"Gumption" is a great word! It means a lot of things:
strong will, drive, initiative, guts, spunk, and courage. Somebody with gumption takes
on the world to accomplish a purpose or achieve a goal. Russell says his mother wanted
him to "make something" of himself, in other words, to work and become successful. Here
is what he wrote about that:
The flaw in my character which she had already
spotted was lack of "gumption." My idea of a perfect afternoon was lying in front of the
radio rereading my favorite Big Little Book, Dick Tracy Meets Stooge
Viller. My mother despised inactivity. Seeing me having a good time in
repose, she was powerless to hide her disgust. "You've got no more gumption than a bump
on a log," she said. "Get out in the kitchen and help Doris do those dirty
dishes."
Russell's mother
valued work and deplored any sign of laziness in her son, even when he was eight years
old. Russell developed a lot of "gumption," of course, and grew up to become a well
known and well respected writer.
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