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Hyperbole
Explanation and Analysis—Only Place on Earth:
When telling a patrolling police officer about his childhood friend Jimmy (unaware that the officer is Jimmy), Bob uses a hyperbole, as seen in the following passage:
“Twenty years ago to-night,” said the man. “I dined here at ‘Big Joe’ Brady’s with Jimmy Wells […] He and I were raised here in New York, just like two brothers, together. I was eighteen and Jimmy was twenty. The next morning I was to start for the West to make my fortune. You couldn’t have dragged Jimmy out of New York; he thought it was the only place on earth.”
The hyperbole here—in which Bob describes young Jimmy’s belief that New York “was the only place on earth”—communicates why Jimmy had no interest in “start[ing] for the West” with Bob 20 years ago. The exaggerated language helps readers to understand what kept the two friends apart for all this time—Bob wanted to find adventure and fortune away from New York, and Jimmy felt strongly about staying.
O. Henry makes it clear over the course of the story that this key difference between the men ends up sealing their fates. Because Jimmy is so committed to New York, he became a dedicated police officer, and because he became a dedicated police officer, he felt he had to arrest Bob upon realizing that he was a wanted man in Chicago.
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