Is the narrator to blame for Doodle's death? Why or why not? Use text from the story to explain your answer.

It has been suggested that, since the story is set just after WWI, it serves as an allegory for what happened to a generation of young American men. What parallels can you see in the story that would support this interpretation?

Why would Hurst use an ibis in his story? Why is this the title? Is there a better title for the story?

Why is Lydia unhappy in her home? Contrast this with the way George seems to feel. Give quotes as evidence.

What comment is the author, Ray Bradbury, making about future technology? Think about

who really parents the children, how Lydia feels that she doesn't have enough to do, and the

fact that Peter and Wendy think about death so often.

Is “The Veldt” still applicable today? Does this story have any application in our modern

world?

Who is Framton Nuttel? What are the first things we learn about him? How does this frame our perspective of this character? How does this frame the way he is viewed by other characters? Why is he in this town?

In one sentence, can you summarize The Open Window?

What role do expectations play in this short story?

What sort of household do we imagine the Maloney home to be? How does Dahl evoke a homely atmosphere and why is the sense of domestic peace recalled at the end of the tale?

Before the husband breaks the news, what three clues are there that this particular evening is going to be a break with routine?

Do you think the murder was "premeditated" or a "crime of passion"?

What can the reader infer, using evidence from the text, about the two boys that are missing? Does this help us figure out what happens to Billy?

Early in the story, Dahl describes the Bed and Breakfast. What words and imagery are used to describe the Bed and Breakfast? What inference does Billy make about the Bed and Breakfast based on the look of the place?

Dahl emphasizes the speed at which the Landlady answers the door. What might this foreshadow about the Landlady?

What is the significance of freedom in the story? How does the author portray this idea?

Describe Mrs. Mallard’s reaction to the death of her husband. Why do you think she feels this way?

What view of marriage is portrayed in the story? Can this view still apply today?

Why does the story continually return to references to the orchard and to Maggie?  ( What is significant in these continual references?  What are we to make of the confusion Twyla experiences in her memories of these things?

Is this ultimately a pessimistic story?  Or do identity, and friendship, show themselves as transcendent somehow, undamaged in their essence by change?  What details in the story help you to decide on your answer?