The Ransom of Red Chief
by O. Henry

The Ransom of Red Chief: Style 1 key example

Style
Explanation and Analysis:

“The Ransom of Red Chief” is told from the first-person perspective of Sam. Therefore, the writing style matches Sam’s personality. Though readers do not know Sam’s full backstory, it becomes clear via his comments throughout the story that he feels and acts intellectually superior to small-town southern people (likely because he is from somewhere in the northern United States). One of the ways Sam acts intellectually superior is through his writing style—in trying to prove to readers that he is well-educated, he ends up using a confusing array of words, such as in the following passage:

There was a sylvan attitude of somnolent sleepiness pervading that section of the external outward surface of Alabama that lay exposed to my view.