After Twenty Years

One of the principal themes in O. Henry's short story "After Twenty Years" is the way in which time changes people. Both Bob and Jimmy have long memories and have remained true to their word,...

A serial criminal called "Silky Bob" has come to New York to meet up with his old friend Jimmy Wells. Twenty years earlier, the two men had agreed to meet outside a hardware store. Amazingly, Bob...

The predominant conflict in "After Twenty Years" is an internal one that is not apparent to the reader until the surprise ending of the story. This internal conflict arises between friendship and...

It is clear that both Jimmy and Bob in “After Twenty Years” have long memories and a deep attachment to one another. They both recall and honor the pact they made twenty years earlier, and Bob, as...

At the end of the story, Jimmy sends Silky Bob a note that says, Somehow I couldn't do it myself, so I went around and got a plain clothes man to do the job. We can surmise, from everything that...

One valuable takeaway from O'Henry's "After Twenty Years" is that the past always catches up to you. Bob lives a life of crime, and he thinks all his "hustling around" will never catch up to him....

The main situational irony in "After Twenty Years" involves the fact that Bob is waiting for Jimmy and doesn't realize he is actually talking to him. Then when Jimmy leaves, Bob thinks Jimmy didn't...

The short story "After Twenty Years" by O. Henry does have a tragic ending as two close friends who have vowed to reunite after twenty years, find themselves too changed to remain friends. Both...

Jimmy had to make a difficult choice between two painful alternatives. On the one hand, he could have gone on his way and let Silky Bob escape from the law. In that case, Jimmy would have felt...

Jimmy Wells was once the best friend ("chum") of Bob, now a noted criminal. They grew up as if they were brothers, but went their separate ways twenty years before. Bob headed out west when he was...

Here is a plot outline that you can alter to the diagram that you need: 1. Exposition - The beat policeman moves impressively and has a "watchful eye" as he moves up and down his street. He slows...

Bob realizes that the man with whom he talks is not Jimmy Wells after they walk under the brilliant electric lights of a drug store. He is startled that this man is a stranger, and he exclaims,...

The significance of the title of O’Henry’s “After Twenty Years” is great. Taken literally, the title reflects that the action of the story takes place after twenty years of time have elapsed....

One symbol in the story is the restaurant, Big Joe Brady's Restaurant, where the old friends in the story are supposed to reunite after twenty years. Before Bob left for the west twenty years...

The appointment between Bob and Jimmy to meet again in twenty years was just for the sake of reunion. It was similar to the thousands of class reunions, family reunions, and all the other reunions...

Although Jimmy is a cop and Bob is a thief, when all is said and done they're still old friends. Jimmy has done his professional duty as a police officer, but he can't bring himself to confront his...

The fact that "Silky" Bob traveled a thousand miles to meet his old friend Jimmy Wells suggests many things about him. For one thing, it suggests that he doesn't have many friends, if any. Bob has...

It seems to me that by using the word "should" in your question you are asking, not what would you do, but what should you do if you were in Jimmy's position. It seems to me that, as much as I feel...

The appointment in O. Henry's "After Twenty Years" is a prearranged meeting between two friends who parted one night and agreed to meet again two decades later at 'Big Joe' Brady's restaurant. One...

O. Henry builds the suspense in this story by introducing the two characters, and then not letting you know who is who right away. They are two old friends who are meeting after twenty years, and...

In the short story "After Twenty Years," the author O. Henry creates an atmosphere of mystery and uncertainty to set up the surprise ending. He does this by describing the weather, the time, and...

The two men, Silky Bob and Jimmy Wells, grew up together and were very close. When they each decided to go different ways, Bob to find his fortune in the West and Jimmy to settle in New York, they...

The overall tone and feeling of O. Henry’s “After Twenty Years” is somewhat somber and reminiscent. It follows the two men, Jim and Bob, whose lives have vastly diverged over time, and it...

The quote you mentioned—especially the words "his egotism enlarged by success"—tells us much about Bob's personality and character. Those words highlight Bob's materialistic predilections....

I understood the term "guardian of the peace" to be synonymous with the term "police officer." "Guardian of the peace" or "guardians of the peace" may have been used frequently in newspapers and...

In O. Henry's short story "After Twenty Years," the resolution of the problem or conflict is that Silky Bob is arrested and taken to jail, and Jimmy is disconsolate over losing his old friend to...

Both verbal irony and situational irony are identifiable in O. Henry's short story "After Twenty Years." The situational irony is clear, as the twist at the end of the story reveals an unexpected...

The setting of "After Twenty Years" is a relatively quiet street in New York at around 10 at night. There is a wind and the threat of rain, so most of the people have hurried indoors, and the...

The two friends, Jimmy Wells and Bob, have disparate lifestyles, reflecting their contrasting values. These contrasting values are represented by their chosen locales. Jimmy chose to stay in New...

The policeman sees the face of the "stranger" while he is walking his regular beat and meets him in the middle of the block, in "the doorway of a darkened hardware store." The man explains why he...

There are a number of slight hints that Bob is a disreputable character. For instance, there is his appearance. The man in the doorway struck a match and lit his cigar. The light showed a pale,...

The title of “After Twenty Years” is ironic because two old friends are reuniting after a long time, but they are now on opposite sides of the law. When Bob sees Jimmy, he does not recognize him....

The climax in a story is the peak of emotional intensity. In "After Twenty Years" this peak is reached when Bob and the arresting officver arrive at the corner drug store which is brilliantly...

Jimmy Wells (Patrolman Wells) is a loyal and trustworthy friend. He was at "the appointed place," but couldn't bring himself to arrest his friend. "Silky" Bob, might be considered a loyal friend...

Jimmy and Bob have known each other all their lives. They grew up in the same neighborhood in Manhattan. That means they probably played together in the streets like all the other kids. They went...

The only obvious simile in the story occurs when Bob is telling the policeman, whom he doesn't recognize as his old friend Jimmy Wells, about the strong friendship that had existed between the two...

"After Twenty Years" is set in New York City in the early part of the twentieth century. It is a neighborhood of shops and offices. It is dark and the streets are nearly deserted. The area has the...

The story is told by an anonymous narrator and features two points of view, those of Jimmy and Bob. Although Jimmy is not identified, the fact that it is this cop's point of view is shown from the...

O. Henry's ironic story of the twenty year reunion of two old friends, one of whom went West to make his fortune, depicts Bob's having come a thousand miles to meet Jimmy Wells back in New York. As...

Dialogue and the sequence of events in "After Twenty Years" work to reveal the characters of Jimmy and Bob along with the story's theme through the information they provide. Dialogue to reveal...

The fact that both men showed up for their promised rendezvous after twenty years shows that they were once very close friends. However, it does not prove that they are still close friends. They...

Jimmy recognizes his old friend Bob while he talks to him in the doorway of what once was Brady's restaurant. As Bob lights his cigar, Jimmy recognizes the "pale, square-jawed face with keen eyes...

In “After Twenty Years,” by O. Henry, Bob is waiting for Jimmy to arrive at the reunion spot they agreed upon twenty years prior. As he waits on a cold, deserted, New York City street outside where...

Bob has only been superficially more successful than Jimmy. Bob has some flashy clothes and accessories, but he has no home, no family, no friends (except Jimmy), no roots, and he is continually on...

The policeman, whom we later learn is Jimmy Wells, asks Bob, the man in the doorway, a pointed question. “I'll be on my way. Hope your friend comes around all right. Going to call time on him...

Bob describes Jimmy to the policeman on the beat, telling him that Jimmy Wells is "the finest chap in the world." He adds that they were like brothers, and Jimmy was very loyal. However, he adds...