The Ambience of the Café

Imagine being in a lonely world, where you have nobody and nothing to live for. You tried to kill yourself because you have nobody to love you anymore. But there was somebody there to save you. She is one of the only people who care enough to save you. Almost everybody else wishes you would've died. The young waiter is mean to you and does not respect you and would in no way save you. In "A Well Lighted Place" there are certain people that would help you but others that would not. There is also a depressed old man that relates to the older waiter but not the younger waiter. The old man had opportunities to be happy, yet none could truly save him.

In this story there are two main types of people, ones that would help you and ones who would not. First we will start with the people who would help which include the old waiter because he is so sweet and doesn't want to see anyone sad. Also, although it does not mention the old man’s niece much she seems like she loves him and wants to help but at the same time doesn't. There is something eerie about her being helpful yet not. It says “His niece looks after him, she cut him down.” But it still doesn’t seem like she cares much because it seems like she does not think he should be her responsibility and she doesn’t want much to do with him. Lastly, we have the young waiter who I believe could be a nice person if he tried. Because he does not try, I do not think that the waiter would help anybody because he mainly only cares about himself. The old man I believe would be like the old waiter if he could but he is old and is kind of losing it mentally. But there are other similarities as well as differences between the old man and waiter.

There are many arguments about the old man and old waiter relating, and in my opinion I think that they have many similarities as well as differences. To begin, they are both old and wifeless. I think that them not having wives just makes them lonely. Also, they are alike because they are both wise and although it may not seem but they do both have dignity. You know this because it says that “… walking unsteadily but with dignity.” As well as similarities they have few differences. Just one of their main differences is their different personalities and realities including the old man getting drunken everyday and the old waiter’s sensitivity are nothing alike. Despite the old men the young waiter is in this story and he is the fool who believes that money equals happiness.

If you believe that money creates happiness then you are absolutely incorrect. In this story the old man has money but he is lonely and kind of crazy in ways as well. Although it doesn't ever say he is unhappy the signs point to that. The old man had many opportunities to become happy but just did not. The old man was really the only one that had good ways that should’ve worked but he never became happy in the end. Whenever you are happy and not lonely do you go to a café to drink every night? It would be different if it was only once in a while but every night makes people think that he is an old, lonely, depressed man that just needs a wife. On the other hand the young waiter believes that money creates happiness, even though he sees how unhappy the lonely man is and also he doesn’t have that much money and that is why he thinks he is not happy.

In the end the depressed, old, dignified man gets saved and goes back to his normalcies. The old waiter became a better person in this story I think because in the end he did not want to kick the old man out and he just wanted to be even friendlier because he does relate to the loneliness and not having people there for him. The daughter and the young waiter though learned nothing and are still not very great people. The young waiter also still thinks the old man should be happy because he has money.