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Wedding Gift Questions

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 1. List all the characters in this story and describe who they are:

- Mr. Hathaway: was Barclay’s agent at Bristol Creek, was a arranged husband of Kenzia

- Mr. Barclay: was the chief pillar of godliness in Port Marriott

- Mrs. Barclay: is Mr. Barclay’s wife

- Mr. Mears: pallid young preacher

- Kezia Barnes: is the main character in this story. She was a twenty-two meek girl who

was a house-help in the Barclay home.

- Clara/ Julia: daughters of Mr. Barclay

- Abigail: a cook at the Barclay’s home.

2. On the fateful journey with Mr. Mears, Kezia takes control of events to her own

advantages. Suggest why she was unable to do so before

She was unable to do those things because there were no events happening that

changed her mind. She was described as a meek, quiet, and pious child, raised as the Barclay's

house-help since the age of 14. Until she is 22 years old, and she doesn't do because everything

they arrange is still happening every day. She gets used to it. The reason she takes control of

events to her own advantages because it relates to her marriage. If there has no arranged

marriage, she probably would not protest and change her mind as well as her actions.

3. what details in the courting scene are humiliating for Kezia and reveal the degree to

which she is not in control of her own life

Mr Hathway spent two or three evenings courting Kezia in the kitchen—Kezia dressed in

a rather nice gown of Miss Clara's, gazing out at the November moon on the snow and

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murmuring occasionally in the tones of someone in a rather depressing trance, while the

kitchen help listened behind one door and the Barclay girls giggled behind another.

4. How by the end of the short story are the roles of Kezia and Mr.Mears reversed

from “ traditional” roles? Provide specific examples.

For traditional role, man would be the suitor. However, at the end of the short story, its

role was reversed. This means that Kezia proposed to marry Mr. Mears that she would be Mr.

Mears' wife, not Mr. Hathaway's. For example, she asked him that he would not matter if the

young woman was his wife; and she proposed that she is a good girl, she can read, write and

know all the tunes in the psalter and look after him. She would want to be his wife.

5. what is the significance of the title to the story?

The title is the story's first impression. It will make readers shape the direction of the

story and draw their attention if it's an interesting one

6. Using details provided in the story, describe Mr. Hathaway’s character

Mr Hathaway was about forty years old and far from handsome, and he had a rather

cold, inquisitive demeanor that was advantageous in business. He was Barclay's agent at Bristol

Creek, where he sold rum, gunpowder, and corn meal to fishermen and hunters, and purchased

split cod—fresh, pickled, or dried—and ran a small sawmill, cut and shipped firewood to Port

Marriot by schooner, and managed a farm, all for a salary of fifty pounds, Halifax currency, per

year. According to Mr Barclay, Hathaway was a very competent individual.

7. Setting plays an important role in this story. How do the changes in settings affect

Kezia and Mr. Mears differently?

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 The disappearance of the horse and the appearance of the snowstorm affect them

differently. This means that when facing these obstacles, Kezia gradually becomes grittier, more

unwavering while the preacher is clumsy, helpless, shy and childlike demeanour.

8. What do you think is the overall theme in this short story?

“The Wedding Gift” expresses the theme of rebellion

9. The surprise ending is frequently used as a literary technique in short stories/ why is

the surprise ending in “The Wedding Gift” so satisfying?

It can be seen that at the end of the story, the author gives us an unexpected ending.

We think that with Mr. Barclay's strict arrangement, Kezia will marry Mr. Hathaway though

there are many unfavourable circumstances for both Kezia and the preacher Mr. Mears during

the journey. Readers also will think that Kezia will yield to them because she has been

oppressed since she was 14 years old. However, after happening some events, including loss of

her horse, the appearance of snowstorm or the preacher's attitude, she decides to change her

life by proposing to be the preacher's wife. This ending satisfies the reader in a surprising way

as Kezia changes her own destiny by herself. This means that she does not have to be reluctant

to marry Mr. Hathaway, she has the right to choose happiness just as she is free from the

oppression of Mr and Mrs. Barclay to find the freedom and happiness that she always wanted.

10. what is the earliest you think Kezia has a plan? Provide a specific example from the

story to support your answer?

The earliest plan Kezia has is the ride-and-tie process. The ride-and-tie process allows

everyone of them, including the horse, to relax and recuperate while also progressing towards

Bristol Creek. Kezia makes a choice to protect the priest and the animal from exhaustion.

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 11. List at least 3 literacy devices used in this story.

- Pathetic fallacy

- Situational irony

- Symbolism