What’s Up With the Title?

The story was also published as "The Notorious Jumping Frog of Calaveras County" and "Jim Smiley and His Jumping Frog." All three are typical "tall tale" titles, suggesting nothing more than a myth about some amazing frog. The three titles fail to hint at the political undertones in the story, which can be found in the name of the feisty dog Andrew Jackson and the amazing frog named Dan’l Webster, who was cheated from winning by a wily stranger who fills him with quail shot so that he can’t move.