Being There Essay, Research Paper

The idea of a mildly retarded grown man who can not read or write to be mistaken for a rich and wealthy brilliant gentleman is extremely obsurde. One would never think they would make a mistake such as this one. Yet, a man named Chance repeats this tremendous feat over and over. He even worked his way up to meeting the President of the United States and made him think that he is not mildly retarded.

It all began with a rich old man called “The Old Man”. He took Chance in and had his servants take care of him. Chance just watched TV and took care of his garden, every day for years and years. One day, the Old Man past away. Chance did not really understand what had happened except for the fact that he was gone. Soon after the Old Man died, everything in the house was packed up and all the furniture was covered with bed sheets. Chance no longer had anyone to take care of him. When the bank representatives came to check on the house, they found Chance inside. Chance was wearing the Old Man’s clothes which helped to make Chance look wealthy and proper. Chance acted out roles that he saw on TV which helped him to seem like a wealthy person. He did not know any better than this.

Soon later, he was being mistaken as Mr. Gardener because EE did not hear him correctly. Mr. Gardener was a wealthy-high classed gentleman, even though he was actually Chance. He was given much respect by everybody and people enjoyed his company. He soon started to meet more and more wealthy people. Little by little the importance of the people he became friends with increased. He even made his way to meeting the President. Even the President took some of Chauncey’s advice on some matters.

In conclusion, it is realistically impossible for a mildly retarded man who can not read or write to be confused as a wealthy businessman. This irony is exactly what makes the life of “Chauncey Gardener” as humorous as it is. All anyone ever says is that it can not happen to them, nobody thinks that they will mistake Chance for Chauncey. Truthfully, one can never tell……..