A Jury of Her Peers by Susan Glaspell

The setting is around the 1900’s in a place called Dickson County, IA. A rural area where it seems a lot of farming is done and the women are supposes to stay home and tend to the home and farm life. A theme throughout the story is feminism. The title supports this by how the antagonist, Minnie Wright, will be tried by her peers, co-protagonists Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters. The women hold the power. The men are off gathering evidence and the women stay in the kitchen where the story is unraveled and told from. The plot is to figure out how Mrs. Wright will be judged. The name “Minnie” is short for minimized which is a symbol of how minimized she felt in her life. She lived a secluded life and was thought of as a mere housewife. The bird cage symbolizes Minnie’s life caged up and John Wright (husband) strangling the bird is like Minnie’s breaking point. The bird and Minnie are the same in how the bird sings beautifully like Minnie used to before she was married and was trapped in her marriage like the bird in the cage. The point of view is third person limited omniscient in how the story is told from Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters and how they see the surroundings and how they feel about everything they see. The denouement is that the women decide to not show the evidence against Mrs. Wright.

This story was really good. I like detective shows and this reminded me of them. The way the women know how they all think and have that sense that something was wrong is kind of mind bottling. The men who are the detectives do not get as much evidence from the kitchen like the women do and they think of them as simple minded and not capable of much but house work. They obviously were mistaken. The fact that they know what Minnie might have been going through shows that they might not be so happy either and have gone through tough things too. Mrs. Peters is kind of afraid to give her thoughts but does so later on. She is the one who does not want to give the evidence to the sheriff that will incriminate Minnie. It is sad how John would kill the only thing that made her happy, I would have killed him too.

The Catbird Seat by James Thurber

The protagonist of this story is Erwin Martin, the head of the filing department at F & S. The antagonist is Mrs. Ulgine Barrows, who is the new advisor to the president of the firm. The setting is around the 40's in what seems to be New York City by mentions of "Fifth Avenue" and "Broadway". Martin is a predictable man who does not smoke or drink, very reliable. He is a developing character in how he uses his predictability to his advantage. Barrows is a very load, opinionated women who seems to be a bit arrogant. Martin’s plot to kill her backfires which makes for a better plan to get rid of Barrows. The story is told in third person limited as it tells only what the character knows. The theme would be nothing is what it seems. Martin is this man who could never hurt a fly and he uses this to trick his boss that Barrows is crazy. What is ironic is that he did not even have to bring up the subject. Barrows went to the boss and got herself fired. The roles are switched in this story. Ironic how the woman is the loud mouth hot shot and the man is the laid back worker when it is usually the other way around. Martin was compared to sitting in a catbird seat when he really was, he just had to look pretty and wait for it all to unfold.


This was a funny story. I think it is funny how Erwin was so annoyed by Ulgine that he wanted to kill her. I think that many people, who are so afraid of change, even if it is a small one, are kind of crazy. Any type of situation that is out of the normal might trigger something inside them. I thought it was funny how he was sure of killing her and that he did not even have a weapon, he was going to find something there. It turned out good though, because he did not kill her and he got rid of her in a pretty tricky and smart way. The quite ones are the most conniving ones. That is why you have to watch out for them.

The Jilting of Granny Weatherall by Katherine Anne Porter

The protagonist, Ellen Weatherall, is an elderly woman who is about to die. The setting is in her home bedroom as she recalls her life. The story is written in the third person and told through stream of consciousness by the way the protagonist's life is told. The jilting granny (protagonist) refers to is how her first love, George, left her at the altar, her husband, John, died young leaving her to care for her children and work on her own and at the end when she does not see a sign from God warning her of her death. The last name Weatherall is significant in how she has weathered all types of things throughout her life and still wants to keep going. George is the ironic part of Ellen's life. He was the cause of her jilting and her way of not dealing with him and making herself not show her hurt inside caused more jilting as the years went by. The theme of the story is one of denial. Ellen denies the fact that she is about to die. She was ready for death twenty years ago, not now when she has so much to do "tomorrow".


I thought this story to be sad and depressing. I would not like to be in her shoes. The fact that she is in denial about dying and still has lots to do is what makes it even sadder. Granny says she still has a lot to do “tomorrow” but she does not have the chance to do any of it. It seems as she lived a somewhat comfortable life but she was not happy and she had to work very hard and by herself for that life. She dies sadly too. She is jilted in how she dies and that is very depressing. It is like she can never win, not even in how she dies. It makes you really think that life is really short and to never leave things for “tomorrow”.

First Confession by Frank O' Connor

Jackie (protagonist) is a little boy who finds himself in a not so good situation where he has to go to confession for the first time and is scared. It is told from the town Montenotte which is in an area in Ireland. The antagonist is Nora (his sister) who taunts Jackie and is always telling on him. The conflict of the story revolves around the grandmother who moves in and whom Jackie dislikes a great deal. Unlike Nora, who sucks up to her grandma, Jackie makes his feelings and thoughts known that he does not like her. The climax of the story is when Jackie finally gets to confess his plot to kill his grandmother. The protagonist is soon surprised by the way the priest is so understanding. This is a sign of irony because the thing he was so scared of doing helped him in the long run and was not so scary. Another sign of irony is when Nora is jealous because she was sure Jackie was going to be sent to hell for all he does and he only has to say three Hail Mary’s. There is a lot of humor as well. The way the priest goes along with the story of how he will kill his grandma makes Jackie feel like he really understands where he is coming from. It is told in the first person innocent eye point of view. Nora is a static character in how she is really mean and even after the confession she seems to not have changed. Jackie is a developing character because he seems to have found some relief about what he has done and really feels better. What stood out is the idea that no matter how bad something may seem it is better to let it all out, it might not be as bad as you think it is.


I liked this story because I have a lot of younger cousins and it reminded me of them. It is funny to actually hear what goes on inside their heads and how they make such big deals out of little stuff. What was amusing is how he had his grandmas murder all planned out even how to get rid of the body. It gives an insight on what they think of certain things and situations without trying to sugar coat it like adults do. Nora was kind of a pest at times because she probably did not want her grandma to feel bad and she sucked up to her but the way she did it was what Jackie did not like. What did not help was also the fact that she got him in trouble all the time as well. It was also not nice of her to scare him about confession knowing that it was really not that bad. The priest was very nice. He went along with Jackie and told him of bad people who also wanted to kill their grandma. Jackie felt comfortable with him and told him of how he almost killed his sister with a butter knife and related to him. It was a really cute story and it ended on a good note.

A Clean Well-Lighted Place by Ernest Hemingway

This short story gives the idea that it is set in a spanish speaking place like Spain because of the language and the type of currency used. It is late at night and the only people in the café are the two waiters and an elderly man. The antagonist would be the dark. The dark is what makes the old man want to stay at the café so late so he does not feel lonely at home which makes the younger waiter angry because he has to stay and tend to the old man. The protagonist is the older man who is a static character because he does not change in any way, his presence is what makes the story. The younger waiter is a developing character in that he seems to give off a sense of arrogance but he is just in a hurry to get home and does feel for the old man later on. The older waiter is also the protagonist because the story ends with his life being told. He is static throughout the story, he feels compassion for the old man because they are both the same in not wanting to be alone in the dark. The point of view is third person omniscient in how all three characters give insight of how they feel. The café can be compared to the old man in how it is clean, well kept and empty. The old man is a drunk who seems to be put together and has a good life but lonely. Dissatisfaction would be the theme. The older man and waiter are somewhat depressed and lonely and nothing seems to satisfy that depression, "nada" is what they have to look forward to.


I think this story is very sad. It makes me hope that I will not end up so alone that I cannot stand to be in my own home. It kind of reminds me of how you are afraid of the dark when you are a little kid and just a small light makes it all good. The old man needs that lighted café at night because he does not want to be alone in the dark at home. This is the only comfort he has and the younger waiter takes that away from him, even if it is just an hour. An hour can go a long way. The older waiter feels for him because he is on that same road. He too tries to avoid going home alone at night to nothing. The younger waiter is not a bad guy he just wants to get home at a decent hour rather than at three like every other night. It makes you want to enjoy all you have now because you may not have it in the long run and you could become lonely. What makes you feel for both men is the fact that everyone else thinks they are worthless and are just drunks who are out to get more drunk. In fact they are trying to get away what they fear the most and what is going to happen every day, the dark.

The Lottery by Shirley Jackson

The protagonist and antagonist of the story is the lottery. The story revolves around this event and everyone is getting ready for it which makes it seem as if it were a good thing when in fact it is horrible. The setting is in the summer in a small village and around the 1940's. It is told in the third person omniscient objective where the narrator tells the whole process of the name picking and how everything is done. It tells the whole villages reactions rather than just of one. The conflict occurs as Bill Hutchinson gets "it" and his wife (Tess Hutchinson) proclaims that it is unfair and that the whole drawing should be redone. The denouement ends with Tess Hutchinson being stoned to death. Horror would be one type of genre this short story falls into. The idea of stoning someone to death as part of a tradition to help the crops is a form of sacrifice and it is horrible. It is scary to think that stoning someone is ok. The irony in this story is in the title. The word "lottery" is associated with luck and good fortune where here it is associated with death. The event being thought of as a civic event like the dances or town festivals gives an insight on how the village sees this as a normal tradition that will forever go on, not as torture. The theme is “things are never as they seem" the thought of winning the lottery is great but not in this story. When first reading, the outcome never seems that it will end in an inhuman way.


I thought this story was a little bit morbid. The fact that they seem to think “the lottery” as a good thing and that it has to go on for years to come just kind of makes me think they are small minded. The setting is maybe around the 40’s so the way of thinking is different than now, but I would think that they would still have a sense of morals. Stoning someone so that the crops would do good is nonsense. They should do as the other towns have done and stop. It does not seem like their crops are doing badly and they do not have to stone anyone. Another thing is if they have to do it why involve the little ones who have no clue what is going on, it is unfair. In a way it gives and insight on how tradition is very much important to many, even though it is a bad one. Life might change and people grow old but having this tradition done every year gives a sense of comfort in that there is something that is constant in their lives. It is also important how people need to be educated and know their surroundings so that they can be more open to change. Change is not always bad. I do like how you are kept in suspense of what the prize is until the very end so when you reread it you start to pick up clues that you did not see the first time around, for instance the kids collecting piles of stones.

The Yellow Wallpaper by Perkins Gilman

The Yellow Wallpaper seems to be set around the 1870's and in the US because the Fourth of July is celebrated. The protagonist is the narrator, who is not identified at the start but later said to be Jane. She tells the story in a first person point of view. She is the wife of John, the antagonist, a physician who does not believe she is sick. Jane seems to develop as the story goes on by the way she starts to look at the wallpaper and how she has many views or thoughts about it that end up making her go crazy. At first she hates it and wants to get rid of it then is intrigued by it and wants to uncover what is underneath. Jane is suffering from postpartum depression and to get her healthy, John rents a mansion for the summer to let her rest. Jane does not like this because she thinks she is getting worse. She is her own confidant in how everything she does and thinks she keeps to herself and writes it down as a form a therapy. The conflict is internal and man vs. herself because not only does she have to deal with all the thoughts and theories she has about the wallpaper by herself, but also worries about the fact that she is very sick. The climax comes to play when Jane goes on a rampage and tears down the wallpaper to let the women she sees out. Jane becoming the women proofs that she has some sort of psychological problem concluding that she is crazy. The theme of the story is that things are never what they seem.




This story was a little bit disturbing. The way it was told as if she was writing it all down in her journal gave a chance to see what she was going through and her thoughts of all that was happening to her. Living in this day and age is better than back then because now depression can be treated effectively and without having to be secluded in a mansion and not being able to do anything. The way that the story slowly flowed and unraveled Jane’s final outcome was a chance to, in a way, understand how one goes crazy. While reading the story, never did the thought of Jane being crazy came up. It is truly like seeing through an insane persons eyes because they do not think they are crazy, they think all they do is right and logical. Not until the end when Jane says “I wonder if they all come out of that wall-paper as I did?” her true sickness is revealed, she was slowly going crazy and the yellow wallpaper drove her to insanity. It was sad reading how she knew something was not right and she could not tell anyone because they never believed her. She kept everything to herself so John would not see that his actions to supposedly help her were really useless. It is weird how since the beginning she knew something was not right about the yellow wallpaper and it turned out to be right.