How Santa Clause Came To Simpson's Bar Analysis

Three aspects of the setting that impact this story, “How Santa Claus Came to Simpson’s Bar,” are the weather conditions, the characters’ ways of life and the season. The weather conditions in the story were rainy, so much that the streams were overflowing. This impacted the story because it made it even harder for Dick to get out. He had to cross a full and fast-flowing river. “But the brawling creek he had swam a few hours before had risen, more than doubled its volume, and now rolled a swift and resistless river between him and Rattlesnake Hill” (14). Another setting aspect that affects the story greatly is the character’s way of life in the small mountain town that they live in. The roads in the town are not as good and they flood easily, so …show more content…
“‘Past twelve,” was the reply; “can you make it? -- it’s nigh on fifty miles, the round trip hither and yon’ ” (10). The final aspect which affects this short story so dramatically is the time of the year, or season. The time of this short story is Christmastime, 1862. If this story would have been in a different season it wouldn’t have meant so much, because when you think of the month of December you think of Santa or Jesus who all “gave” something to us. So say if it would have been April, it would have still been super generous of the men to give Johnny a toy, but with it being Christmas and all it adds character to the story. “And even so, bedraggled, ragged, unshaven and unshorn, with one arm hanging helplessly at his side, Santa Claus came to Simpson’s Bar and fell fainting on the first threshold. The Christmas dawn came slowly after, touching the remote peaks with the rosy warmth of ineffable love. And it looked so tenderly on Simpson’s Bar that the whole mountain as if caught in a generous action, blushed to the skies” (15). All these elements of the setting have a huge impact on how the story and theme turned out. If just one of the elements would have been different, then that would affect the