THE LADY OR THE TIGER

BY FRANK R. STOCKTON

It is not love that is blind, but jealousy

-LAWRENCE DURRELL-

VIDEO

Chain Questions

What makes a story a story?

What are the senses that you can see in the video?

What are the feelings that evoke from the video?

What about when you read? Are you provided with these conveniences?

What kind of computer?

MEET FRANK R. STOCKTON

April 5, 1834 born in Blockley, Pennsylvania 1852 became a wood engraver 1860 married Marian Edwards Tuttle, a teacher 1867 first published tale story Ting-a-ling 1873 start his editorial career 1878 forced to leave his job due to failing eyesight 1882 published The Lady or The Tiger in Century Magazine 1887 earned a reputation as one of the greatest humorists and childrens author of his time April 20, 1902 died of cerebral hemorrhage in Washington D.C. and was buried in the Woodlands cemetery in Philadelphia.

LITERARY ELEMENTS
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
SETTING PLOT POINT OF VIEW CHARACTER THEME CONFLICT TECHNIQUE/STYLE

TRIAL BY ORDEAL
During the Middle Ages in England, guilt or innocence was decided through a practice known as an ordeal. An accused person was physically tested, and the outcome determined guilt or innocence. The accusers believed that supernatural forces controlled what happened. For instance, in the ordeal by water, the accused person was tied up and thrown into deep water. A person who floated was thought to be guilty; a person who sank was considered innocent. Unfortunately, those who sank often drowned before they could be hauled back up. Though the trial by ordeal was forbidden by Pope Innocent III in 1215, its prevalence in Europe continued to be wide enough that it even came over to colonial America. Other trials by ordeal were also found throughout India, Southeast Asia, and in many parts of Africa.

1. Trial by fire 2. Trial by hot iron 3. Trial by water 4. Trial by hot water 5. Trial by host 6. Trial by ordeal bean 7. Trial by tagena 8. Sassywood 9. Trial by diving 10. Trial by snake 11. Sotah ritual

Chain Questions

What are some of the examples of events that you know related to this?

Do you think it is relevant now? Why?

SETTING
Time: During medieval times In the very olden time there lived a semi-barbaric king

Chain Questions

What is your impression on medieval time?

i. Culture

ii. Social hierarchy

iii. Fashion

iv. Lifestyle

LATIN LANGUAGE
The influence of Rome as a country made Latin the common language of South and Western Europe. In these areas Romance languages (Italian, French, Spanish, Romanian and Portuguese) were later derived from Latin. To understand the English language thoroughly it is necessary to have a knowledge of Latin. This is caused by the fact that Anglo-Saxon language (Old English), had borrowed many words from Latin, either directly or through French. This Germanic language group, spoken in Britain, south of the Forth (except Wales and Cornwall), has been making these borrowings both before and after the Norman Conquest (AD 1066). As a result, modern English and Latin are quite closely connected. In most branches of literature the Romans were deeply indebted to Greek models. The influence of Greek civilization on Rome began early (with the commerce between the people of Latium and the Greek cities of South Italy), and reached its fullest development after the conquest of Greece by Rome, which was completed in 146 BC.

Place: A semi-barbaric kingdom, neighbouring to the Latin Country

whose ideas, though somewhat polished and sharpened by the progressiveness of distant Latin neighbors, were still large, florid, and untrammeled, The arena where the trial is conducted The arena of the king was built, not to give the people an opportunity of hearing the rhapsodies of dying gladiators, nor to enable them to view the inevitable conclusion of a conflict between religious opinions and hungry jaws, but for purposes far better adapted to widen and develop the mental energies of the people

PLOT

EXPOSITION
The author introduces the king and his kingdom He was a man of exuberant fancy, and, withal, of an authority so irresistible that, at his will, he turned his varied fancies into facts. He was greatly given to self-communing, and, when he and himself agreed upon anything, the thing was done.

 The elucidation of justice system in the kingdom This was the king's semi-barbaric method of administering justice. Its perfect fairness is obvious. The criminal could not know out of which door would come the lady; he opened either he pleased, without having the slightest idea whether, in the next instant, he was to be devoured or married.

RISING ACTION
The king discovers his daughter having an unlawful affair with a male suitor and decides to put him in the arena. He needs to choose between two doors: Life VS Deathbehind one door is a tiger, set to maul the unlucky criminal; behind the other is a beautiful bride, set to euphemistically maul the lucky criminal This love affair moved on happily for many months, until one day the king happened to discover its existence. He did not hesitate nor waver in regard to his duty in the premises.

 The princess, who loves the young man is instrumental to his fate

The only hope for the youth in which there was any element of certainty was based upon the success of the princess in discovering this mystery; and the moment he looked upon her, he saw she had succeeded, as in his soul he knew she would succeed.

CLIMAX
The princess indicates to the young man which door he should open in the arena Her decision had been indicated in an instant, but it had been made after days and nights of anguished deliberation. She had known she would be asked, she had decided what she would answer, and, without the slightest hesitation, she had moved her hand to the right.

FALLING ACTION & RESOLUTION

None. Readers are left to make their own decision on which door does the princess choose. The question of her decision is one not to be lightly considered, and it is not for me to presume to set myself up as the one person able to answer it. And so I leave it with all of you: Which came out of the opened door,--the lady, or the tiger?

Chain Questions

Do you enjoy this kind of open-ended plot? Why?

Why do you think the author ends the story with a question rather than an answer?

Is the narrator the same as the author in this story?

POINT OF VIEW
The story is told in third-person omniscient point of view -The narrator knows the thoughts and actions of all the characters. The narrator sets the story in fairy-tale mode- "In the very olden time"-and then addresses the reader directly, in the first-person mode, after the young man makes his choice.

"it is not for me to presume to set myself up as the one person able to answer [the question of her decision]. And so I leave it with all of you.
The purpose of this address is to place the responsibility for analyzing the story and answering the question posed in the story's title squarely upon the reader's shoulders.

CHARACTER

THE KING
Semi-barbaric Absolute Loves his daughter Cruel sense of justice Passionate A man of contradiction Round and static character

THE PRINCESS
Semi-barbaric Jealous Proud doesnt like her things to be taken away Passionate about the guy Care less of the status Round (tiger) or dynamic (lady) character based on her decision

THE YOUNG MAN

Commoner Aesthetically pleasing (tall, beautiful, fair) Trusting the princess Faithful Flat and static character

THE LADY
Beautiful and lovely Hated by the princess Secretly fancy the lover of the princess

Is there any contradiction between the characters in this story with the conventional notion of characters in most stories?

THEMES

7 DEADLY SINS

LOVE VS JEALOUSY
The princess in the story is faced with a difficult dilemma: she has to choose whether to be altruistic (selfless) or allow herself to be jealous, as is the natural inclination. As she is part barbaric herself, she is strongly disposed towards her natural inclinations, but she is simultaneously civilized.

POWER
Some people abuse the authority that is bestowed on them. The king was very absolute in his command and nobody can question his orders at his will, he turned his varied fancies into facts. He was greatly given to self-communing, and, when he and himself agreed upon anything, the thing was done.

 The princess used her power to know what lies behind each door

But gold, and the power of a woman's will, had brought the secret to the princess.

SOCIAL STATUS
The difference status between the princess and the young man is amplified by the setting of the story. If the setting is changed into the present time, the society would be more accepting of the status differences the king probably may not be as harsh as he is towards the young man.

JUSTICE AND CHANCE

To a semi-barbaric king, nothing is more just than chance deciding a persons guilt; He has a system in which justice is secondary to chance; inevitably, guilty people would choose the door behind which the maiden waited, and the innocent must occasionally be devoured. The king, therefore, deifies (makes a god of) chance and from his perspective, the will of his god is the ultimate authority on justice. In reality, justice plays no part in the fates of those sent to the arena.

BARBARISM AND CIVILISATION

The lady is representative of civilization: tame, beautiful, and desirable. The tiger, inversely, is savage, monstrous, and feared. Thus, civilization is desirable and barbarism is to be avoided at all costs. Additionally, the narrator comments on how one becomes one or the other with his description of the perfect justice of chance. Just as chance determines whether a wedding or a gory execution occur, so does chance determine whether a person is born an Aborigine or an emperor, civilized or barbaric, and ultimately, whether a person will lead a wonderful life, or one full of misery and pain.

CONFLICT
External: Human VS Human The King VS The Young Man The King VS The Princess The Princess VS The Lady The Princess VS The Young Man External: Human VS Environment The Young Lovers VS The Rules of the Kingdom The Young Lovers VS The Societal Convention

Internal: Human VS Himself The Princess VS Herself conflicting roles whether she should be a lover or a princess The Young Man VS Himself to trust the princess decision or not

TECHNIQUES/STYLES

SYMBOLISM
The lady love; reward; innocence The tiger jealousy; punishment; guilt The king the law The arena a place where ones guilt or innocent is proven (courtroom) The choice between the lady or the tiger made by the princess the current emotion that she succumbed to. In a broader sense, proving her most dominant nature.

IRONY
The king claimed to love his daughter so much. Yet, he didnt hesitate to do away with the man she loves the most. Also, if the princess was to choose the tiger, then it would be ironic because she apparently loved the man. No matter what choice the princess makes, it is ironical because if she chose the tiger, then she is condemning the man to death when she claimed that she loved him so much. If she chose the lady, then arguably she could be sentencing the man to a greater and longer punishment since the man would have to marry a person he didnt love.

PERSONIFICATION
Silent door This example of personification makes it seem as though the door might speak any other time, giving the door a human characteristic

SUSPENSE
From the ending, the author puts a question for the reader to decide the answer.

FORESHADOWING
Foreshadowing was used in the exposition as the author elaborated on all the kingdoms, rules and consequences; including the kings arena

TONE
The tone is disapproving of the king and his daughter for being barbaric and simple minded

MOOD
Suspenseful and barbaric

CROSS REFERENCE

In general a Gladiator was a condemned criminal, a prisoner of war or a slave bought for the purpose of being trained as a gladiator. Professional gladiators were often free men who volunteered to participate in the events. These free men although they were low on the social scale would often become popular amongst the crowds and find popularity and patronage with wealthy Roman citizens over their GLADIATORS criminal counterparts. The masters or owners of the gladiators were called lanista. Gladiators were required to do what their lanista ordered and therefore they were revered for their loyalty, discipline and courage. As a gladiator a man gained immediate status even though as a gladiator he was forced to act as a slave and to endure flogging, branding or death by the sword. Typically a gladiator was sent to a gladiator school and depending on whether he was a criminal or not he was either trained to use weapons or taught to be a gladiator who would enter the gladiatorial arena weaponless. A criminal would typically use a weapon and could even earn their freedom if they survived three to five years of combat. A gladiator was only required to fight two to three times a year but few survived the three to five years.

Roman slave and gladiator, and leader of a famous slave revolt. Little is known of the early years of Spartacus. He is thought to have been born in Thrace (modern day Balkan region) and it has been suggested he was in the Roman army. He was sold into slavery and trained at the gladiatorial school in Capua, north of Naples. Spartacus escaped in 73 BC and took refuge on nearby Mount Vesuvius, where large numbers of other escaped slaves joined him. Their insurrection came to be known as the Third Servile War, or the Gladiators War. Leading his army of runaway slaves, which has

spartacus
been estimated to have reached 100,000 men, Spartacus defeated a series of Roman attacks using tactics which would now be called guerrilla warfare. Spartacus's struggle has been inspirational to revolutionaries, politicians and writers since the 19th century. The Spartacist League was a revolutionary socialist group, formed in Germany in 1916, which unsuccessfully attempted to overthrow the government in 1919.

Cleopatra VII was the last ruler of the Ptolemaic dynasty, ruling Egypt from 51 BC - 30 BC. She is celebrated for her beauty and her love affairs with the Roman warlords Julius Caesar and Mark Antony. Cleopatra was married to her brother, Ptolemy XIII keeping with Egyptian tradition. Whether she was as beautiful as was claimed, she was a highly intelligent woman and an astute politician, who brought prosperity and peace to a country that was bankrupt and split by civil war.

CLEOPATRA
QUEEN OF THE NILE

In 48 BC, Egypt became embroiled in the conflict in Rome between Julius Caesar and Pompey. Cleopatra married Ceasar, was exiled by his brother, and was reinstalled as queen with Roman military support. In 47 BC, Cleopatra bore Caesar a child Caesarion. In 41 BC, Mark Antony, at that time in dispute with Caesar's adopted son Octavian over the succession to the Roman leadership, began both a political and romantic alliance with Cleopatra. They subsequently had three children - two sons and a daughter. Mark Antony took his own life after his army deserted him and Cleopatra chose the same course, committing suicide on 12 August 30 BC.

ENTERTAINMENT

HELEN OF TROY
Helen, was also immortal, since her father was none other than Zeus. Her mother was the beautiful Leda, queen of Sparta, who was ravished by the father of the gods in the form of a swan. Leda's husband was Tyndarecus, who later the same night, unaware of his feathered predecessor, also impregnated his wife. She produced two eggs, one of which yielded Helen and Polydeuces and the other of which contained Castor and Clytemnestra. While a swan's egg can be accepted for the sake of myth, it has never made much sense that the part of her pregnancy initiated by Tyndareus should produce an egg as well. This most curious of births has been subjected to all manner of combinations over the years. As delicious as the story of Leda was, some commentators even went so far as to suggest that Helen and the Dioscuri were conceived at Rhamnus in Attica by Zeus and Nemesis, the usually rather stern and sexless goddess whose job it was to curb excesses. Nemesis, not happy with being raped by a swan, laid an egg and left it. Leda found it, and when the egg hatched it produced Helen and the Dioscuri. In that case, Clytemnestra was not even a sister of Helen.

A real relationship has fights. Trust. Faith. Tears. Pain. Arguments. Patience. Secrets. Jealousy and love.

Chain Questions

What is your reaction to the story?

How does this story hold against the other two short stories that you have learned?

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