Most Desirable Thing in the World
Soapy, who is a homeless person, realizes that winter was soon going to be upon him, and without adequate means to shelter or provide for himself, he would not be able to survive winter. He had spent a few winters in the prison at Blackwell’s Island, and had discovered that imprisonment came with a promise of a warm meal and a warm bed. For a destitute like him, it was the riches of the world, and so for Soapy, the prison of Blackwell’s Island was the most desirable thing in the world.
Proud enough to want his privacy
Though Soapy was a homeless person, he was proud. He had nothing but he didn’t like to think that he was living on kindness of other people. He had the option to go to shelters where he would be provided food and bed, but he didn’t like the fact that those people made him to wash himself or that they asked him too many questions. He thought of himself as a gentleman, and felt that this was a violation of his privacy and even if he was homeless, he was entitled to his privacy.
Desire to commit guiltless crime
Soapy wanted to break law that would get him jailed but not crime of such severity that would harm other people. This is ironic as a simple act of not paying a restaurant bill is enough to land him in jail, how big or small the bill is. But Soapy is empathetic to the point where he doesn’t want to cause any major problems, even though he is in a frustrating situation.
Failed attempts at getting jailed
Soapy attempts multiple times to get jailed. He breaks a glass window, eats and doesn’t pay at a restaurant, tries to harass a woman, create ruckus in a public place, and steals an umbrella. But, ironically fails to get arrested in a turn of events. Every time when he tries to commit a crime, an act of fate prevents his arrest.
Gets jailed when he finally decides to mend his ways
Soapy, after he hears the anthem in front of a Church and reminisces about his childhood, decides to change his ways. He decides to let go of a life of begging and being dependent on jail food for winters. He decides to pursue employment and make an honest living, but exactly as he has the change of heart, he’s arrested for loitering and is jailed for 3 months at Blackwell’s Island.
