Analyses of 3 Stories

#1 - "House on Mango Street"
~ Questions
setting & character - "Everyday Use"
theme  & title - "Cask of Amontillado"
symbolism & irony - "House on Mango Street"

#2 - "Everyday Use"
~ Questions
setting & character - "Cask of Amontillado"
theme & title - "House on Mango Street"
symbolism & irony - "Everyday Use"

#3 - "Cask of Amontillado"
~ Questions
setting & character - "House on Mango Street"
theme & title - "Everyday Use"
symbolism & irony - "Cask of Amontillado"

Setting: What is time and the place of the story? Why is this significant? (This is important to all 3 stories)

Character: Who are the primary characters in the story? What motivates each character? Who is the protagonist [the main character]?  How can you tell this is the main character? Who [or what] causes a conflict in the protagonist? What is the conflict?  Is it external? Internal? Both?  EXPLAIN.  How does the protagonist resolve the conflict?

Theme: What is the controlling idea of the story? Could there be more than one theme? [In many cases there can be.]  How can this story relate to modern readers?  Does the story seem plausible?

Title: The title of each story appears in the story itself. What is the significance of the title? In what way does the title anticipate the story?

Symbolism: All 3 stories use symbolism, whether it's a house, a quilt, a coat of arms or something else. Discuss the symbols and what each represents.

Irony: Is there an irony that Maggie ends up with the quilts. Is the nun's behavior ironic? Is it ironic that Fortunato ultimately responds to Montresor with only a jingle of his bells?  Consider these questions and other ironies you find the stories.