< Hod Putt

Hod Putt

"Myself grown tired of toil and poverty."

Poem Summary:

Hod was poor and was tired of it. He saw how Old Bill Piersol managed to get rich quickly by trading with the Indians and then claiming bankruptcy. By using the bankruptcy law Bill ended up getting richer than he had been before. Hod tried to get rich quickly too. He robbed a traveler at Procter's Grove one night in order to get some money. While robbing the traveler, Hod killed him. As a result he was tried and convicted. As his punishment he was hung.

Relationships:

There is no proof to show that Hod Putt is related to anyone in Spoon River. We know that the people of the town know him because The Circuit Judge talks about him in his poem.

Historical/Literary Analysis:

There are no historical allusions in this poem. There are no literary allusions either. There aren't any metaphors or similes. Hod Putt seems to have a feeling of regret. So his tone seems to go along with that. He is full of regret because his get rich quick scheme using the bankruptcy law didn't work. Instead he ended up losing his life.

Character/Societal Analysis:

Hod Putt isn't at the highest level of society. He struggled to get by. He used the ideas of others to help himself out. If he had not lived in Spoon River, he wouldn't have changed anyone's life. From this poem we can learn that we should be content with what we have and we shouldn't go against the law in order to get what we want.

By
Ellen Valley

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