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The Lady, Or The Tiger? By Frank R. Stockton

1888 Words8 Pages

In Frank R. Stockton’s short story “The Lady, or the Tiger?” a semi-barbaric princess in a semi-barbaric kingdom must decide the fate of her accused lover - shall he be rewarded with a new bride or killed by a vicious tiger? In this kingdom is a system of justice in which any accused man must open one of two doors. Behind one door is a beautiful lady, and behind the other is a fierce tiger. The princess in this kingdom is discovered with her lover, and the youth is thrown into prison, for “never before had a subject dared to love the daughter of the king. (9)” Scared for her lover, the princess proceeds to discover the secret of the doors; which one had the lady, and which had the tiger? The author explores the “grievous reveries (22)” and “days and nights of anguished deliberation (25)” in which the princess has to choose which door to tell her lover to choose. Should she let him …show more content…

Three of those reasons include the unique setting created by the author, the entertaining and meaningful theme, and the intense internal conflict suffered by the princess. There are not many stories that successfully accomplish what “The Lady, or the Tiger?” has done in allowing the reader to reflect more on human nature. One of the main reasons the story exists is to make the reader consider all that they know about mankind and the choices many humans make. If the reader believed it was the tiger that came out of the door, then they probably see humanity as cruel and selfish beings. The reverse is true, that if the lady came out the door, then humanity is compassionate and self-sacrificing. It is crucial to consider the author’s final question at the end of the story, and for you to ask yourself, which do you believe came out of the door. Was it the lady, or the tiger? The answer to that can only come from deep consideration and

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Who do you think the princess chose? The Lady or the Tiger? The story “The Lady or the Tiger?” by Frank R. Stockton is a short story about a princess who makes a very important decision. The princess is dating a man for the first time, and because of this the King gets nervous and as soon as he found this out he put the man on trial. During the trial the man has a choice between a door with a lady and a door with a fierce, hungry tiger.

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Have you ever read a story, in where, it never explicitly answers a question? That is the case in the short story “The Lady or the Tiger?” by Frank R. Stockton. In the short story, the author introduces us to a semi-barbaric king who has a system of both entertainment and “justice” (crime). The way the system works is, the criminal chooses between two doors. In one doors lies a tiger and in the other a fair maiden, waiting to be wed to the criminal in her “social class”.

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The door was flung open to reveal the secret that it had been holding. The anxious onlookers within the arena leaned in their seats, trying to catch a better glimpse of the consequence, as the princess’s face was white with nervousness. Even the king was fidgeting in his seat with excitement, although he did not care of what was to come. Either way, this man would be released from his life. His barbaric side was happy with his past decisions and he was to live with his daughter forevermore.

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