How does the manner of the cat’s disposition of the fish-head make logical its subsequent interest in the snake-head?
What intensifying value has the “sad, gray moss”?
What effect has Sally’s second encounter with the cat?
Study the naturalness, the dramatic development, and the enriching quality of the scene wherein the rattlesnake is discussed. How does it make plausible, also, the fact that the cat found the snake-head?
What contribution is made to the final effect in Jim’s toast to the cat?
What do you think of the final sentence by way of conclusion?
What is the length of the action?
This story, the first Mr. Greene wrote, after taking up the study of story technique, is particularly excellent for showing early recognition of plot demands. If its structure is, on investigation, a trifle obvious, it will be all the better for the student’s purpose. On comparing it with later stories by the same author, he will find that growth which means ability to conceal mechanism—or to forget it altogether.
The student needing exercise in plot construction should read Captain Greene’s “Molly McGuire, Fourteen” (Century, September, 1917; also reprinted in “A Book of Short Stories,” edited by Blanche Colton Williams), and should study his diagram of the lines of interest and their complications (See “A Handbook on Story Writing,” by Blanche Colton Williams, page 94).