1. Discuss the struggle to create a façade of perfection to cover up one’s inner turmoil
The struggle to create façade of perfection in order to cover up one’s inner turmoil generally involves presenting oneself to other people as an ideal human being while hiding the true flaws within. In the story, “The Five-Forty-Eight,” this struggle is best exemplified by Blake. As illustrated in the story, Blake was the type of person who paid much attention to the people around him. Oftentimes, he looked down on these people as inferiors, which is best shown when he constantly criticized his neighbor, Mr. Watkin’s clothes and lifestyle. He also prevented his son, Charlie from playing with Mr. Watkin’s boy. Moreover, Blake believed that the decisions he made were always right and rarely admitted that he was wrong. He also finds criticism in almost anyone or anything that he sees. However, in reality, he was a highly flawed man who, find fault in others in order to cover up for his own faults.
2. In what ways are roles reversed in the train scene?
The scene where Miss Dent discreetly pointed a gun on Blake showed that their positions and roles have been reversed in a lot of ways. Blake, who was Miss Dent’s former boss, had to submit himself under Miss Dent’s mercy. Unlike in the past when she did everything he wanted her to do as his secretary, it was Blake who was compelled to obey everything that Miss Dent told him to do. In short, for a brief moment, it was Miss Dent that was superior over Blake. This is can be considered a reversal of their positions because in th past, Blake always believed that he was better than Miss Dent, and generally everyone else for that matter. Moreover, another way their roles were reversed during the train scene was the fact that Blake was momentary isolated from the rest of the world which was ironic because Miss Dent was depicted as a deranged and very lonely woman. Blake was unable to call for help because Miss Dent would surely shoot her and his neighbors, whom he did not have good relations with, did not pay any attention to him. In other words, it appeared that Blake was the one was lonely and cast out from the world.
3. What does Miss Dent symbolize?
Miss Dent symbolizes the misunderstood and isolated people in society. In general, she is a very fragile woman who believes that she has extraordinary talents. During her conversation with Blake in the train, she disclosed to him that she has the gift of dreams and clairvoyance. Normally, today people who speak out such words are considered insane as is the case of Miss Dent. Moreover, in the letter she gave to Blake, she revealed that she never had any true friend, which is the case of most people in the world who are like her. Miss Dent’s apparent obsession to communicate with Blake after he slept with her and fire consequently afterwards showed the impact of a relatively sane and normal person on a fragile and isolated woman like her. Although she is depicted as a crazy person in the story, she still has the capacity to think deeper than most people. This goes to show most people who are misunderstood can generally act normally like other people do.
4. In what ways is Shady Hill ironic?
One way that Shady Hill is ironic is that the town’s name does not entirely symbolize the characters of its people. By definition, the term shady, when used in the context of describing people, means that one is questionable and disreputable. Putting this definition in the context of the story, there is nothing questionable and disreputable about the residents of Shady Hill. Mr. Watkins and Mrs. Compton, two of the town’s residents, were very real characters. In the story, the two were depicted to have no pretensions and no ulterior motives. Even Blake, who projects an ideal image in order to cover up his flaws, based on his thoughts, can still be considered as a real character because he speaks his mind. In short, Shady Hill is ironic because there is nothing questionable about the town or its residents.
5. Do you believe that Blake and/or Miss Dent had a revelation in the end?
For me, both Blake and Miss Dent revealed their true characters in the end of the story. Blake, possibly for the first time in a long time in his life, admitted that he was wrong. He admitted that he committed a lapse in judgment when he hired Miss Dent, whom he knew spent an unusually long time in the hospital. Blake’s admission of his errors was contrary to his belief that he is always right. On the other hand, Miss Dent, despite the fact that she was presented to be mentally deteriorating, proved that she was still sane in several ways and that she had a greater perception of reality than Blake. At the end of the story, Miss Dent told Blake that she should kill him because she knew that he was the type of person who looks down and preys on weaker people. However, she proved that she still had the ability to exhibit kindness and saneness in her life by not killing Blake but simply “washing her hands” of him and walking away from his life.
