Question 25: What I Pulled from the Novel, The Free Man

The Free Man by Conrad Richter tells a story of a boy and his fight to gain freedom in a
land where it was promised to him. A boy, called Henner Free to his friends, is oppressed by the
law and those who have stewardship over him, but Henner is one of the first to fight against the
injustices. The way Henner and all of his friends and family were treated both on the voyage to
America and immediately after their arrival has helped me to understand better the value of
freedom. To them, there was not a price that was larger than they were willing to pay for the
freedom to act and think as they pleased.
To those coming to America, transportation to a free country on a ship that had terrible
living conditions was worth five years of their lives or more in indentured servitude away from
their friends and family. Henner was paid for in advance in gold, and yet, for the sake of the law,
was willing to pay off his dead parents debts through indentured servitude up to a point. This
point was when he decided he would no longer keep quiet about the way he was being treated
and it was the day he decided to run away from his master. While on the run, the sight of a grand
stagecoach travelling quickly was enough to stir his pulses, (page 52, paragraph 3, line 1). To
him, the stagecoach was a symbol for opportunity. He came from a land where he was told how
to act, what to believe, and what to say. Because of this, he travelled to a land where he could be
anybody. If he so chose, he could own anything he wanted that he was willing to work for. He
could be who he wanted to be or go anywhere he wanted to go, and that was his personal
definition of freedom. This was worth so much to him that he was willing to go to war to defend
his freedoms and the freedoms of his friends that they had come so far in order to receive, but
had thus far been denied. For what he fought so hard to receive and maintain, people in todays
world take for granted. They misuse their freedoms and dont appreciate what was risked many
years ago to achieve a real sense of liberty in this country.
Henner and others in situations similar to his understood the value freedom has, as did
the government officials that were taking it from them by requiring the completion of five years
in indentured servitude for the cost of the voyage to America. The story has helped me to realize
that the worth of freedom is more than many people today can comprehend. It is too often
underappreciated, especially by citizens of America. Many people died to have the freedoms we
have today because they knew the importance of it back then when they didnt have it. This story
has made me better realize the respect and appreciation that I should have for the sacrifices made
that are the reasons I have my freedoms today.