A DAY’S WAIT

BY ERNEST HEMINGWAY
DO YOU AGREE OR DISAGREE WITH
ERNEST HEMINGWAY? WHY?
WHAT DO YOU KNOW ABOUT ERNEST HEMINGWAY AND
HIS WRITINGS?
WHICH OF HIS NOVELS OR SHORT STORIES HAVE YOU
HEARD OF?
WRITE THREE
THINGS THAT YOU
REMEMBER ABOUT
ERNEST
HEMINGWAY.
A DAY’S WAIT
WHAT DO YOU THINK THE TITLE OF
THE STORY MEANS?

WHAT MAKES PARENTS MORE OR LESS

SENSITIVE TO THEIR CHILDREN’S
FEARS?

ARE PARENTS ALWAYS SENSITIVE TO

THEIR CHILDREN’S FEARS?

WHY DO CHILDREN SOMETIMES HIDE

THEIR FERAS FROM THEIR PARENTS?
• Whether from an injury or a broken heart, everyone suffers at times.
Some people try hard to keep their pain to themselves, while others
believe it is better to share their thoughts and feelings with others. In
“A Day’s Wait,” a young boy tries to be brave while suffering from an
illness.
DO YOU CONSIDER IT AN ACT OF BRAVERY TO FACE PAIN ON
YOUR OWN, OR DOES IT TAKE MORE COURAGE FOR YOU TO
OPEN UP TO OTHER PEOPLE?
Who is the narrator in the
story? From whose point of
is the story told?

What is wrong with

Schatz? Describe his
appearance.

Why do you think the boy

comes downstairs dressed
isntead of staying in bed?

Why do you think the boy

keeps saying ‘I’m alright..’
although he isn’t?
What does the doctor say
about Schatz’ condition?

How does the narrator

treat Schatz?

What does this reveal

about his character?
Why doesn’t the boy pay
attention to the book his
father is reading?
WHAT WOULD YOU DO IF YOU HAD HIGH FEVER? WOULD
YOU REACT THE WAY SCHATZ DOES? WHY / WHY NOT?

HOW WOULD YOU EXPECT YOUR PARENTS TO TREAT YOU IF

YOU WERE SUFFERING FROM HIGH FEVER?
According to the narrator, it
would have been natural for
Schatz to fall asleep. Why do
you suppose Schatz cannot
sleep? What can we infer?

Why does Schatz tell the

narrator that he doesn’t
have to stay? What does
Schatz seem to think?

‘.... if it bothers you?’

What des ‘IT’ refer to?
The narrator goes out hunting after giving Schatz
medicine. What can we infer about what the narrator
thinks about Schatz’ condition?
Why does the boy refuse to
let anybody in the room?

What worries the boy?

‘... I cannot keep from

thinking..’ What do you think
the boy is thinking about?
Why does Schatz think that
he is dying?
What was it that Schatz
misunderstood?

What do you think is the

cause of miscommunication?
How could it be prevented?
 VOCABULARY REVIEW
Do you remember what these words mean?
 …cheeks
flushed
from a
fever

The hunting dogs

flushed a covey of
…flush quail from the high
the toilet grass.

3
 He seemed somewhat…
detached during class today.

She couldn’t walk or think straight.

She was feeling a bit…
lightheaded.
(Usually due to a fever or after
drinking a lot of alcohol.)
 1

…poised to strike

…poised on a
rock
 a river bank

a bank or bench

a bank
a snow bank a grassy
bank
Sleet covered the ground.

He shivered violently
from the cold.
… colorful capsules
Her doctor prescribed multiple
medications.
But the prescribed capsules were
too difficult for her to swallow.
(adj)
 varnish
(n)

varnish
(v)

My aunt is varnishing the The road was varnished with

chair using the old varnish ice.
from the shed.
Work will commence on the new building immediately.
 THINKING CRITICALLY

1. What kind of a relationship do you think the father and the son have? Are they
close? Why?/Why not?
How do they communicate? Is there a mother in the story? Where is she?

2. Why doesn’t Schatz tell his father that he is afraid?

3. How does the father sense Schatz’s fear?

4. How does Hemingway portray the boy and the father?

5. If you were to choose another title for the story, what would it be?
LITERARY ANALYSIS OF THE STORY
INFERENCING

Authors often write something that is intended to

have more than one meaning. While you read, look
for meanings that are not explicitly stated- these are
inferences. Making inferences will help you enjoy
the reading on a different level. The story now has a
deeper significance, and you will have a better
understanding of it.
QUOTE FROM THE STORY
But when I came downstairs he was dressed sitting by the
fire, looking a very sick and miserable boy of nine
years. .... ‘You go up to bed,’ I said, ‘You are sick.’
‘I!m alright,’ he said.
‘He lay still in bed and seemed very detached from what
was going on.’
‘You don’t have to stay in here with me, Papa, if it
bothers you.’
At the house they said the boy had refused to let anyone
come into the room.
‘I’m taking it easy,’ he said and looked straight a head. He
was evidently holding tight onto himself about something. He thinks he is dying because of high fever but he doesn’t
...and he cried very easily at little things that were of no
importance.
INFERENCE
The father is wawre of his son’s condition, He his
attentive, caring and loving.
The boy may want to appear brave and mature.
Something was disturbing the little boy.
The boy is trying to protect his father. He
wants to shield his father from witnessing waht
he believes to be his rapidly approaching
death.
He thinks he is contagious. He doesn’t want
the others to catch the illness. He wants to
appear brave in the face of death and protect
his family from such an emotional burden.
want to act cowardly in front of his father, the doesn’t
admit his feeling of fear.
He was very sensitive and tense. Now he is able to
relax and react like a nine year old boy.
 THEME
THEME EXPLANATION

SILENCE AND MISCOMMUNICATION

Hemingway’s story is a tragedy of miscommunication. The
boy would not have endured so many hours of solitary fear
if he had spoken up to his father or if his father had done
more to inquire into his son’s state of mind. Hemingway
shows how the failure of communication can result in
knowledge of gap, to be filled with painful confusion and
misunderstanding.
 FOLLOW UP I
PRETEND THAT YOU ARE SCHATZ. WRITE A PARAGRAPH ABOUT
WHAT IS GOING ON IN YOUR MIND AS YOU LIE I BED THINKING
ABOUT YOUR ILLNESS. USE THE PRESENT TENSE.
 FOLLOW UP II
REWRITE THE STORY FROM SCHATZ’S POINT OF VIEW.