Climax of Action: Betty sends Jack away—with a smile—and she goes to work at the box factory.
Details. Is there a constant struggle for one character, or does it shift from Jack to Betty?
Is there, accordingly, a stronger or a weaker effect? Is the action unified?
Did you find the time element confusing or anywhere difficult to follow?
What details mark the action as belonging particularly to Vermont?
How many themes do you find in the narrative? Are they brought into essential harmony? What purpose of the author interests you most? What does the author mean to convey in the recognition of Sam Hod and others that Jack’s toast is almost identical with his grandfather’s?
What do you think of the introduction and the emphasis on the wine? How does the following statement heighten interest?—“that liquor was consumed in the pledging of a toast.”
Why does the author add so long a conclusion after the story action has been completed? Is he wise to give the final place of emphasis to the sentence, “All over America her name is legion”? Why?
THE BIG STRANGER ON DORCHESTER HEIGHTS
The Starting Point. Mr. Pentz states, regarding the story and its inception, “Substantially true in fact, it was told and retold to appreciative friends; then it was written at their suggestion. Probably it gathered moss during its latent existence and probably something was lost....”