The Killing of The Swede

In the short story, “The Blue Hotel,” the character of Johnnie is dynamic and round. The beginning of the story finds Johnnie playing cards with an old farmer. They begin to argue over the game. Scully, Johnnie’s father walks in and stops the game so Johnnie could help him with the newly arrived guest’s baggage. When they were done bringing the luggage upstairs, Johnnie asked the farmer to another game. “The farmer agreed …

…men, Johnnie, the cowboy, the Easterner, Scully, and the gambler all had something to do with the death of unfortunate Swede. The Swede died because he read dime novels and believed he was right there in the middle of one. He accused people of wanting to kill him and stood up to a cheater. In addition, because the Swede did not want to be sidelined he died at the hands of another cheater, the gambler.