“The Ransom of the Red Chief” is a short story about two men who decide to kidnap a child and hold him for ransom. However, the child is very rambunctious and energetic, so the men quickly get tired of needing to play with him. Also, the child is a bit violent and hurts one of the men, Bill, while they were playing. The narrator, Sam, writes a letter to the boy’s father, demanding $1,500 in exchange for the boy. When the men receive his reply, the boy’s father has them pay him $250 each in exchange for the boy’s father taking the boy off their hands. Bill immediately agrees, as he is the one who is feeling the most suffering, and he hightails out of there leaving the Sam to catch up.
I think this is a very funny story, and I enjoyed it very much. I could imagine the little boy and the robbers cooped up in a cave together, and envision him driving the men up a wall with his shenanigans.
I sympathize more for the robbers, because even though they were the ones who kidnapped the boy, the boy still acts like he is in charge. He makes them play games with him, and plays in a rough way. I think the robbers didn’t really know think things through when they decided to kidnap such a handful. Of course I feel slightly bad for the boy, but he is treated reasonably well and seemed to have a really great time playing and camping in the cave.
My interpretation of the theme is don’t bite off more than you can chew. I think this is pretty clear, as the men definitely bit off more than they could chew when they kidnapped the kid. They should have planned and researched more, because if they did they wouldn’t have kidnapped a hard-to-handle kid. Instead, they would have kidnapped an easier target.
I would recommend this story because it’s very funny and enjoyable, and also because it is very easy to understand. The characters have funny and unique personalities, plus the plot is very good.
In conclusion, ” The Ransom of the Red Chief” is a very good read and I definitely think you should read it.