Introduction

To begin with, it should be mentioned that Jerusha Abbott’s father and mother had died, and that’s why she was brought up in the asylum named the John Grier Home. One of the Trustees of this establishment believed that the girl had originality, and so decided to put her through college, thus Judy could be educated to become a writer. The only payment that the rich Trustee required was to get monthly letters from the girl, in which she was to tell of the progress in her studies and the details of her daily life. He just thought nothing helped better to become a writer than letter-writing. Thus, the book consists of Jerusha’s letters to the Trustee, who preferred to remain unknown, so the girl called him “Daddy-Long-Legs” according to the only slight impression of him that she had managed to catch. And being guided by these letters I’d like to describe the relationship between Judy and her guardian.

Main Part

From the very beginning Jerusha was told by the matron of the asylum to be very respectful to the kind gentleman who was doing so much for her. The girl was thinking a lot about her guardian. The fact that someone had taken interest in her after all those years, made Judy feel as though she had found a sort of family. It seemed as though she belonged to somebody, and it was a very comfortable feeling. The girl was inexpressibly happy to receive presents from Daddy-Long-Legs. She was very, very, very much obliged to him, when she got six dresses, all new and beautiful and bought for her – not handed down from somebody bigger. It was a fine thing for Jerusha to be educated – but it was nothing compared to the dizzying experience of owning six new dresses. As to the Christmas gifts, the girl wasn’t used at all to receiving them, and she certainly liked them very much. But still the first real, true present Judy had ever got in her life was the flowers and the card Daddy-Long-Legs sent her when she was in the infirmary. What is more, the message was written by the Trustee. The girl just lay down and cried because she was so happy. But without any doubt, there were moments in Jerusha’s life, when she felt lonely, awfully forgotten and just bored with life. That’s when she was cross with the guardian, because he never answered her letters and never showed the slightest interest in anything she did. The girl didn’t know a single thing about him. She didn’t even know his name. It was very dull writing to a Thing. Sometimes, Judy even had a feeling that Daddy-Long-Legs threw her letters into the waste-basket without reading them. She just felt so awfully lonely. And the guardian was the only person she had to care for, but he was so shadowy. And when the Trustee made her to spend some of the vacations not where the girl wanted, it was the impersonality of his commands that hurt her feelings. But nevertheless Jerusha was really frank, honest and open with Daddy-long-Legs. And although her feelings were sometimes hurt, for it was very humiliating to be ordered by an arbitrary, peremptory, unreasonable, omnipotent, invisible Providence, she forgave him and was cheerful again. The girl really loved to write to her guardian, it gave her such a respectable feeling of having some family. And when Judy experienced probably the most difficult period in her life, she asked Daddy-Long-Leg’s advice. She needed it from him, and from nobody else in the world. It means that the girl had complete confidence and faith in her Daddy. That’s why it’s no wonder Jerusha was amazed and excited and bewildered and happy, when she found out that Mr. Pendleton and Daddy-Long-Legs were the same person. They belonged to each other really and truly, no make-believe.

Conclusion

So, we see that Daddy-Long-Legs was a very dear person to Jerusha. She loved to belong to someone at last. And without any doubt, the guardian was a really true friend of Jerusha’s.

Jerusha’s personality (“Daddy-Long-Legs”)