My Favorite Tall Tale

I really enjoy the tall tale of John Henry vs. the Steam Hammer. It is a tale about the will of man to overcome any obstacles that he may be faced with. If you have forgotten this story, here is a brief summary. John Henry was a steel driver working on a railroad. He was the best that there ever was. One day, he was challenged to a competition against a new technology, the steam hammer. The challenge entailed driving a tunnel through a mountain. The two parties battled neck and neck until the very end where John Henry pulled ahead and won. As soon as he finished, John Henry laid down and died. This story has great moral values. It teaches you to never give up. It also teaches to importance of striving for your goals. Also, it shows a sign of the times. The steam hammer represents a new technology, a new invention that would soon put many workers out of their jobs. John Henry, possibly seen as a representative of all railroad workers of the time, showed the necessary will needed for these people to keep their jobs.

I find this story interesting to the ridiculousness of how tall the tale really is. There's no way that one man could bore a hole clear through a mountain. However, the fact that it isn't very realistic helps one to see the characters as the symbols that they are meant to be rather than real people. Also, tied in with the ridiculous factor is a sense of realism. The steam hammer was a real thing that could indeed do this deed. This helped to show just how big of a task John Henry was completing.

This tall tale is just incredibly epic. I love it mainly for that simple reason. A no holds barred showdown of the ages. I also love how it has been skewed over time. John Henry was a real person, and he was indeed quite strong, but he couldn't dig through a mountain. One of my friends, Jace Vaninger, is someone who I would write a tall tale about. He is a legitimate legend. He founded one of the greatest indoor soccer teams known to man, the Mighty Fighty Whale Sharks. What else is there to say?