I came into class thinking that this was a fun story, but one without a point, which bothered me. I was hoping there would be something enlightening to learn about this story; something I missed. However, I left class feeling the same way as when I entered.

What I did gain was the sense that Mark Twain (I will always call him Mark Twain because of the fond memories I have of reading Huck Finn and Tom Sawyer as a child and thinking the author's name was Mark Twain) was an amazing story teller; his use of specific dialect and story style are enthralling.

I love the frame tale or story within a story set up. I have read many books like this and it always leaves me amazed when I realize that the story is really about someone telling a story. For me this happened at a certain point in "The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County."

Just as Wheeler is telling his story, he gets cut off, "And-- [Here Simon Wheeler heard his name called from the front yard, and got up to see what was wanted.] And turning to me as he moved away, he said: 'Just set where you are, stranger, and rest easy--I ain't going to be gone a second" (Clemens, 275). It was at this point that I realized I'd forgotten I was reading a story within a story. The use of this device by Twain captures the reader, in the same way a twist ending might in a mystery story. For me, this and the dialect made the story worth reading, even though I was unsure of the whole point of the story.