mother and brother cursing her for doing so. She thought that
leaving her old life behind and starting a new one with Pete was the best decision. Pete promised
her the world. He said he loved her and Maggie thought that he would give her a better life and
that she could rise from poverty with the help of her caring boyfriend. At this point Maggie was
filled with joy. She was moving on to a better life than the one she had in Rum Alley. She was
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learning new things and felt loved and appreciated. She had never felt this way before. It was an
exciting new chapter in her life. Little did she know, it was all about to turn sour.
Once Maggie was abandoned by Pete she tried to return home. Her mother and brother
were quick to ridicule and outcast her. Even all of the neighbors came to gawk at Maggie and tell
her what a horrible child she was. She had no choice but to run away. Maggie found herself
trying to go back to Pete. She nervously stood outside of the bar he tended at. When she asked
Pete if he could care for her and where she could go he responded with, Oh, go teh hell (Crane
81.) This moment was the second turning point in Maggies dreadful life. She was lost and
shunned. With no idea where to go she began to wander and talked to random men hoping they
could help her. She was vulnerable and scared at this point. She found her way to the gloomy
districts near the river. A grotesque man was there and she, feeling there was no hope left, let
him have his way with her. She disappeared in the night next to the black, oily river. Maggie
ended up dead because everybody turned their back to her and sent her out in the world with no
hope of survival.
In the beginning it seemed as if Maggie and Pete were going to live a wonderful life
together. With just a few actions everything changed in the blink of an eye. Pete lost his
girlfriend and ended up broke and drunk. Maggie ended up dead. They could have had a better
life but they just couldnt escape the darkness of Rum Alley.




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Character Sentences
Jimmie is a courageous, confident, and curious boy. On page 1 he shows courage by not
backing down when outnumbered. He shows confidence on page 3 because he is proud of his
fighting abilities. His curiosity is shown on page 9 when he is examining his drunk mother on the
floor.
The Fader is abusive, violent, and a drunk. He shows these traits when he hits Jimmie
and stumbles home drunk and argues with his wife on pages 5 and 6.
The mother is big, violent, and abusive. She argued with her husband and broke furniture.
She also abused Maggie and it was noted that she had massive shoulders. All of this happened on
pages 2, 5, and 6.
Maggie is a poor, nave, and fearful girl. She is in tattered clothes and would hide in the
corner from her parents. She knew very little about the world because she never really left the
house. These events take place on pages 6 and 10.
The old woman is an ugly, caring, and poor character. It is mentioned that she has a
leathery personage. She is caring because she offers to let Jimmie stay at her house while his
parents fight. She often begs on the street indicating she has no money. We see these examples
on pages 7 and 8.




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