S TORY I NTERPRETATION

“T HE L OTTERY ” The mundane – typical – everyone knows everyone Normal town Normal names Mr. Summers In charge of lottery The meaning behind his name

Mr. Graves Summers’ assistant His name and character foreshadow Tone Friendly language Social atmosphere Weakness in humans Fear of rejection in society No open disapproval of lottery Fear of change

Black box – symbol Failure to replace it and failure to stand up to beliefs It is “faded & stained” like their view of reality Ordinary life vs. extreme evil = things are not always as they appear

Protagonist – Mrs. Hutchinson She’s consumed by hypocrisy and weakness Attempts to rebel and not show up “forgetting what day it is” Pleasant and social when arriving at drawing IRONY – she stands up and “wins” lottery After black dot, she’s selfish

Relevance today We flock to nasty gossip We “butt-in” where we do not belong We can point out others’ faults until we do it – then no discussion We stereotype until stereotyped We are hypocrites! Symbols – color black Theme – social class division

“T O B UILD A F IRE ” Characters “the man” – protagonist “the dog” – a foil Old timer – not even present Klondike – antagonist Themes Survival Man vs. nature death

Point of view 3 rd paragraph Man’s lack of imagination His stupid/naïve/reckless Man’s behavior makes the story To survive – “all a man has to do is keep his head”

“A R OSE FOR E MILY ” Portraits of Emily Windows/doorway = changes in life Clues to “whole picture” or the motivations behind her transformations Protected by father Youthful Virgin-like Hair cut short = no sexuality She appears as a girl instead of a woman of 30 “tragic and serene”

After she kills Homer Becomes dark silhouette of her father She has lived with death literally – Homer’s body She has locked herself away from time and progress No sense of time – change ceases to exist The distortion of time allows her to sleep with her lover?? She is a living corpse Her iron-gray hair Her iron will Her decisive act of murder

Narrator Basically the town “we” Suggest gossiping nature Her “crazy aunt” Why they attend her funeral

Foreshadow – descriptive words “her skeleton was small and sparse ” “she looked bloated, like a body long submerged in motionless water and of that pallid hue.” “her voice was dry and cold ” (house) “smelled of dust, disuse – a closed dank smell ” (guests sit) – a “ faint dust ” rises

Foreshadow of father’s death Emily’s denial of his death 3 days later she lets them bury him “we did not say she was crazy then” – Do they now?? Manservent Unaffected by the flow of time Only his hair color changes Walks out never to be seen again

Symbolism – the house Once one of the nicest “Big, squarish frame that had once been white” Became “an eyesore among eyesores” Old Southern beliefs/actions Colonel’s rules No negro woman without an apron The taxes – “only a woman would have believed” Judge – not wanting to tell her she smells Ladies’ attitude about Homer