Introducing the Story Literary Focus: Omniscient Narrator Literary Focus: Surprise Endings Reading Skills: Monitoring Your Reading The Interlopers by Saki Feature Menu

The Interlopers by Saki

The Interlopers Introducing the Story The world perishes not from bandits and fires, but from hatred, hostility, and all these petty squabbles. Anton Chekhov

The Interlopers Introducing the Story Ulrich von Gradwitz and Georg Znaeym are sworn enemies. What happens when these two armed enemies come face to face in the woods on a winter night? [End of Section]

The Interlopers Literary Focus: Omniscient Point of View An omniscient narrator can reveal characters’ thoughts and actions can zoom from place to place may tell all or save information until the end is not a character in the story knows everything about all the characters in the story [End of Section]

The Interlopers Literary Focus: Surprise Endings A surprise ending resolves a story’s conflict in a totally unexpected way. [End of Section] The ending, while surprising, is still logical. The unexpected ending may make you rethink the story.

The Interlopers Reading Skills: Monitoring Your Reading When you encounter a difficult sentence or passage, try one of these strategies. Use context clues to figure out the meaning of unfamiliar words. Context clues may give the word’s definition restate the word’s meaning in a different way provide an example show comparison or contrast

Look for the subject and the verb. Stop to rephrase or summarize. Break long sentences into simpler ones. Finally, take time to re-read. When you encounter a difficult sentence or passage try one of these strategies. [End of Section] The Interlopers Reading Skills: Monitoring Your Reading

Make the Connection The Interlopers Quickwrite [End of Section] Most arguments can be settled when people agree to talk or compromise, but some disagreements become so bitter that they last for many years. Indeed, some regions of the world have been locked in conflict for generations. Write down a few examples of feuds from history or literature that have torn families or even countries apart. What keeps such bitter hatred alive?

Vocabulary

Previewing the Vocabulary precipitous adj.: very steep. acquiesced v. (used with in): accepted; complied with. marauders n.: people who roam in search of loot, or goods to steal. exasperation n.: great annoyance. pious adj.: showing religious devotion. The Interlopers Vocabulary

Previewing the Vocabulary retorted v.: replied sharply. condolences n.: expressions of sympathy. languor n.: weakness; weariness. reconciliation n.: friendly end to a quarrel. succor n.: help given to someone in distress; relief. The Interlopers Vocabulary

Vocabulary Activity: Context Clues Context clues—the words and phrases around a word— can point toward the meaning of an unfamiliar word. 1.Definition: The people who interfered were accused of being interlopers. 4. Comparison or Contrast: Far from being welcome guests, those dropping by were seen as interlopers. 2. Restatement: The interlopers, intruders on horseback, rode into town. 3. Example: Guards treated all visitors—tourists, journalists, photographers—as interlopers. The Interlopers Vocabulary

1.They agreed to forget and forgive and shook hands as a sign of ____________. 2.Both teams ____________ in the umpire’s ruling. 3.At the memorial service, we offered ____________. 4.“You’re late,” he said, tapping his watch in ____________. 5.“Well, your watch is wrong,” she ___________ in anger. Vocabulary Activity Use context clues to complete each sentence with the correct word. condolences reconciliation retorted acquiesced exasperation reconciliation acquiesced retorted exasperation condolences [End of Section] The Interlopers Vocabulary

Meet the Writer

Hector Hugh Munro (1870–1916) adopted the pen name Saki, after the character who served wine to the gods in the then-popular Persian poem the Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyám. Saki was born in Burma, where his father was an officer in the military police. After the death of his mother, Saki and his two older siblings were sent to England to live with their grandmother and two aunts. More About the Writer [End of Section] The Interlopers Meet the Writer