A Rogue's Life

"A Rogue's Life" by Wilkie Collins is a story about a rebellious main character in the late 1800's who's trying to find his way in a complicated world. Frank Softly, otherwise known as the Rogue, uses humor to tell us about his funny childhood, his family, and all the things society expects him to be because of who he knows. Collins uses smart humor to show how Softly goes against what's expected of him as he struggles with his identity and what he wants, with society always in the background. Softly tells us about his strange upbringing, pointing out the contrast between his fancy family background and their money problems. From a young age, Softly is good at drawing funny pictures, and he later tries to become a doctor, but his life is full of funny adventures and big questions about life. He doesn't like the rules of society or what people want him to be, so he decides to live a more exciting and unusual life, which leads to a story full of irony and comedy, where we see his regrets and dreams and get a sense of the chaos to come.