Just Lather, That's All
A Comparison Of Characters From Opposing Groups in “Just Lather, That’s All” “Just Lather, That’s All” by Hernando Telléz is a story that reveals the values of a government official and a rebel through an in depth illustration of their thoughts and actions. The barber (rebel) and Captain Torres (government official) are similar because they both value human life whereas they are different because the barber values his occupation and innocence and Captain Torres values the government and his reputation. The barber and Captain Torres show that they both value human life as they both show a dislike for murder. The barber shows that he values innocence when he says that no one deserves the sacrifice of becoming a murderer and he shows that he values his occupation because he constantly talks about his pride in his job. Captain Torres shows that he values the government as he does anything the government instructs him to do no matter what his opinion may be on it and he also shows that he values his reputation because he goes the extra mile so that people think he’s a cold blooded killer.
In the dramatic story “Just Lather, That’s All” the two main characters (Captain Torres and the barber) show that they both value human life. Captain Torres shows that he values human life by his sorrowful statement at the end of the story “They told me that you’d kill me. I came to find out. But killing isn’t easy. You can take my word for it.” (Tellez 51). This statement reveals that although Captain Torres appears to be a cold blooded murderer to many people in the village, he in fact does not enjoy killing and he goes on to say that it is very hard for people (including himself) to take lives. Similarly the barber shows that he values human life during his mental argument over whether or not to kill Captain Torres. “What do you gain by it? Nothing. Other come along and still others, and the first ones kill the second ones, and they the next ones – and it goes on like this
In the dramatic story “Just Lather, That’s All” the two main characters (Captain Torres and the barber) show that they both value human life. Captain Torres shows that he values human life by his sorrowful statement at the end of the story “They told me that you’d kill me. I came to find out. But killing isn’t easy. You can take my word for it.” (Tellez 51). This statement reveals that although Captain Torres appears to be a cold blooded murderer to many people in the village, he in fact does not enjoy killing and he goes on to say that it is very hard for people (including himself) to take lives. Similarly the barber shows that he values human life during his mental argument over whether or not to kill Captain Torres. “What do you gain by it? Nothing. Other come along and still others, and the first ones kill the second ones, and they the next ones – and it goes on like this
Cited: Téllez, Hernando. "Just Lather, That’s All” Elements of English 10. Ed. Douglas Hilker and Sue Harper. Toronto: Harcourt Canada, 2005. 48-52. Print.