The Highwayman

The Highwayman

#1 – I strongly disagree with the statement “the highwayman was nothing but a common thief” due to these three reasons. Firstly, he only stole to support himself and his relationship with Bess. Common thief’s only steal for the value f it, where as he did it for love, and only took as needed. Secondly, even considering the circumstances, he came back for Bess. He risked his life just to see her again, where instead he could’ve just left with the money. Lastly, if he was just a “common thief”, Bess wouldn’t have killed herself to try and save him. She knew he was more than that and he would’ve done the same for her. This is why I feel that the highwayman is not just a common thief, he is WAY more than that.

#2 – Similie: down like a dog on the highway. This comparison is used to show how dogs aren’t very meaningful to most people as they are just “animals”. This is what the highwayman is right now, his life has lost all meaning as he is now, well, dead.

Metaphor: his eyes were hollows of madness. This comparison is used to show how much Tim the oster cared about Bess and how it infuriated him to see her with another guy. This is what finally helped hi to reach his peak as after that he unintentionally killed Bess and the highwayman

Alliteration:

Onomatopoeia:

#3 - The central conflict of The Highwayman is a man vs. man conflict between the highwayman and his lover Bess against Tim, the stableman who also loves Bess and who sent the soldiers that are out to catch and kill the highwayman.

Another conflict is a man vs. self conflict where Bess must decide what she will do in order to save the man she loves—she must decide whether she will take her own life in order to save her beloved. Both of these conflicts were resolved through the power of love. Like how Tim the ostler alerted the authorities due to his jealousy of the highway as he loves Bess. Also Bess’s actions resulted in a desperate attempt to save her love as she committed suicide to try and stop the ambush and essentially save his life.

#4 – This poem is about true love between a robber (the highwayman) and the daughter of a landlord, who runs an inn on the highway. The poem starts of with the highwayman visiting his love Bess at her fathers. Though he is a working robber and only has time for one kiss so he promises he will be back at next nightfall at the latest. Though a jealous worker by the name of Tim the ostler hears this, and out of his love for Bess, alerts the authorities so he will no longer have o worry about competition for her. Therefore, the next evening a bunch of British soldiers, who had been drinking, tied Bess up (with a gun) and waited at the inn to essentially shoot don the highwayman. Though Bess manages to get a finger on the trigger of the gun left with her and shoots herself to warn the highwayman not to come. The highwayman hears the shot and tries to get away, but it is not successful. He was shot down by the soldiers in the middle of the road and dies in a pool of blood. They say that still, on winter nights, you can still see his ghost riding down the highway to see Bess again