English 1020 Prof.

Awilda Nieves

Name: Johanelis Soto Davila

Assignment 6.1

1. Outline the elements of the short story. Use complete sentences and/or paragraphs.

o Title: Identify the story that you will analyze.

The title Dr. HEIDEGGER'S EXPERIMENT. It is a story where it takes place completely in one

place. It has a clear message; it shows the conflict and the solution.

o Author: Include a brief biography.

Nathaniel Hawthorne is an American novelist and short story writer. He was born on July 4, 1804

and died on May 19, 1864. He studied at Bowdoin College and when he finished, he devoted

himself to literature. Not being recognized by the public, he tried to destroy all copies of his novel

Fanshawe (1828), whose edition he paid for. In addition, I write articles and short stories for

newspapers. Later he has a job as an appraiser then another on a farm, but despite that he

continues to write public stories, short stories, children's stories, novels, and biography. He is a

figure among the most esteemed representatives of the American romantic narrative.

o Setting: Describe the time, place, and environment of the story.

The setting of the story was a summer afternoon. In one study was a dark, ancient room,

festooned with cobwebs and sprinkled with ancient dust. Around the walls were several oak

bookcases, the lower shelves of which were filled with rows of giant folios and quarters of black

letters. Above the central bookcase was a bronze bust of Hippocrates. They were sitting around a

small round black table.

 o Characters: Mention and describe (character traits) the main character and the
secondary characters.

The main character is Heidegger, he is old, a doctor, he is strange, sad, experimenting, persistent,

cunning, he has rheumatritis. The secondary characters are Mr. Medbourne is a beggar, before a

prosperous merchant, has a white beard, skeptical, ambitious, and ignorant. Killigrew is a colonel,

he has a health condition called gout, he has a white beard, distrustful and reckless. Mr. Gascoigne

was a bankrupt politician, a man of ill fame, he has a white beard, unbelieving and foolish.

Wycherly is a widow, beautiful in her time, vain, self-centered, incredulous, old and unreasonable.

Sylvia Ward a young lady with a disorder.

o The Plot: Identify the introduction, rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution.

The plot was to find out what the doctor's purpose was in bringing the four of them together and what

experiment he wanted to do with them. The rising action when the doctor gave them to drink from the

water of the fountain of youth. The climax was that it produced in the four of them to drink that water.

The descending action was to see how they enjoyed and celebrated looking young and feeling strong

without any pain or illness. The resolution when he accidentally breaks the vase where the water of the

fountain of youth was, and they return to their old reality again.

o Conflict: Identify and explain the type of conflict in the story.

The conflict of the story is that they did not accept that they were already old, and their time of

youth was over. They lamented the condition they were in; they did not recognize that being

young again is not the true happiness and solution. Instead of learning that lesson, they decided

to go to the source so they could continue enjoying life. Without recognizing that you have to go

through stages and death is one of them.

 o Theme: Identify the central theme in the story. What is the message or lesson of this
story?

The central theme of the story is learning to enjoy the time we live in and not cling to the past.

The message that this story wants to convey to us is to accept when stages of our lives close and

new ones begin. As we grow, we mature and interests change, the mentality we had a year ago is

not the same as now. That is the right thing to do, to evolve, to enjoy the present and what we

are experiencing. Let's not cling to what we already live and want to return to them let's find the

beauty of the stage we are living.

o Point of View: Who narrates the story? How do you know?

In my point of view who narrates the story is the author Hawthorne. Because none of the

characters speak in the first person.

o Write a paragraph of 5 sentences or more describing your thoughts on the story. Use
the following questions as a guide:

 What did you like about the story?

 What was the most intriguing moment?

 Is it relevant in modern times?

 How could the story be different if it happened in another time or place?

What I liked about the story was when the author was telling that the three old men were

lovers of the old woman. There the quick author catches the reader with that situation that I did not

expect. The most intriguing moment was when they drank the water from the fountain of youth

because I thought the doctor had other intentions in making him drink that water. In these modern

times, it is relevant because there are many self-conscious young people who do not like their body who

undergo surgeries and buy products anyway, older people who want to look young without wrinkles run
to the alternatives that are offered. The story could be different if it takes place in another time by

changing the fictitious method of water and showing all that the media offers to rejuvenate.