The Real Question

       Robert Connors employs a unique plot in his story, "How in the World Do You Get a Skunk Out of a Bottle?" As its title suggests, this piece is about how to free a skunk from a bottle; having that question as its title makes this clear. However, such a simple plot can be analyzed to reveal a far more intricate question than it at first presents.

        Although we are unlikely to meet a skunk trapped in a bottle, we are likely to encounter a stranger that needs help at some point in our lives. For example, a giant African-American man once pleaded with me to borrow my cell phone so that he could call his mother who was at the hospital. This man needed my help as much as the skunk needed Connors'. However, I contemplated that helping him might not be my best option because he could just run off with my precious phone if I gave it to him; this is like how Connors' hesitated because the skunk could have just sprayed him if he got too close. Like Connors, I felt responsible for helping the person (or skunk) who was practically begging for help. That is why I eventually handed over my cell phone so that this man could rest assured that his mother was safe. And then he ran off with it.
        The real question is: When should you help a stranger? Robert Connors benefited from saving the skunk. After all, he was filled with "joy, joy, joy" after doing so. Thus, the purpose of his story was to convince readers to always (or at least sometimes) offer a hand to anyone who needs it so that they too can experience such "joy, joy, joy." I have yet to experience this kind of satisfaction so my answer to the real question is: Never.