Dr.+Heidegger's+Experiment

Short Stories - Literary DevisesTitle: Dr. Heidegger's Experiment Point of View: First Person

Protagonist: Dr Heidegger What type of character is the Protagonist? Dynamic

Antagonist: The desires of the people drinking from the fountain of youth. Describe the setting:The story takes place in Dr Heidegger's study. It is dim and old fashioned looking. There are many strange stories that surround his study, including rumours that the bronze bust of hypocrites once spoke to his maid and that all the doctor's deceased patients lived inside it. Judging by the language, the story probably took place a long time ago, although it's hard to tell exactly when. There is a feeling of exitement and expectation throughout the story.

Type of Conflict: Man vs. Himself/His Desires Describe the main conflict: The main conflict between the old people and their desires; they were unable to learn from their mistakes and take advantage of the opportunity to become young again.

Describe the Climax of the Story: I think the climax was when the rose began to whither again and the people became old again, because I think this was the point in the story where the conflict reached its peak. How does the Protagonist change over the course of the story? The main change in Dr. Heidegger (from this point on, I'm just going to call him Dr. H) was that he realized that these people, given a second chance at youth, were not able/willing to change their ways.

Describe the relationship between the title and the theme. The theme of the story was that people are unable change and that we are doomed to repeat our past. This relates to the title "Dr. Heidegger's Experiment" because the conclusions of the experiment were "that people are unable change and that we are doomed to repeat our past" which is the THEME.

How does the main conflict help to illustrate the theme? The theme of being unable to change is illustrated by the people not being able to change their ways, even when they were given a second chance.

How does the climax help to illustrate the theme? The climax of the story illustrates that the people could't change, and that they would, both figuratively and literally, end up the same old, tired, worn out people that they were in the beginning of the story because they were unable to change their ways.

Give examples of each of the the following literary terms in the story (use quotes):

Simile: “...black as ebony..." "...as fresh as violets..." "...as if the flower were reviving from a deathlike slumber..."

Metaphor: "...begun to smooth away the deep and sad inscription that Father Time had been so long engraving on their brows."

Personification: "...till time had buried him..."

Symbol: The rose represents the mistakes that Dr H made when he was young (his lover dying because of the medication he gave her just before they got married).

Foreshadowing (give both elements):‍‍ The rose beginning to whither foreshadows that the people will also grow old again as well.

Irony: The old people claimed that they had learned from their mistakes, but they ended up making the same mistakes again.

Imagery: “The sunshine came through the window, between the heavy festoons of two faded damask curtains, and fell directly across this vase...”

1. The purpose of Dr H's experiment was to find out if people, given the opportunity to be young again, would learn from their mistakes or if they would end up repeating their pasts.

2. All of his friends have regrets about choices that they made when they were young. In the beginning, none of the characters show much energy or character; the all seem run-down and tired, but after a few drinks from the fountain of youth, they become energetic and lively! Mr. Gasgoine's starts ranting about politics, Colonel Killigrew starts sing ing "a jolly bottle song", Mr Medbourne starts doing calculations and talking about his idea for supplying the East Indies with ice, and the Widow Wicherly starts talking to herself in the mirror and inspecting her face.

3. Dr H wouldn't drink from the fountain of youth because he "had much trouble growing old" and is "in no hurry to grow young again. He is willing to be satisfied with the life he was given. His friends do not feel the same way; they were willing to drink the water and become young again.

4. It is unclear who is narrating the story; when I discussed this in my group, we guessed that it might be a niece or nephew of Dr. H. This would explain how they knew what his study looked like. It also seemed like the narrator was younger than the other characters in the story. The narrator is unsure of some of the details, which suggests that they may have heard the story from someone else and are not telling it first-hand.

5. The points made are that you shouldn't squander your youth like the characters in the story and you should learn from your mistakes. I agree with that. You should make the most of your life.

7. If our planet was eight times larger, I think this would be great! But with limited resources and with overpopulation ALREADY being a problem, I think that this would be a bad idea.

COMPLETION 5/5 EFFORT 5/5 CONTENT 5/5 QUESTIONS 10/12 TOTAL 25/27