Choices: Ben Price and Jimmy Wells

When criminals commit unlawful deeds, Detective Ben Price and Officer Jimmy Wells are there to serve justice and put the wrong doer the their rightful place. The short story, "After Twenty Years" by O. Henry, portrays Officer Jimmy Wells, a fine guardian of peace who takes his work very seriously, when he has to confront this closest friend, who is now a fugitive. Despite the fact that they are childhood friends, Jimmy gets a plainclothes man to arrest the outlaw. The other short story, "A Retrieved Reformation" also by O. Henry, depicts Detective Ben Price, a eminent officer who specializes in robbery cases, has finally caught a safecracker he has been chasing for years, but seeing him save a little girl gives Ben second thoughts. Although, Ben ends up letting Jimmy walk away after he realizes that Jimmy is living an honest life. While both of the officers share some similarities, they choices made by them in pressing situations show an intense difference.

To begin with, the two police officers, Ben Price and Jimmy Wells are both virtuous men who care about their duty to carry out justice. This quote illustrates Ben Price's respect and loyalty towards the law. "The losses are now high enough to bring matters up into Ben Price's class of work... It was given out that Ben Price had taken up the trial of the elusive cracksman... Ben Price knew Jimmy's habits. He had learned them while working up the Springfield case" (O. Henry 193). Similarly, this quote exemplifies the fact that Ben Price is a notorious detective who is only summoned for cases that require extreme diligence. He has a well-developed technique to track down criminals and exploit any information he has obtained on them. In the same manner, this quote shows Jimmy...

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...es differently.

To sum it up, both of the officers have some traits in common, but ultimately, they have different personalities and ways of dealing with challenging situations. Basically, both Officer Wells and Detective Ben Price take their roles as public protectors very seriously and bring it upon themselves to make sure everything is in order. Nevertheless, the way they handle important decisions is different and somewhat unexpected. For instance, after chasing Jimmy Valentine for years, Ben Price decides not to capture him. However, Jimmy Wells has Bob immediately arrested after realizing that Bob is a wanted criminal, with no hesitation. Above all, both of these exceptional stories written by O. Henry incorporate the element of surprise. It is greatly enjoyable to be mislead throughout the whole story, only to be shocked by the intricate, boggling ending.