The Story of The Lady, Or The Tiger

The story The Lady, or the Tiger? reveals foreshadowing in the beginning when the king’s arena is introduced stating that, “When a subject was accused of a crime of sufficient importance to interest the king, public notice was given that on an appointed day the fate of the accused person would be decided in the king’s arena.” This is foreshadowing the event where the princess dates a servant, and he’s thrown into the arena. Since the incident was such a surprise to the king and it angered him so much that a man would have the audacity to date his daughter that he let fate decide what would happen to boy.

My reaction to the end of the book was anger, because at the end of the story I was met with this; “And so I leave it with all of you: Which came out of the opened door,--the lady, or the tiger?” I wanted to actually know, not have to assume what happened. The feeling of never know what actually happened made me furious. It was worse than a cliffhanger because when a cliffhanger happens, there is a possibility that the ending will be answered in another movie or book, but not for The Lady, or the Tiger?, you’re forced to just assume what will happen to the boy and there’s no way that it’ll ever be answered, by the man who wrote the short story.

The people of the town support this method because it was source of entertainment On page 14 it was stated that, “When the people gathered together on one of the great trial days, they never knew whether they were to witness a bloody slaughter or a hilarious wedding.” Since this was so entertaining it was supported by the people that lived in the town.

The boy’s struggle in the story was external because he’s being hunted by the king for dating his daughter. The struggle is an external conflict because it’s the boy vs the king. As stated in The Lady, or the Tiger?, “The youth was immediately cast into prison, and a day was appointed for his trial in the king's arena.” There was nothing the boy could do to escape from the king’s wrath.

The princess’s internal conflict played a huge roll in The Lady, or the Tiger?, because it was the conflict of the story. On page 18 the story reads, “How often, in her waking hours and in her dreams, had she started in wild horror, and covered her face with her hands as she thought of her lover opening the door on the other side of which waited the cruel fangs of the tiger! But how much oftener had she seen him at the other door! How in her grievous reveries had she gnashed her teeth, and torn her hair, when she saw his start of rapturous delight as he opened the door of the lady! How her soul had burned in agony when she had seen him rush to meet that woman.” Without this internal struggle the story wouldn’t be as interesting because, if the princess didn’t hate the woman then she would’ve saved the boy she loved.