Theme of “Thank you Ma’am”

When people mess up they are always saying, “Please, forgive me.” or “Give me a second chance.” Everyone hopes that the person will say, “OK,” but that doesn’t always happen. Luckily, in “Thank You Ma’am,” Mrs. Jones forgave Roger and gave him a second chance. The short story, “Thank You Ma’am,” teaches people about forgiveness.

Mrs. Jones was walking home when Roger tried to steal her purse, but instead of getting away, he fell on his back. Mrs. Jones grabbed him by his shirt and looked at him for a second. She could have taken him to the police, but instead she surprised him by saying, “ ‘… your face is dirty. I got a great mind to wash your face for you. Ain’t you got nobody home to tell you to wash your face?’ ‘No’m,’ said the boy. ‘Then it will get washed this evening,’ said the large woman starting up the street, dragging the frightened boy behind her.” She took him home with her and made him wash his face, so he would look presentable. She forgave him by teaching him to respect himself. After, he was finished washing his face she realized that the boy must be hungry. “Maybe you ain’t been to your supper either, late as it be. Have you?” He told her that nobody was at home, so she made him food. “Then she cut him a half of her ten-cent cake. “Eat some more, son,” she said. Some teens today are like Roger. They are neglected, and starving.

Mrs. Jones shows forgiveness to Roger even after he tried to steal her purse because she felt empathy for him. “ ‘I were young once and I wanted things I could not get… You thought I was going to say but, didn’t you? You thought I was going to say, but I didn’t snatch people’s pocketbooks. Well, I wasn’t going to say that.’ Pause. Silence. ‘I have done things, too, which I would not tell you, son—neither tell God, if he didn’t already know.’ ” It matters today because if you give someone a second chance you could be giving them a second chance at life. “When they were finished eating Mrs. Jones got up and said, “Now, here, take this ten dollars and buy yourself some blue suede shoes. And next time, do not make the mistake of latching onto my pocketbook nor nobody else’s— because shoes come by devilish like that will burn your feet.” Teens today make the same kind of mistakes that Roger made.

The theme is forgiveness because of how Mrs. Jones handled the situation. Mrs. Jones gave Roger that second chance that everyone wants. Roger acts a lot like teens today. Like most teens now Roger didn’t think of the consequences. He wanted something he couldn’t get so he found another way to get what he wanted. He didn’t even consider that Mrs. Jones might turn him into the police. After he fell over that is when he realized he was in trouble. “You gonna take me to jail?” asked the boy, bending over the sink.” This is why the theme is forgiveness.     

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