Jannely Santana Mrs. Dautrich English, period 1 27 September 2024. Literary Essay: “On the Sidewalk Bleeding” In the realistic fiction short story, “On the Sidewalk Bleeding,” by Evan Hunter, the author shows that kindness can help others in need. There is a boy named Andy, and he is left in a puddle in the alleyway with a stab wound. As he heavily bleeds out, he flashbacks to his past, and starts regretting things that have happened in the past. A few people come and go who are drunk, a couple, and an old lady. But none of them decide to help him because of one thing he is being judged for, which is his jacket. He eventually takes it off and realizes that that was the reason why he was stabbed. In this short story, Hunter uses flashbacks …show more content…
When Andy is stabbed, many people end up not helping him. He starts to think back about his girlfriend and wonders if he will be able to see her again. “He wondered if Laura was dancing, wondering if she missed him. Maybe she thought he wasn’t coming back”(Hunter, 1). Because the story follows what happens in Andy’s life, and his plan is to try to get people to help him. But it did not work out for him. Andy ends up flashing back at his girlfriend, Laura. The reader can get an idea of who she is and what special place she owns in Andy’s life. This shows that the theme of helping others is better, no matter what the situation is. Because that person may have someone to go back to, and helping others is always the answer. Hunter starts with a conversation in the middle of his story that dialogues his theme in the middle of the story, which explains the theme of the story.The reader is introduced to the question whether these two teenagers should save a dying person. As these young couples walk into the alleyway, they hear something.Hunter writes, ‘“ I don’t know. He’s a Royal. We help him, and the Guardians will be after us”’(Hunter, 2). In this conversation, the couple were in quite a rush to get home safely. This