# XIX: Fosdick Changes His Business explained — Ragged Dick

> Chapter companion for Ragged Dick by Horatio Alger Jr..

## What happens

Fosdick, discouraged by his bootblacking trade, seeks a store job. After many rejections, he applies at a hat and cap store, facing competition from Roswell Crawford and others. Thanks to a timely recommendation from Mr. Greyson, he secures the position, while Dick supports him and vows to follow suit once his education improves.

## Themes in this chapter

### Self-Improvement and Education

Fosdick's determination to leave bootblacking for a store job reflects his drive for self-betterment, and Dick's plan to follow suit after further education underscores the theme.

### Friendship and Mentorship

Dick's unwavering support and Mr. Greyson's timely recommendation highlight the importance of friendship and mentorship in overcoming obstacles.

### Social Class and Respectability

Roswell Crawford's disdain for bootblacks and the stigma of a Mott Street address illustrate the class prejudices of the era.

## Character check-ins

### Ragged Dick

Accompanies Fosdick to the job application, uses drollery to keep up Fosdick's spirits, and cleverly deflects Roswell Crawford's insults.

### Henry Fosdick

Grows discouraged after fifty failed job applications, but finally secures a position at a hat and cap store with Mr. Greyson's recommendation.

### Roswell Crawford

A supercilious applicant who mocks Dick as a bootblack and feels humiliated when Fosdick gets the job over him.

### Mr. Greyson

Enters the store opportunely and vouches for Fosdick as a member of his Sunday-school class, securing him the position.

### Mr. Henderson

The shopkeeper who interviews applicants and hires Fosdick after hearing Mr. Greyson's recommendation.

## Key lines

> Fosdick did not venture to wear his new clothes while engaged in his business. This he felt would have been wasteful extravagance.

Fosdick avoided wearing his new clothes while working, considering it an unnecessary expense.

_Highlights Fosdick's thrift and practical mindset._

> Keep a stiff upper lip," said Dick. "By the time you get to be a gray-headed veteran, you may get a chance to run errands for some big firm on the Bowery, which is a very cheerin' reflection."

Dick encouraged Fosdick with humor, joking that he might finally get a job when he's old and gray.

_Shows Dick's role as a morale booster through drollery._

> I've seen you before," said one of the boys... "Oh, have you?" said Dick, whirling round; "then p'r'aps you'd like to see me behind."

When a boy claimed to have seen Dick before, Dick retorted with a pun suggesting the boy might want to see his backside.

_Illustrates Dick's quick wit and defiance of social snobbery._

> He's a bootblack in a store! That would be a good joke.

Roswell sneered that a bootblack working in a store was laughable.

_Reflects class prejudice and the perceived low status of bootblacks._

> I don't know as you'll be willin' to room with a bootblack," he said, to Henry, "now you're goin' into business."

Dick joked that Fosdick might not want to share a room with a bootblack now that he had a store job.

_Demonstrates the enduring bond between the two friends despite their different paths._

## Links

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