Freshmen English I – Short Story Review Guide –
“Father and I” by Par Lagerkvist
Subject Matter: nature, nature walks, railroads/trains, childhood, innocence, fathers and sons, night/darkness, fear of the unknown, anxiety, faith, growth, maturation, identity
Setting: somewhere in Sweden – circa early 1900s
Characters in Conflict: father and narrator (son), narrator and nature
Rising Action/Plot Complications: The story begins with a father and son (in Scandinavia) taking a nature walk by day to the father’s workplace and ancestral home; the father – on his familiar “home turf” – shows the son various locales, saluting train drivers as he goes and the son feels secure and happy; but then it turns dark and everything begins to look different. The boy inquires why everything looks so “creepy” but the father doesn’t understand his anxiety. The father mentions that “God” is out there – but this reassurance doesn’t help to calm the boy’s nerves.
Climax: A “ghost train” goes by, but father doesn’t recognize the driver.
Falling Action or Resolution/Denouement: The father acknowledges that he didn’t recognize the ghost driver after which the narrator (son) realizes he is very different from his father.
Memorable Dialogue: “Why is it so creepy when it gets dark?” “…We know there’s a God, don’t we?” –
Symbolism: nature walk, flowers, trees, railroad tracks, passing trains, daytime/nighttime, ghost driver
Themes: Nature is two-sided – by turns providing security and evoking fear. Ignorance and uncertainty are basic facts of life. No two people are totally identical – and this can be a source of loneliness. You can never be a perfect clone of your parents or any other role model.
“The Monkey’s Paw” by W.W. Jacobs
Subject Matter: wishes and desires, death, loss and grief, desperation, supernatural happenings, the role of chance or fate in human affairs, the power of imagination
Setting: a country town in England circa 1902
Characters in Conflict: Mr. White vs. Sergeant Major Morris (regarding the monkey’s paw), Mr. White vs. Mrs. White (after Herbert’s death)
Rising Action/Plot Complications: The story begins with a game of chess – soon after which Sergeant Major Morris, arrives hesitantly proffering a monkey’s paw. When the soldier leaves, Mr. White makes the first of his three wishes – wishing for a sum of money (200 pounds,) . Mr. White is somewhat alarmed when the paw turns in his hand; soon after this a mysterious stranger arrives from the firm of Maw and Meggins to announce the death of Herbert White in a work-related accident. At the urging of his wife, Mr. White next wishes for Herbert to come back from the dead; in reality, however, he is worried that Herbert’s body is irrevocably mangled and decomposed.
Climax: Mr. White makes his third and final wish.
Falling Action or Resolution/Denouement: Mrs. White wails in agony, the opening of the front door reveals nothing but the wind
Memorable Dialogue: “If you must wish, wish for something sensible.” – “I wish for 200 pounds.” – “He was caught in the machinery.” – “I wish for my son alive again.” –
Symbolism: game of chess, monkey’s paw, the fire, the discordant sounds of the piano, Herbert’s accident, 200 pounds, the sound of knocking
Themes: Be careful how you wish for things and not to wish for more than what is reasonable. It is easier to view life as governed by fate than by random chance. Much of what happens to us is a product either of “supernatural mysteries” or else the “power of imagination.”
“The Beginning of Grief” by Larry Woiwode
Subject Matter: family conflicts, father-son rivalries, sibling rivalries, death, grief and mourning, intense feelings and the difficulties of communication
Setting: Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minnesota – circa 1970s
Characters in Conflict: Will Stanion and his son, Kevin, Kevin and Jim, Kevin and Marvin, Will Stanion and his deceased wife
Rising Action/Plot Complications: Will Stanion – a recent widower – arrives home after a hard day’s work; now he must check-in with his children; Will feels the burdens of being a single parent only a year after his wife’s death; an awkward conversation at the dinner table escalates into an full-blown argument; Will accidently slaps his daughter and then kicks his middle son, Kevin in the rump; Kevin flees upstairs and begins sobbing uncontrollably on the bed; Kevin explains why he has impulsively shaved his head; Will starts to understand Kevin’s perspective.
Climax: After Kevin explain about all the tension in his head, a now-sympathetic Will takes his son’s hand and an “order” comes over the room that wasn’t there before.
Falling Action or Resolution/Denouement: Will and Kevin agree to go downstairs to “do dishes.” They seem to have found a way to communicate and even identify with one another.
Memorable Dialogue: “Jim said you kicked him.” – “My head hurts. It feels like something wants to come out of it!” – “I didn’t mean to do it. He wasn’t playing right.” – “Will you come downstairs and help me do the dishes?”
Symbolism: lime burns, dinner table, shaved head, spilled coffee and milk, hand-holding, doing dishes
Themes: Always remember: you’re not the only one who is suffering. Shared pain can be a source of connection. The most intense and intimate communication takes place indirectly.
“The Storyteller” by H.H. Munro (a.k.a. Saki)
Subject Matter: train rides, unruly children, authority figures, child-rearing, crowd control, obedience and goodness, false notions of perfection, literature and “character-building”
Setting: train ride near Templescombe, England circa 1910
Characters in Conflict: the aunt and her nieces/nephew, the bachelor and the aunt, Bertha and the wolf
Rising Action/Plot Complications: The aunt can’t control the children; they defy her by asking questions (Why? Why not?); the aunt tells them a tedious story about a good little girl who is rescued from a mad bull; the bachelor offers to tell a story to entertain the children; he tells them a parable about a girl named Bertha who is “horribly good”; Bertha is so proud of herself that she wears medals for goodness. She is allowed to play at the Prince’s park, but is upset to learn that pigs have gobbled up all the flowers there; in reality Bertha is fearful and insecure and proves unstable to withstand the advances of the big bad wolf.
Climax: Bertha is gobbled up by the wolf when the wolf hears her medals clinking against one another.
Falling Action or Resolution/Denouement: The bachelor exits the train compartment.
Memorable Dialogue: “Not as pretty as any of you…but she was horribly good.” – “A most improper story to tell to young children! You have undermined the effect of years of careful teaching.” – “I kept them quiet for ten minutes which was more than you were able to do.”
Symbolism: train compartment, cows and bullocks, aunt’s story, bachelor’s story, Bertha’s medals for goodness, the Prince’s park, pigs and flowers, the wolf, the myrtle bushes
Themes: Goodness and character cannot be reduced to mere “passive obedience.”
“The Masque of the Red Death” by Edgar Allan Poe
Subject Matter: plagues, epidemics, calamities, suffering, wealth, privileged people, enclaves, snobbery, callous/insensitive behavior, punishment/retribution/cosmic justice
Setting: middle ages in Europe – probably Italy – circa 1348
Characters in Conflict: Prince Prospero vs. the “uninvited guest” (the “Red Death”)
Rising Action / Plot Complications: After losing half of the population of his kingdom to the plague, Prince Prospero decides to seek shelter in a massive abbey where he and other lords and ladies celebrate their good fortune by holding a lavish masquerade ball. During the party, an uninvited guest is spotted wearing a costume of a blood-stained corpse, a “victim” of the plague. An outraged Prince Prospero demands that the intruder be “seized” and “arrested” – before being hung from the gallows. While the others find themselves paralyzed by fear, the Prince enters the ebony room with his dagger but soon falls dead – flat on the ground. The other revelers then seize the intruder and rip off his costume.
Climax: The revelers pull off the mask and the costume of the uninvited guest, but no one is there underneath. The presence of the Red Death takes dominion over the gathering.
Falling Action or Resolution/Denouement: the revelers fall dead, one by one, the clock stops, the fires go out, the abbey is shrouded in total darkness and the Red Death holds dominion over all
Memorable Dialogue: “Who dares insult us with this blasphemous mockery?” – “Seize him and unmask him – that we may know who we have to hang at sunrise…”
Symbolism: castellated abbey/fortress, costumes, rooms of many colors: blue, green, purple, orange, white, violet and ebony/black, ebony room with blood-red windows, the clock, the tripods, the dagger, the costume
Themes: You cannot totally escape or detach yourself from the sufferings of the world. Showing compassion and solidarity for others is a good insurance policy. You may not be interested in the plague, but the plague is interested in you. The spirit of retribution will track down evildoers – slowly but effectively.
‘The Bet” by Anton Chekhov
Subject Matter: youth indiscretions, impulsive decision-making, bets, commitments, capital punishment, life imprisonment, solitary confinement, education, self-improvement, money, happiness, regret
Setting: somewhere in Russia – November 14, 1870 – November 14, 1885
Characters in Conflict: the banker and the young lawyer (“prisoner”)
Rising Action / Plot Complications: At a party on November 14, 1870, a wealthy banker and a young lawyer make a bet that the lawyer will not be able to last 15 whole years in voluntary solitary confinement. At first the lawyer seems to adjust to his circumstances by immersing himself in books and foreign languages, but at the end of 15 years he is “burnt out” after having lived several different lifetimes in the realm of his imagination; the banker, meanwhile has lost his fortune and plans to snuff out the prisoner with a pillow. Before going through with this act, however, he sees that the prisoner (now 40 years old) has aged greatly and has written a strange letter.
Climax: The banker – worried about his present financial predicament – prepares to kill the young lawyer/“prisoner” by “snuffing” him out with a pillow to end the bet, but before doing so he reads the disturbing letter that the prisoner has left and then changes his mind.
Falling Action or Resolution/Denouement: The prisoner leaves the house before the 15 years has elapsed; the banker – full of regret and guilt – takes the prisoner’s letter and locks it up in a fireproof safe so that no one else will find it.
Memorable Dialogue: “In your books I have flung myself into the bottomless pit, performed miracles, slain, burned towns, preached new religions, conquered whole kingdoms….” – “And [yet] I despise wisdom and the blessings of this world. It is all worthless, fleeting, illusory, and deceptive, like a mirage. You may be proud, wise and fine, but death will wipe you off the face of the earth…” – “I renounce the two millions of which I once dreamed as of paradise…”
Symbolism: the bet, the prison-house, piano, books , foreign languages, the kitchen, the greenhouse, the garden, the pillow on the bed, the prisoner’s letter, “frogs and lizards growing on apple and orange trees,” “roses smelling like sweating horses,” fireproof safe
Themes: Old age is spent regretting our youthful mistakes. People will make decisions and commitments when they are young that must of necessity change over time. Education in the form of “book learning” improve us or isolate us. The power of imagination outweighs the power of mundane reality.
“Harrison Bergeron” by Kurt Vonnegut
Subject Matter: the future of America, equality/mediocrity/conformity/ being “average”, diversity, variety, excellence and individuality, competition, the influence of television and modern media, government control and surveillance
Setting: America – circa 2081
Characters in Conflict: Harrison Bergeron and Diana Moon Glampers, George and Hazel
Rising Action / Plot Complications: In a futuristic America – circa 2081 – everybody is finally equal and this equality is regulated by government agents known as H-G men led by the Handicapper General, Diana Moon Glampers. People with too much talent, intelligence, strength or beauty are forced to wear handicaps to ensure that they have no unfair advantages over “average people.” Competition seems to have been outlawed. The goal is cooperation and conformity even at the price of mediocrity. George and Hazel are watching a very mundane show on television with dancers and musicians wearing handicaps. Their son, Harrison, a perfect human specimen, has been taken from them because of his superior mental and physical abilities. Harrison breaks into the television studio and announces that he is the new emperor. He challenges those around him to be like him and he selects an Emperess from among the dancers. A revolution of sorts is now underway.
Climax: Diana Moon Glampers enters the television studio and soon afterwards executes Harrison and his new-found Emperess while a national audience looks on.
Falling Action or Resolution/Denouement: Hazel and George try to figure out what just happened on their tv screen; Hazel cries while George’s goes to fetch a beer; she does not realize that she has just witnessed her son being executed on national television.
Memorable Dialogue: “…pretty soon we’d be right back to the dark ages again, with everybody competing against everybody else..The minute people start cheating on laws, what do you think happens to society?” “Do you hear? I am the Emperor! Everybody must do as I say at once!” – “Play your best…and I’ll make you barons and dukes and earls.”
Symbolism: forced handicaps: Handicapper General, weights, masks, headsets, television, announcer’s speech impediment, “I am the Emperor!”, dancers/musicians, the “much-improved music,” the dance (touching the ceiling)
Themes: Conformity and mediocrity are false forms of true equality. True equality should allow individuals to excel at their respective talents. Television exerts a form of “mind control” on public opinion. The government cannot enforce “total equality” of outcomes. Differences in talent and ability need not threaten social harmony.
“The Doll’s House” by Katherine Mansfield
Subject Matter: children, popular kids, outcasts, snobbery, gossip, class differences, random acts of kindness and empathy
Setting: somewhere in England or New Zealand – early 1900s
Characters in Conflict: the Burnell children (Isabel, Lottie, Kezia) and the Kelveys (Lil and Else), Aunt Beryl and Mrs. Burnell vs. the Kelveys
Rising Action / Plot Complications: Dear old Mrs. Hay sends the Burnell children a huge doll house. The Burnell kids led by Isabel rush to school to tell all of the other children about it and invite two girls at a time to come view it. Kezia is excited by the lamp inside. The Kelvey kids (Lil and Else) outcasts in town because of gossip against their family, are the only ones who aren’t invited to see the lamp. Some of the other girls, Emmie Cole and Isabel Burnell, tease them for being poor and celebrate their superiority by jumping rope together. Later that day, Kezia sees them walking down the road and invites them to see the doll house.
Climax: Just as Kezia is showing the little lamp to Liland Else, Aunt Beryl interrupts and sends them home – chases them away as if they were chickens.
Falling Action or Resolution/Denouement: Aunt Beryl feels better (“the ghastly pressure was gone”) after sending the Kelveys away. (It is hinted at that Aunt B seems to be fearful of some sort of financial problem that threatens her own status in town). Else smiles with joy and says softly to her sister: “I seen the little lamp.”
Memorable Dialogue: “Mother – can’t I ask the Kelvey’s just once?” – “Is it true you’re going to be a servant [like your mother] when you grow up, Lil Kelvey?” – “Yah – yer father’s in prison!” – “Come on. Nobody’s looking.” “There’s the drawing-room and the dining-room and that’s the —“ – “Wicked, disobedient little girl!” – “I seen the little lamp.”
Symbolism: doll’s house, rooms, furniture, human figurines, the little lamp, a dress made of tablecloth and curtains, thick mutton sandwiches, slabs of Johnny cake, jam sandwiches wrapped in newspaper, threatening letter, sister’s quill
Themes: Snobbery is fueled by fear and insecurity. Children can be cruel – usually when acting like “grown-ups”. The prejudices of the older generation is part of our inheritance. Kindness is the light of life. Class distinctions are a persistent source of division.
“The Secret Lion” by Alberto Alvaro Rios
Subject Matter: childhood, adolescence, change, adventure, exploration, loss of one’s youth, altered perceptions, growing older, maturation, the gap between the old and young, imagination and the nature of perfection
Setting: Arizona, 1970s
Characters in Conflict: narrator and Sergio at odds with teachers/adults, narrator vs. mother
Rising Action / Plot Complications: The narrator and Sergio feel strange about how “everything changes” when you’re in middle school. They can’t talk to girls the same way they used to. Teachers get mad at them more and won’t give definite answers to their questions. Parents are there to say “no” to everything. The boys stake out an “arroyo” as their personal playground and get excited at the souvenirs they find their – especially the perfectly round grinding balls, which they decide to bury as their hidden treasure. Later they go swimming at the arroyo, even on days when the water is polluted. Eventually they “find” a perfectly green place over the hills and plan a picnic there. When they reach this “heaven” on early, their childlike perceptions are abruptly altered by an encounter.
Climax: the narrator and Sergio are kicked off the “green” by the two angry golfers. They suddenly discover that they the place they had discovered for themselves is not “ heaven” but a golf course
Falling Action or Resolution/Denouement: The boys return to the arroyo, but it’s no longer the same. They have grown older and they have older perceptions of things. What they used to value as “perfect” has suddenly been forgotten. Everything changes. The secret lion strikes again.
Memorable Dialogue: “I was twelve and in junior high school and something happened that we didn’t have a name for, but it was there nonetheless like a lion and roaring… Every changed. Just that. “ – “We had this perception about nature, then that nature is imperfect and that round things are perfect.” – “Nature’s gang was tough that way, teaching us stuff.” “Heaven was green like nothing else in Arizona.” – “Something got taken away from us that moment. Heaven.” – “We buried it because it was perfect. We didn’t tell my mother, but together it was all we talked about, till we forgot.
Symbolism: forbidden words, teachers, girls, reticent parents, the arroyo, the grinding ball, round things, Nature, swimming in polluted waters, golf course (green “heaven”) , golfers
Themes: Everything changes. Things get taken away. The “heaven” of youth turns into something less enchanting. Life keeps moving forward; there’s no going back. You can’t step into the same river twice. You can’t “go home” again. Knowledge can spoil the magic of childlike perception. Life involves “letting go” of the past.
“Gryphon” by Charles Baxter
Subject Matter: school, education, teachers, students, knowledge, intelligence, fact vs. fiction (myth and legend), lies, credulity, change/metamorphosis/maturation, the process of thinking, “death” and personal transformation
Setting: Five Oaks, Michigan – sometime in the 1980s
Characters in Conflict: Miss Ferenczi and her students, Tommy and his mother, Tommy and the other students (Harold and Wayne)
Rising Action / Plot Complications: A substitute teacher, Miss Ferenczi comes to visit a 4th-grade classroom in small Midwestern town. She quickly departs from the normal curriculum and begins bending the normal rules regarding math (6X11-68?) and spelling (alternate spellings for balcony) besides spouting a series of outlandish somewhat dubious “facts” about the outside world. Miss Ferenczi captures the narrator’s attention and inspires him to learn more, while the other students begin to suspect her of being a habitual liar or at least a teller of tall-tales.
Climax: Miss Ferenzci predicts that Wayne Razmer will die soon and as a result is asked to leave the school immediately.
Falling Action or Resolution/Denouement: Angered over Miss Ferenzi’s departure and someone having “tattled” on her, Tommy picks a fight with Wayne Razmer; The class does a science unit on insect life in ditches and trenches – writing down lists of “facts” to memorize.
Memorable Dialogue: “Mars.” – “Do you think that anyone is going to get hurt by a substitute fact?” – “She lies.” – “Pyramids were the repositories of special cosmic powers.” – “Diamonds are magic, she said, and this is why women wear them on their fingers, as a sign of the magic of womanhood.” -“Angels live under those clouds.” – “She said the most terrible angel had the shape of the Sphinx: ‘There is no running away from that one.’ ” – “There is no death…You must never be afraid. Never. That which is, cannot die.” – “I shall tell your fortunes as I have been taught to do.” – “This one means you will die soon, my dear…but do not fear…it’s not really death, so much as change.” –
Symbolism: Mr. Hibler’s cough, Heever the chameleon in the terrarium, large-leafy oak tree, chignon hairdo, Broad Horizons (textbook), mathematics (6×11=68?), proper spelling of “balcony”, Distant Lands and Their People (geography textbook), pyramids, planets, ancient Egyptians, George Washington, gryphon (half bird, half lion), “humster,” National Enquirer, diamonds, Beethoven, Mozart, angels, the Sphinx who speaks in riddles, Venus fly trap, tarot cards, insects in ditches and swamps
Themes: Education is more than just remembering “facts.” To learn we must first be inspired. Enchantment is the mother of science. Fact and fiction are constant companions, each vying for supremacy A little bit of unexpected “magic” is necessary to spice up a dull routine. Preparing someone to face the unsolved “riddles” and uncertainties of life is the best form of teaching.