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Chapter 1
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in True Grit, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Revenge
Maturity, Independence, and Expectations
Collaboration, Companionship, and Loyalty
Violence, Courage, and Intelligence
Summary
Analysis
Because Lawyer Daggett—the family attorney—is out of town at the time of Frank’s death, Mattie is the one to go to Fort Smith to settle her father’s affairs. Accompanied by Frank’s employee Yarnell Poindexter, she sets off on the train, leaving behind her mother and two younger siblings. When she and Yarnell arrive, they go to the sheriff’s office but discover that everyone in town is at a public hanging, so they make their way to spectacle. Although Yarnell insists they should simply wait until after, Mattie senses that he wants to see the hanging, so she tells him they will go to the event and not tell her mother.
By this point, it’s clear that Mattie is a remarkably independent child, one who isn’t afraid to take matters into her own hands even (or perhaps especially) in a time of personal tragedy. The mere fact that she travels to Fort Smith without her mother to settle Frank’s affairs is a testament to her maturity. Furthermore, her willingness to watch a public hanging suggests that she’s not squeamish when it comes to death—a trait that will prove valuable.
Themes
When Mattie and Yarnell find the crowd, they see three condemned men on a platform, and they listen to them pronounce their final words. The first man insists that the only reason he’s about to die is because he “killed the wrong man,” believing that he wouldn’t have been “convicted” if he murdered the correct person. The second condemned man expresses religious remorse, saying, “I have repented my sins and soon I will be in heaven with Christ my savior. Now I must die like a man.” The final outlaw implores the audience to think about his wife and children, admitting that he doesn’t know what will happen to them in his absence. “You see what I have come to because of drink,” he says, urging parents in the crowd to raise their children to follow a better example. With this, the three men fall to their death.
The three condemned men represent three different attitudes when it comes to justice and retribution. Whereas the first man appears unrepentant, the second readily accepts his wrongdoings and expresses his sorrow, framing his punishment as a religious matter. The third one, however, is the only one who seems to fully believe in justice, as he not only accepts that he deserves to die, but also attempts to do a greater good before he’s killed. To that end, he tries to help parents keep their children from following in his footsteps, ultimately using himself as an example of what happens when a person behaves immorally. Given that True Grit is a novel about righting wrongs, this scene is important to note, as it undoubtedly factors into Mattie’s developing sense of justice and revenge.
Themes
Mattie notes that one of the three outlaws doesn’t die right away, since the noose doesn’t break his neck. He struggles for the better part of an hour. After attending the execution, Mattie and Yarnell go to the town’s undertaker to identify Frank’s body—a task that is emotionally difficult for Mattie, especially after watching such a gruesome hanging. Nonetheless, she courageously looks at her father’s body and thinks, “What a waste! Tom Chaney would pay for this!” She then vows that she won’t “rest easy until that Louisiana cur” is “roasting and screaming in hell.” Seeing her strong emotional response, the undertaker tells her she can kiss Frank goodbye, but she simply says, “No, put the lid on it.” He then overcharges her to ship the body back to Yell County, and though Yarnell points this out, Mattie says, “We will not haggle with him.”
It becomes clear that Mattie’s desire to bring Chaney to justice is becoming something of a fixation, as she won’t be able to “rest easy” until he’s “roasting and screaming in hell”—a rather strong and violent sentiment. It’s also worth noting that Mattie recognizes that the undertaker is taking advantage of her. When she chooses not to “haggle” with the man, she demonstrates her ability to show restraint, clearly understanding that she’s at a disadvantage because she’s a young girl accompanied by a black man, which means that neither she nor Yarnell have the societal power to stand up to an immoral white man like the undertaker. By simply refusing to haggle, she maintains her sense of pride and composure even in a potentially humiliating situation.
Themes
After the undertaker’s, Mattie visits the sheriff, who tells her Chaney has crossed into Indian Territory after linking up with a notorious outlaw named Lucky Ned Pepper and his gang of miscreants. Ned, Chaney, and the boys recently robbed a mail train and are on the run because of that, too. “I have no authority in the Indian Nation,” the sheriff says. “He is now the business of the U.S. marshals.” When Mattie asks the name of the best marshal, the sheriff tells her about three men, one of whom is Rooster Cogburn, though the sheriff says he’s a “pitiless,” hard-drinking man and thus concludes that he isn’t the best. Nonetheless, Mattie asks where she can find him, and the sheriff says he’ll be in court the following day because they’re “trying” a criminal he recently caught. Having delivered this information, the sheriff gives Mattie her father’s pistol.
“Indian Nation” is the general term for the area that was allocated to Native Americans after they were forced to give up their land to the United States government at the beginning of the nineteenth century. In True Grit, characters refer to this area as a lawless place, since only U.S. marshals are able to make arrests in “Indian Territory” and, as a result, bandits take run there to hide. This is why Mattie wants to find a marshal. Not only that, but she wants to find a ruthless marshal, someone like Rooster Cogburn who is “pitiless.” This, it seems, will ensure that she’s able to properly avenge her father’s death.
Themes
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Mattie convinces Yarnell to let her stay in Fort Smith. Although Yarnell is hesitant at first, she tells him that her mother knows she can look after herself. “Tell her I will be stopping at the Monarch boardinghouse,” she says, and Yarnell finally agrees to ride home with Frank’s body. That night, Mattie goes to the Monarch and meets the proprietor, Mrs. Floyd, who says she doesn’t have a free room but agrees to let her stay anyway, putting her in the same bed as an old woman named Grandma Turner. All night, Mattie tosses and turns in a fight for the blankets, but Grandma Turner always steals them away. Feeling as if Mrs. Floyd has “taken advantage” of her, Mattie spends the night shivering against the cold, though she finally gets up and fetches the blankets her father left behind in the boarding house.
Mattie’s insistence upon staying in Fort Smith once again reveals her independence. However, her surprising maturity doesn’t keep people from taking “advantage” of her, as even Mrs. Floyd jumps at the opportunity to give her a bad deal simply because she’s a child. Mattie is quite aware of this dynamic, however—an important thing to keep in mind, as it will soon become clear that she picks and chooses when to let such matters slide and when to put her foot down.
Themes
