The Lady or the Tiger: Analysis and Symbolism
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The Lady or
the Tiger
By Frank Stockton
Plot Mountain
Exposition: Introduction of King, the penal system, the princess, and
the exposure of her relationship with a man who is beneath her in
society.
Inciting Incident: The princess discovers which door will hold the
tiger and which will hold the fair maiden.
Rising Action:
The princess struggles with the decision of which door to
send her lover toward.
The lover looks to the princess for an indication of which
door to select.
Climax: The princess indicates he should select the door on the
right.
The Princess
There are many adjectives you could select to describe
her. The key is to provide evidence for your choice.
Example:
Barbaric
“With all the intensity of the savage blood transmitted to
her through long lines of wholly barbaric ancestors, she
hated the woman…”
“How in her grievous reveries had she gnashed her teeth,
and torn her hair, when she saw his start of rapturous
delight as he opened the door of the lady!”
Symbolism Overall of Tiger & Lady
Tiger – Guilt
Lady – Innocence
Symbolism for Princess Choices
Choosing the Lady: Love
Theme being: Unconditional love is selfless.
Choosing the Tiger: Jealousy
Theme being: Jealousy causes people to
act irrationally.
Setting
The setting is relevant because the two doors give
the princess a choice thus establishing a conflict.
“…her soul at a white heat beneath the combined fires of despair and
jealousy. She had lost him, but who should have him?”
The arena becomes significant because it drives
the plot toward an exciting climax by establishing
the mood.
“Every heart stopped beating, every breath was held, every eye was fixed
immovably upon that man.”
Irony – Signifies the opposite
The king felt his system of justice was fair,
but having a wife chosen for you is not
always a reward.
“It mattered not that (the accused) might already
possess a wife and family , or that his affections might
be engaged upon an object of his own selection; the
king allowed no such subordinate arrangements to
interfere with his great scheme of retribution and
reward.”
Point of View
Third Person Omnisceint
“He saw, by that power of quick perception which is given to
those whose souls are one, that she knew behind which door
crouched the tiger, and behind which stood the lady. He had
expected her to know it.”
“She had known she would be asked, she had decided what
she would answer…”
“The king would take an aesthetic pleasure in watching the
course of events, which would determine whether or not the
young man had done wrong in allowing himself to love the
princess.”
First Person POV?
If told from the princess’s point of view,
the choice would be known to the
reader.
Flashback
After the cliff hanger, the author uses
flashback to reveal the princess’s dreams.
These help to develop rising action by
building the intensity of the conflict.
Minor Character Impact
The Lady behind the door is not just an ordinary
lady. She was one who the princess had noticed
flirting with her lover.
“This fair creature throwing glances of admiration upon the person
of her lover, and sometimes she though these glances were
perceived, and even returned.”
The idea that her lover would happily fall in love
with this chosen woman made the jealousy (the
conflict) that much more intense.
Had it been a hideous, ill-tempered woman, the
princess may not worry that her lover’s heart
would be stolen from her.
Princess/King
They are alike in that they have barbaric
characteristics. To even think of sending
her lover to the Tiger because of jealousy
is barbaric.
They are different in that she is struggling
with the punishment of the Tiger, but her
father does not.
“For did not the accused person have the whole matter in his own
hands?”
This Time: Justice is Effective
If the fates thought it wrong to love the princess,
then the man would be attacked by the Tiger.
If the fates thought him innocent of any real
wrong-doing, then he would be happily married to
a lovely woman to whom he had already
expressed affection.
Either way, the lover will no longer be with the
King’s daughter.
Central Conflict
Internal: Love versus Jealousy (Emotions)
The conflict is resolved because the
princess does make a decision. She
directs him to the door on the right.
Protagonist
The princess is the main character. The
conflict, which is internal, is her problem.
Being at the center of the main conflict
makes her the main character or
protagonist.
Antagonist
The antagonist could be viewed as the
King because he established the conflict
for the princess by accusing her lover of
treason.
However, as it is an internal conflict, we
will consider the princess’s emotions to be
driving her internal conflict.
Introduction of characters and plot elements in "The Lady or the Tiger" by Frank Stockton, along with an exploration of symbolism and themes related to choice, love, jealousy, and justice. The story revolves around a princess who must decide the fate of her lover, leading to a dramatic climax that leaves the readers pondering the consequences of her decision.
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Presentation Transcript
The Lady or the Tiger By Frank Stockton
Plot Mountain Exposition: Introduction of King, the penal system, the princess, and the exposure of her relationship with a man who is beneath her in society. Inciting Incident: The princess discovers which door will hold the tiger and which will hold the fair maiden. Rising Action: The princess struggles with the decision of which door to send her lover toward. The lover looks to the princess for an indication of which door to select. Climax: The princess indicates he should select the door on the right.
The Princess There are many adjectives you could select to describe her. The key is to provide evidence for your choice. Example: Barbaric With all the intensity of the savage blood transmitted to her through long lines of wholly barbaric ancestors, she hated the woman How in her grievous reveries had she gnashed her teeth, and torn her hair, when she saw his start of rapturous delight as he opened the door of the lady!
Symbolism Overall of Tiger & Lady Tiger Guilt Lady Innocence
Symbolism for Princess Choices Choosing the Lady: Love Theme being: Unconditional love is selfless. Choosing the Tiger: Jealousy Theme being: Jealousy causes people to act irrationally.
Setting The setting is relevant because the two doors give the princess a choice thus establishing a conflict. her soul at a white heat beneath the combined fires of despair and jealousy. She had lost him, but who should have him? The arena becomes significant because it drives the plot toward an exciting climax by establishing the mood. Every heart stopped beating, every breath was held, every eye was fixed immovably upon that man.
Irony Signifies the opposite The king felt his system of justice was fair, but having a wife chosen for you is not always a reward. It mattered not that (the accused) might already possess a wife and family , or that his affections might be engaged upon an object of his own selection; the king allowed no such subordinate arrangements to interfere with his great scheme of retribution and reward.
Point of View Third Person Omnisceint He saw, by that power of quick perception which is given to those whose souls are one, that she knew behind which door crouched the tiger, and behind which stood the lady. He had expected her to know it. She had known she would be asked, she had decided what she would answer The king would take an aesthetic pleasure in watching the course of events, which would determine whether or not the young man had done wrong in allowing himself to love the princess.
First Person POV? If told from the princess s point of view, the choice would be known to the reader.
Flashback After the cliff hanger, the author uses flashback to reveal the princess s dreams. These help to develop rising action by building the intensity of the conflict.
Minor Character Impact The Lady behind the door is not just an ordinary lady. She was one who the princess had noticed flirting with her lover. This fair creature throwing glances of admiration upon the person of her lover, and sometimes she though these glances were perceived, and even returned. The idea that her lover would happily fall in love with this chosen woman made the jealousy (the conflict) that much more intense. Had it been a hideous, ill-tempered woman, the princess may not worry that her lover s heart would be stolen from her.
Princess/King They are alike in that they have barbaric characteristics. To even think of sending her lover to the Tiger because of jealousy is barbaric. They are different in that she is struggling with the punishment of the Tiger, but her father does not. For did not the accused person have the whole matter in his own hands?
This Time: Justice is Effective If the fates thought it wrong to love the princess, then the man would be attacked by the Tiger. If the fates thought him innocent of any real wrong-doing, then he would be happily married to a lovely woman to whom he had already expressed affection. Either way, the lover will no longer be with the King s daughter.
Central Conflict Internal: Love versus Jealousy (Emotions) The conflict is resolved because the princess does make a decision. She directs him to the door on the right.
Protagonist The princess is the main character. The conflict, which is internal, is her problem. Being at the center of the main conflict makes her the main character or protagonist.
Antagonist The antagonist could be viewed as the King because he established the conflict for the princess by accusing her lover of treason. However, as it is an internal conflict, we will consider the princess s emotions to be driving her internal conflict.
