Elements of Fiction for "The Curio Shop" p284-287 in Sightlines

>this is a sample set of answers - but with way more detail that would be expected on this as a
test, as we did them together and I recorded ALL of our awesome ideas!

Expectations: Students will be able to answer all of these questions for any short story,
providing details from the story to support their arguments. These answers are longer than what
is expected, as we gathered ideas from the whole class to create these. Students should be able
to answer the question with at least one clear example from the story - quoted and explained.

A. Introduction: Setting and main characters

1. Where does the story take place? Be specific.
The story takes place in a place called the "Milky Way". We know this because describing
any road as "glittering, milky", is odd, yet we know that our galaxy is called "The Milky
Way". "Way" can be used to refer to a street - as in Keatsway. This leads us to conclude
that the road is, in fact, our galaxy. On this street is a shop called The Curio Shop. The
store seems to be like an old, British shop. The details that led to this conclusion are the
"velvet background cloth" from the first sentence - because velvet is an older material
which is associated with richness. The Collector also wears a "top hat", a "cape" and uses a
"monocle" to view the object he wishes to buy. Top hats were worn by British men in the
early 20th century, and the Seller says that he obtained the object from a Caravan Master.
These behaviours and objects we could associate with this time period, as gypsy caravans
would travel Europe at this time, selling their wares. By the end of the story we realize that
the setting is more supernatural; these beings seem to be gods of some sort, collecting and
selling planets. The end of the story reveals that the Collector is "foreign" which implies
that there are other galaxies than ours. He flatters the Collector near the beginning of the
story - so we know that he is somewhat "sly" as it states near the end of the story.

2. Who are the characters? Include their names and appearance.

The Seller - his is male, and he is the owner of the Curio Shop. He is materialistic, in that
he is most interested in the money that can be made by selling the objects he gathers. He
tries to sell the object to the Collector for more than he thinks it is worth. His shop has very
little business lately. He seems to have enough money/means to travel and to collect these
one-of-a-kind objects. We therefore assume that he is somewhat well-off. He thinks that he
is smarter than most people. By the end of the story, we hear that the Seller got "twice what
the trinket was worth" and that he thinks that "these foreign collectors often think that they
know it all". This implies that the Seller thinks he is smarter than the Collector.
The Collector - He wears a top hat, a monocle and a cape. We associate these elements of
dress with wealth. We also know that he is paying for something rare, and we assume that
he must have a lot of money to do this. The top hat and monocle also imply that he is a
"classy" gentleman. We assume that he must travel a lot, as he is a "collector" and we hear
that he has a large home where he displays what he has collected. He seems well educated
as his house has a "study" which we associate with books and higher levels of learning. He
thinks about mounting his find in a "gold mount" and because gold is very rare and
expensive, we know he is rich. It would take a huge amount of gold to make a "mount" to
hold Earth! He seems to associate with other collectors. He seems like an older man, as he
mentions his wife and has a study.

B. Rising Action: Leading to the central conflict

1. What is the main problem in the story?
The main problem in the story seems, at first, to be whether or not the artifact that the
Seller has is genuine. The action of the story revolves around determining if the echo of the
spirit of this planet still inhabits it. The Seller proves this when he attempts to clean the
"transparent" part of the planet and it lets out a "wail". In addition, there are "jewels"
visible beneath the surface of this part of the planet.
2. How do the characters learn about and start to deal with the problem?

C. Climax:
1. High point of the story>identify type: person vs person; person vs self;
person vs environment
>The moment that the climax occurs is when the Seller reveals that the "artifact" is, in fact,
our planet - Earth. The place where the logical climax of the action in the story, the
moments in which the sale is negotiated between the two main characters, is NOT
mentioned. The author purposely skips right over this part of the story. Because there is a
distinct "ah ha!" point where we find out that the "artifact" is our planet, we know that this
is the climax. When we look back on the details of the story, we realize that WE are the
"microbes" which have caused the destruction of the spirit of the planet. The intended
message of the story is to make people aware that our actions - polluting, using Earth's
natural resources - are having a negative impact on our planet.
2. How do the characters learn how to fix the main problem?
The problem for the characters within the story is the selling of the artifact. The Seller
wants to sell it off, and the Collector wants to verify the value of the artifact so that he can
have it in his collection. The Seller tells the Collector that the echo of the spirit of the
planet is still present but the Collector doesn't believe him until the planet lets out a "wail"
when the Seller tries to clean it. The Seller also points out the "jewels" within the
"transparent window". We can assume that the window is the ocean, and the jewels are the
fish, corals and mammals within our oceans. Once the value of the object has been
established, the Collector feels he must have it, despite the fact that his wife will not like it,
and that he may have to pay a large amount of money to have it.
In this story, the characters are not the ones who need to learn how to fix the problem - it is
humans. The message of the story is that we are killing the "spirit" of our planet, and we
need to stop doing what we are doing to cause this death. One thing which is causing this
death is pollution and we know this because there are "large sooty stains on its surface".
The actions that humans are taking on the planet - like mining - cause changes that can't be
fixed. These actions happening all over the planet for various purposes, like when we take
away natural resources which cannot be replaced, could be the "tiny organisms that feed
upon the workings...and cause the deterioration". The story warns us to stop what we are
doing before it is too late.
 D. Falling Action: Once the problem has been resolved
1. What happened to the characters?
The Seller and the Collector make a deal and both are satisfied with it by the end of the
story.
2. How have they changed?
Neither of the characters changes, as the change which the author wants to see must take
place within the readers.

E. Resolution: Ending of the story

1. How is the central problem resolved?
Once the value of the object has been verified, the Seller strikes a deal with the Collector.
Both feel that they have done well - the Collector reflects that he has "driven a hard and cunning
bargain" while the Seller has "sly satisfaction in his eyes [because he'd] gotten twice what the
trinket was worth." The revelation of the name of this artifact - Earth - has no discernible effect
on the main characters, but a huge impact upon the reader. The reader begins to realize what the
"wailing", "the "sooty stains...rust or some fatal corrosion" of the planet really is: our
destruction of our natural world through pollution and the stripping away of natural resources
without thought for how this stripping will influence the balance of life on our planet.

2. What is the central lesson to be learned?

The characters in the story are both enriched by Earth - the Seller has earned more money
than he thought that he would get, and the Collector is pleased that he got the valuable
artifact for less than he imagined. The readers are the ones whom the message is aimed at,
however, and they need to understand that the life force of our planet is in danger. It would
seem that the author wants the readers to consider their role in the destruction of the
planet's "spirit" - he wants us to change the way we treat the Earth.