The Outcasts of Poker Flat is about a vigilante committee which sets out to save the town from its moral decline by rounding up 'undesirables.' It is one of Harte's best known stories about the West, first published in January 1869 in the magazine Overland Monthly.

1. The Outcasts Of Poker Flat Story
2. The Outcasts Of Poker Flat Summary
3. Outcast Of Poker Flat Characters
4. Mother Shipton The Outcasts Of Poker Flat

'The Outcasts of Poker Flat' (1869) is a short story written by renowned author of the American West Bret Harte. This story is a good example of regionalism and local color during the Gilded Generation. His compelling combination of realism and sentimentality offers readers real and known characters, yet without the dullness that might sometimes accompany them. Charles A. Fleming, a well-read critic had this to say about Harte's work: 'As a writer, Harte was a talented humorist who could take fairly routine story formulas and give them new vigor and settings. His background as a journalist gave him a brisk style and a special skill for describing people, their mannerisms, and dialogue.'^[1] Harte, although he was born in Albany, New York, wrote passionately and in graphic detail about the American West. While he was a contemporary of Mark Twain, he was often overlooked because of this. His short story, 'The Outcasts of Poker Flat' was first published in January 1869 in the magazine Overland Monthly, and was one of two short stories which brought him national attention.

Plot summary

• The Outcasts of Poker Flat On the morning of November 23, 1850, a gambler named John Oakhurst walks through Poker Flat, a small mining town in the American West. The town’s “moral atmosphere” has changed, and Oakhurst knows that the town is “after somebody.”.
• Characters: John Oakhurst: main character, expert gambler, banished from Poker Flat, travels to Sandy Bar with Mother Shipton, The Dutchess, and Uncle Billy, seen as a thief, good person, commits suicide in order to keep his legacy. Round Character. Tom Simson: “The Innocent”.

The story takes place in a California community known as Poker Flat, near the town of La Porte. The year is 1850 and Poker Flat is in a downward spiral. The town has lost thousands of dollars and the virtues of the area seem to be going as well. In an effort to save what is left of the town and reestablish it as a virtuous place to be, a secret committee is created and it is decided whom ought to be exiled and whom ought to be killed altogether. On November 23, 1850 our story begins as four 'immoral' characters are exiled from Poker Flat. The reader begins the tale following the first of these 'immoral' people, a professional gambler by the name of John Oakhurst. (It is a likely assertion that he is among those sent away because of his great success in winning much money from those on the secret committee themselves.) On his way out of town he is joined with 'The Duchess' (a saloon girl), 'Mother Shipton' (a brothel owner), and Uncle Billy, (the town drunkard and suspected robber). They set out for a less-respectable camp a hard day's journey away over a mountain range, but despite Oakhurst's protests, the rest of the party decides to stop for a rest at noon, only halfway to their goal.

While stopped on their rest, the group is meet with a pair of runaway lovers on their way to Poker Flat to get married. Piney Woods is a fifteen-year-old girl and her lover, Tom Simson (also known as 'The Innocent'), is a younger man who has met Oakhurst before. Tom has great admiration for Oakhurst because on the occasion which they met before, Oakhurst had won a load of money from Tom. Being a gentleman however, Oakhurst returned the money and pressed upon Tom that he should never play poker again, as he really was a quite terrible player. Tom then is thrilled about coming upon Oakhurst on this day, and decides that he and Piney will stop and stay with the group of travelers for a time. They are unaware however that the group has been exiled and being 'innocent' and 'pure' as they are, think The Duchess is an actual duchess and the such. After the decision is made to stay the night together, Tom leads the group to a half-butty cabin he discovered and they spend the night there. In the midst of the night, Oakhurst awakens to find a heavy snow storm raging, and looks about, being the only one up. He soon discovers however that somebody had been up before him--Uncle Billy had awaken, stolen their mules and horses, and ditched the party. The group is now forced to wait out the storm with few provisions that would only last them another ten days at best.

After a week in the cabin, Mother Shipton dies, having secretly and altruistically starving herself so that she might save her share of the food for Piney. Oakhurst then advises Simson that he will have to go for help and fashions some snowshoes for the man. The gambler tells the others he will accompany the lad part of the way.

The 'law of Poker Flat' finally arrives at the cabin, only to find the Dutchess and Piney dead, embracing in a peaceful repose. They both seemed so peaceful and innocent that one could not tell which was the virgin and which the lady of the evening. This is an important part of the story, and reminds us that death is really the great equalizer. We next learn that Oakhurst is found dead beneath a tree, with a Deringer pistol lying at his side and a bullet in his heart, having committed suicide. There is a 2 of clubs above his head with a note that reads:

BENEATH THIS TREE LIES THE BODY OF JOHN OAKHURST, WHO STRUCK A STREAK OF BAD LUCK ON THE 23D OF NOVEMBER, 1850, AND HANDED IN HIS CHECKS ON THE 7TH DECEMBER, 1850.

'The Outcasts of Poker Flat' is a short story by Bret Harte about a western town that has banished a group of improper people. Local color is first shown in the beginning of the story when Harte talks about the people that will be banished later on in the story. Harte described the characters using familiar western types. JOHN Oakhurst, gambler, stepped into the main street of Poker Flat on the morning of the twenty-third of November, 1850, he was conscious of a change in its moral atmosphere since the preceding night. Two or three men, conversing earnestly together, ceased as.

It is significant to note that the text reads that what was written on the tree was 'written in pencil, in a firm hand'. The fact that Oakhurst wrote in a 'firm hand' means that he did not kill himself because he was weak, or tired, or hungry. There was something symbolic and morally meaningful in his death, and we must then investigate the question of what that was. Tom Simson's fate is not stated and he is never in fact mentioned after leaving the cabin, but he is presumably the one who tells the 'law of Poker Flat' where to find the cabin where Piney and the Dutchess were stranded.

Characters

John Oakhurst: One of the heroes of the story, Oakhurst has a kindly nature by heart. He is chivalrous, insisting upon switching his good riding horse for the mule of the Dutchess, and refusing to speak vulgarities. You can also see his good nature when we hear of his gambling winnings against the Innocent, and how he took that Tom Simson and said to him, 'Tommy, you're a good little man, but you can't gamble worth a cent. Don't try it ever again.' He then handed him back his money back, [and] pushed him gently from the room'. Oakhurst was not a drinker and would not partake of alcohol. He is cool tempered and even keeled, and had a very calmed manner about himself. He believed in luck and fate, and his suicide spurs the question of whether he was simply giving into his bad luck, or rather perhaps he decided he was no longer going to live by luck and quite literally took his life into his own hands.

Film, TV or theatrical adaptations

It has been filmed at least five times: one in 1937 with Preston Foster and another in 1957 with Dale Robertson. The spaghetti westernFour of the Apocalypse is based on this story and another of Harte's stories, The Luck of Roaring Camp.

Operas based on The Outcasts of Poker Flat include those by Samuel Adler[1], Jaromir Weinberger[2], and Stanworth Beckler.[3]

References

1. ^Cain, William (2004). American Literature, Vol 2. New York, NY: Pearson Education. pp. 41–51. ISBN 0-321-11624-0.

The Outcasts Of Poker Flat Story

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The Outcasts Of Poker Flat Summary

'The Outcasts of Poker Flat' (1869) is a short story written by author of the American West Bret Harte. An example of naturalism and local color of California during the first half of the nineteenth century, 'The Outcasts of Poker Flat' was first published in January 1869 in the magazine Overland Monthly. It was one of two short stories which brought the author national attention.

Plot summary[edit]

Outcast Of Poker Flat Characters

The story takes place in a Californian community known as Poker Flat, near the town of La Porte. Poker Flat is, in the opinions of many, on a downward slope. The town has lost thousands of dollars, and has experienced a moral decline. In an effort to save what is left of the town and reestablish it as a 'virtuous' place, a secret society is created to decide whom to exile and whom to kill. On November 23rd of 1850, four 'immoral' individuals are exiled from Poker Flat and warned not to return on pain of death. The first of them is a professional poker player, John Oakhurst. He is among those sent away because of his great success in winning from those on the secret committee. On his way out of town, he is joined by two women, the Duchess and Mother Shipton, and Uncle Billy, the town drunk and a suspected robber. These four set out for the Sandy Bar mining camp, a day's journey away over a mountain range. At noon, the group stops for a rest over Oakhurst's protests.

While on their rest, the group is met by a pair of runaway lovers on their way to Poker Flat to get married. Piney Woods is a fifteen-year-old girl. Her lover, Tom Simson, known also as 'the Innocent', met Oakhurst before and has great admiration for him, as Oakhurst won a great deal of money from Simson. Oakhurst had returned the money and urged Simson never to gamble again, as he was a terrible player. Nonetheless, Simson is thrilled to have come upon Oakhurst on this day, and decides that he and Piney will stay with the group for a while. They do not know that the group is one of exiles, and Simson assumes that the Duchess is Oakhurst's wife, to the amusement of Uncle Billy.

A decision is made for everyone to stay the night together, and they take shelter in a half-built cabin Simson has discovered. In the middle of the night, Oakhurst wakes up and sees a heavy snowstorm raging. Looking about, he realizes that Uncle Billy has fled with the group's horses and mules. They are all now forced to wait out the storm with provisions that will likely only last for another 10 days. After a week in the cabin, Mother Shipton dies, having secretly and altruistically starved herself in order to give her rations to Piney. Oakhurst fashions some snowshoes for Simson to use in traveling to Poker Flat for help, telling the others he will accompany the young man part of the way. The 'law of Poker Flat' finally arrives at the cabin, only to find the Duchess and Piney frozen to death and embracing in a peaceful repose. They look so peaceful and innocent that the onlookers cannot tell which of them had been exiled for her immoral behavior.

Oakhurst commits suicide under a tree by shooting himself through the heart with his derringer. A playing card, the two of clubs, is found pinned to the trunk with a note written on it:

BENEATH THIS TREELIES THE BODY OF JOHN OAKHURST, WHO STRUCK A STREAK OF BAD LUCK ON THE 23rd OF NOVEMBER, 1850, AND HANDED IN HIS CHECKS ON THE 7TH DECEMBER, 1850.

Characters[edit]

• John Oakhurst

One of the story's heroes, Oakhurst is occasionally frank but kind in motivation. He is chivalrous, insisting upon switching his good riding horse Five Spot for the mule of the Duchess and refusing to use vulgar language. He further shows his good nature by returning the $40 he had won from Tom Simson in a card game and saying, 'Tommy, you're a good little man, but you can't gamble worth a cent. Don't try it over again.' Oakhurst is not a drinker. He is cool tempered, even keeled and has a calm manner about him. He believes in luck and fate. His suicide spurs the question whether he was simply giving in to his bad luck or rather, decided he was no longer going to live by luck and took his life.

• The Duchess, a young woman.
• Mother Shipton, another woman.
• Uncle Billy, a 'suspected sluice-robber and confirmed drunkard'.
• Tom Simson, a naïve young man who has run away from the Sandy Bar mining camp with Piney Woods and who intends to marry her at Poker Flat.
• Piney Woods, a 'a stout, comely damsel of fifteen' who is engaged to Simson.

Film, TV or theatrical adaptations[edit]

Harte's story has been brought to film at least five times, including in 1919 with Harry Carey, in 1937 with Preston Foster, and in 1952 with Dale Robertson. The spaghetti westernFour of the Apocalypse is based on this story and another of Harte's stories, 'The Luck of Roaring Camp'.

Operas based on The Outcasts of Poker Flats include those by Samuel Adler,^[1]Jaromir Weinberger,^[2] Stanworth Beckler,^[3] and Andrew Earle Simpson.^[4]

References[edit]

1. ^'Archived copy'. Archived from the original on 2006-05-18. Retrieved 2006-08-09.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
2. ^'Jaromir Weinberger – Outcasts of Poker Flat – Opera'. boosey.com.
3. ^'Archived copy'. Archived from the original on 2006-07-18. Retrieved 2006-08-09.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
4. ^Andrew Earle Simpson. 'Coming to The Capital Fringe Festival: 'The Outcasts of Poker Flat''. DCMetroTheaterArts.

External links[edit]

• The Outcasts of Poker Flat public domain audiobook at LibriVox
• The Outcasts of Poker Flat – Annotated text + analyses aligned to Common Core Standards

Mother Shipton The Outcasts Of Poker Flat