Sketchy Mr. Blatchford

In Susan Glaspell’s book, “Her America ‘A Jury of Her Peers’ and Other Stories” I found Mr. Blatchford to be in a bit of a struggle with individuality and conformity.  One such instance came when he agreed to take care of Clara for Miss Dorothy Ainsley.  Mr. Blatchford lets on that he has feelings for Dorothy and the reader finds out that his views reflect the societal expectation that men should get married.  This made me feel like Mr. Blatchford conforms to the idea of wanting to be the traditional family man, not someone that just wants to have “fun”.  The fact that Mr. Blatchford decided to take care of Clara for Miss Dorothy is shocking.  As Mr. Blatchford makes his way back home with the cat nestled in his coat, he receives strange looks from a cop, as well as from two ladies on the subway.  The funny thing is how we come to find out that while he carries this feline, it makes Mr. Blatchford look like the complete opposite from what his character normally looks like.  For instance, even when he heads upstairs when he first arrives at home with the cat, the sentence reads, “…as the key turned, and, with glances of fear to right and left, he stole stealthily up the stairs he had never before ascended with anything but manly tread” (26).  Basically, Mr. Blatchford is used to walking tall, not skulking about.  He tries so hard to keep his composure in public while smuggling this cat, that he ends up standing out not as the well-respected man he normally appears to be, but as a sort of hoodlum or suspect to a crime.