Topic: The Lady, or The Tiger

Presenter: Harold Solicito

A. About the presenter

The same thing came to mind as I read the next piece by the same reporter. The writer
was able to say insightful things about the subject. His voice was as decent as the first
story, so you could hear him even without headphones. Another useful thing that the
tools were used over finding possible sources for the answers. I thought the eye-catching
PowerPoint show added to a lively and interesting discussion. The discussion went on,
and I considered the reporter did a good job of sharing the information and knew what
they were talking about.

B. Literary Analysis
I. Introduction
The American comedian and humorist Frank R. Stockton wrote the short story “The
Lady, or The Tiger?” The story of it first showed up in 1882. The story takes place in a
wild country and deals with complicated feelings like love and envy.

The story is about a king or queen who makes strange and cruel rules. These people are
put in a ring with two doors. There is a beautiful woman behind one door and a
dangerous tiger behind the other. You think about fate, making choices, and how
quickly our feelings can change as you read the story.

We'll talk about the story's vague ending and how Frank Stockton played with the
reader's feelings and dreams. We will look at the story's clues that point to different
possible outcomes, since the ending can be interpreted in more than one way. We will
also talk about how Stockton's story makes people think about how complicated people
are and what happens when you don't answer questions.

II. Plot Summary

In a country that is only partly primitive, the king or queen has their own set of rules.
People who have been accused have to choose between two ways to leave an arena.
There is a beautiful woman behind one and a fierce tiger behind the other. The story is
about a young man who has an affair with a princess and has to go to the arena to
stand trial for it. The princess tells him what to do, but she doesn't say what will happen
because she knows everything that goes on.

When the semi-barbaric government and court system were set up.
How the boy and the princess fell in love.
The date was made public, and the young man was put on trial in the arena.
The princess couldn't think because she knew what was behind every door.
When the young man has to make a choice in the arena, he asks the woman for help.
The ending of the story isn't clear, so the reader has to guess which door to choose and
how things will go from there.

In the arena, when the young man is put to the test and has to choose between two
doors without knowing what is behind them, he feels the most stressed. At the end of
the story, it's not clear what will happen when the young man looks to the princess for a
sign. Since the story doesn't have a clear ending, the choice of door and what it means
are left open to opinion. This adds to the story's lasting uncertainty and ability to make
you think.

III. Characters
Reading Chaucer's stories about characters is a great way to learn more about their
personalities, beliefs, and goals. The evolution is slow because the different stories have
an effect on each other over time.

The Young Man:

He is deeply in love with the princess and is the main character. He has to deal with the
king's justice system and choose between two arena doors. He changes from a character
who is driven by love to one who has to make a huge decision. By leaving his fate open,
the story makes readers wonder about the young man's emotional trip and what will
happen as a result of his final choice.

The Princess:
She is a major character in the story because she is connected to the young man and
knows what's behind every door. Her father was a semi-barbaric king. At first, she was
shown to be a loving and kind person. As she learns more about what could happen to
the young man and what's behind every door, she goes through a lot of inner turmoil
that shapes her character growth.

The Semi-Barbaric King:

He comes up with the unique way to handle justice involving the two doors. He has
control over the lives of people who are being tried in the theater. The king's job
emphasizes how random justice is in the country, even though he doesn't grow
personally very much.

Conflicts and Motivation:

Young man:
Motivation: His choices and deeds are based on his love for the princess.
Conflict: It has to choose between two unclear futures, which is a conflict on the inside,
and the king's judicial system is an outside conflict.

The Princess:
Motivation: They love the young man and want to keep him safe from harm.
Conflict: Has to decide whether to lead the young man to the door with the woman or the
tiger, even though he knows that doing so could change his life.

The King:
Motivation: Preserving a distinct sense of authority.
Conflict: The young man and the princess are in a tough spot because of his law system,
which stands for the outside conflict for them.

IV. Setting
The story takes place in an old country that has its own rules. The setting is where the
action takes place. People who are charged have to choose between two doors that cover
a scary tiger and a beautiful woman. People's fates are decided by the semi-barbaric
king's power based on how well they do in the arena, which shapes the country's social
environment.
The scene's drama, excitement, and unpredictability have a big impact on the setting,
which also sets the mood and tone. When people make decisions in the arena, they
know that the results could change their lives. This creates a sense of high risks and
moral doubt. People in this mostly wild country are left to their own devices, so the king
decides what happens to them. This makes the country's court system seem random
and unpredictable. The background of the book adds to the mood, making readers
nervous as they try to figure out why the main characters make the choices they do.

C. Symbolic or Metaphorical Elements:

The arena:
It stands for the moral and social problems of the main characters.
serves as a metaphor for how unpredictable life is and how hard choices people have to
make.

The Two Doors:

Show that choices and their results can be opposites.
It represents, in a symbolic way, the fact that making decisions is unclear and hard to
plan.

Semi-Barbaric Kingdom:
People in The Semi-Barbaric Kingdom have justice that is based on show and isn't based
on facts. Thinks about the conflict between civilization and savagery in a symbolic way
and also about how complicated people are.

V. Themes
“The Lady, or The Tiger?” by Frank R. Stockton is a short story that does a good job of
combining a number of important themes, especially love and jealousy. The main
character's deep love for the princess is just one example of how difficult love can be in
the story. On the other hand, jealousy brings out different feelings that make the bonds
between the characters and the story better. The book is mostly about choices and the
results of those choices. The main character has to make a big choice in the arena, and
the ending—whether it's a girl or a tiger—is meant to be mysterious. This purposeful
ambiguity draws attention to the theme of doubt and asks readers to think about how
choices and their results are important. The semi-barbaric kingdom also has a unique
system of law that makes issues of justice and unjust authority stand out. The fact that
the king's system of judges is built on the arena's chance shows how arbitrary power
and justice are. Frank R. Stockton successfully weaves underlying messages into the
story so that readers think deeply about the moral difficulty of making choices, the
unpredictable nature of fate, and how effective ambiguity can be as a storytelling device
that encourages active interpretation. The story makes you think about the many sides
of human feelings, moral problems, and the blurred line between being fair and being
cruel through these themes and ideas.

VI. Narrative Point of View

The story is told from a third-person point of view, which lets readers connect with a
character, usually the main character. With a little plot distance, this point of view
choice lets you look into the character's thoughts and feelings, giving you a look into
their personal life. Everything is seen through the eyes of the chosen character, which
helps keep the plot on track. The experiences or knowledge of the chosen character
change the story in terms of who can be trusted and how biased people are, which
 affects how the events are shown as a whole. A story told from a third-person perspective
is fairer than one told from the first-person point of view, but it is still possible for the
character to be biased. As the book goes on, readers are asked to think about how the
characters feel, what they think, and even their views. However, this point of view often
hits a balance between being close and being objective, giving a full picture of how the
story is developing.

VII. Style and Language

Frank R. Stockton's writing is a great mix of being straight, funny, and easy to read.
Stockton writes in simple words so that a lot of people can understand his story. This
lets readers focus on the big ideas that run through the book. His writing style is simple,
but that doesn't take away from the depth of the characters' feelings or the complexity of
the main ideas. Instead, it helps you follow the story better.

When it comes to writing methods, Stockton does a great job of using imagery to create a
clear picture in the reader's mind, especially when talking about important things like
the arena and the two doors. There is a lot of symbolic language. The stage is a
metaphor for life's choices, and the doors are a metaphor for how fate can be
unpredictable. There is some foreshadowing in the story, which hints at different ends
without giving away the whole answer. Stockton also used comedy to add depth to his
writing and make people want to look for deeper meanings, especially at the story's
ending, which isn't clear-cut.

Stockton's writing style makes the reader feel tense, which makes them want to know
more about what's hidden in the story. Throughout the story, there are times of stress
and reflection, especially when the main characters have to make tough choices. The
way Stockton writes make you think about the moral dilemmas, judgments, and
conclusions in the book, which adds to the mood of thought overall. The serious tone is
just the right amount of serious and comedic to let the story of love, justice, and fate
emerge. Some of Stockton's writing style sets the mood for the story and makes people
want to learn more about it.

VIII. Symbolism and Allegory

“The Lady, or the Tiger,” a story by Frank R. Stockton means people have to make hard
choices all their lives, and the arena is the most obvious symbol of those choices. The
two arena entrances are important symbols because they show that fate can change
quickly and that making choices can be dangerous. The semi-barbaric monarch's court
system, which is based on luck and public opinion, shows how unstable and
unpredictable government can be.

The greater meaning of the story is helped a lot by these pictures. The arena represents
the struggle people go through when they have to make decisions that could affect their
future. It seems like you don't know what will happen because the doors aren't clear and
show the different results of different choices. No one is left in any question about what
will happen because the author tells them. The king's court system makes people think
about how fair and unpredictable the world is. This is a good way to show that authority
and social standards aren't always the same thing. Stockton uses these pictures to get
people to think about how their actions affect other people, the mystery of fate, and how
luck and justice work together in the human experience.
IX. Cultural and Historical Context
“The Lady, or the Tiger?” is most interesting when you think about where and when it
happened. The story was written in the late 1800s, a time when social norms were
changing a lot, especially in the West. Now is a good time to talk about justice, love, and
free will because people's ideas about personal freedom and the limits that social norms
put on us are changing. The book also shows a somewhat primitive country, which
shows deeper culture worries about how justice is unfair and how luck affects people's
lives. People who read the book might understand why it doesn't have a clear ending,
since the time period focuses on moral ambiguity and creative studies of internal
complexity.

A lot of different things happened in Frank R. Stockton's (1834–1902) life, which may
affect how his works are understood. “The Lady, or The Tiger?” is affected by a number
of different personal factors. The fact that Stockton works as a comedian and comic may
mean that he likes to talk about both funny and important things. It's important to
remember that the story may have been affected by Stockton's own thoughts and
experiences, as well as the society of the time. The fact that he wrote in a lot of different
styles shows that he was a flexible writer who was interested in current events and
social problems. People can learn about Stockton's personal life and how it affected the
way he wrote stories and the themes he chose.

X. Interpretation and Analysis

“The Lady, or The Tiger?” by Frank R. Stockton uses purposed ambiguity around the
main character's choice at the story's climax as a powerful storytelling device that makes
readers think about how hard it is to make decisions, how morality can be flawed, and
how complicated human decision-making is.

A. Develop your thesis with detailed analysis and evidence from the story:
The book hides the outcome of the main character's choice between the two doors on
purpose to keep readers guessing. This deliberate ambiguity makes readers think more
deeply about the moral and ethical consequences of the story. The author left the ending
open-ended, so readers have to deal with the confusion that comes with making choices
in life, which is similar to how the story shows how fate is unpredictable. The unresolved
finish makes people think about their own ideas about justice, love, and how
complicated moral dilemmas can be. In addition, it makes you think about yourself.

B. Use quotes and examples to support your points:

“Would it not be better for him to die at once, and go to wait for her in the blessed
regions of semi-barbaric futurity? And yet, that awful tiger, those shrieks, that blood”

The princess in the text above is arguing with herself about whether or not to save her
beloved from the tiger's maw.

It says, “But how much more often had she seen him at the other door?” This quote
shows that the princess knows what could happen and gives the main character her
own personal opinion when she makes her choice.

C. Consider alternative interpretations and address counterarguments:

Others claim that the unresolved finish is just a literary trick that doesn't really mean
anything. Intentional ambiguity does more than just add tension; it also shows how
subjective moral choices are by requiring readers to take part in the interpretation
process. Some might say that the story promotes negative ideas about women by
showing the princess as mean and angry. A different view, on the other hand, says that
the princess has free will in dealing with a society that limits her choices and forces her
to face the tasks of justice, love, and sacrifice.

XI. Conclusion
“The Lady, or The Tiger?” by Frank R. Stockton is a stimulating story that deals with
tough issues like morals, love, jealousy, and how fate can change at any time. The story
is about a peculiar court system run by a somewhat savage king. People who are being
accused have to pick between two doors. One hides a beautiful woman, and the other a
deadly tiger. The author of the book purposely leaves readers guessing about how the
main character's choice will be settled, forcing them to think about moral dilemmas, the
effects of choices, and how decisions are made.

The story is more than just a simple love story or justice story because it uses a strong
literary device to keep the ending unclear. Stockton leaves the ending open to different
interpretations so that readers can think about how hard it is for people to make
decisions and how ambiguous the line between right and wrong is. The unresolved finish
makes readers think about and question what they think they know about justice,
morality, and how hard it is to make moral choices.

Still important today, “The Lady, or the Tiger?” is a look at human nature with themes of
love, and what happens when you make choices. The story's purposeful lack of clarity
sparks ongoing conversations about fairness, morals, and how decisions are made in
different situations. Stockton's work shows how important the themes have been for
generations and how they continue to make people think and reflect as society deals
with changing morals and ethics problems. The story's ending leaves things open-ended,
which makes readers think about how unclear life is and how hard it is to make moral
decisions.

Buen, Florie Mae G.

Survey of the English-American Literature
BSED EN 3-1
Polytechnic University of the Philippines