"I am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang" follows the life of a man, James Allen, who is struggling for control. It seems that his life is not governed by his own choices, but those that are forced upon him. He is an army veteran, returning from basing his day-to-day life off orders and returns to living in his mother's house with dreams of change and finding a job that has importance to him. His mother finds him a clerical job at the factory where he used to work and she tries to force him into it. James spends his days working at the factory with his mind wandering to the construction site he can see through the window and goes there during his lunch breaks. He finally leaves to pursue a life working in construction and hops from town to town looking for work. He finds himself at the mercy of fate when he is offered dinner by a new friend. At the diner, he is held at gunpoint to steal money from the cash register and runs away during the confusion when cops come in. Since he was caught running away with the money on him, he is found guilty even though he was forced to steal.
James is sentenced to ten years of labor in a chain gang and successfully escapes after a year. He finds a new job under the name "Allen James" and through hard work becomes very influential and wealthy. His landlord Marie reads a letter from his brother and learns that he is a fugitive. She blackmails him into marriage so she can live off of his money. He falls in love with another woman Helen and wants to divorce his wife. His wife betrays him and spills his secret and he is approached by officials to negotiate a pardon.
James fulfills his requirements for his pardon but is retained to finish his previous sentence. He escapes again and approaches his lover Helen. Before he leaves her, she asks how he will live without money and as he disappears into the dark he replies "I steal".
These last words have a great significance to the theme of the movie. He is ultimately forced to steal because he was wrongly accused of stealing. The misfortune he encounters takes a good, hardworking man and reduces him into exactly the thing that society was trying to prevent: a criminal.
James is sentenced to ten years of labor in a chain gang and successfully escapes after a year. He finds a new job under the name "Allen James" and through hard work becomes very influential and wealthy. His landlord Marie reads a letter from his brother and learns that he is a fugitive. She blackmails him into marriage so she can live off of his money. He falls in love with another woman Helen and wants to divorce his wife. His wife betrays him and spills his secret and he is approached by officials to negotiate a pardon.
James fulfills his requirements for his pardon but is retained to finish his previous sentence. He escapes again and approaches his lover Helen. Before he leaves her, she asks how he will live without money and as he disappears into the dark he replies "I steal".
These last words have a great significance to the theme of the movie. He is ultimately forced to steal because he was wrongly accused of stealing. The misfortune he encounters takes a good, hardworking man and reduces him into exactly the thing that society was trying to prevent: a criminal.