Reviews

The Lady or the Tiger? by Frank R. Stockton

jaklindberg's review against another edition

5.0

Whether the lady or the tiger emerges, both options can be considered valid. However, before the final verdict, several questions need to be answered. For instance:
- Does the man desire the princess for herself or her title?
- Does the man want many women due to his handsome nature?
- Does the princess love the man?
- Does the princess love the man enough to release him so he can marry the beautiful woman on the other side, or is she selfish and wants him for herself so the tiger can have him?

I'm not sure what I would do in such a situation. On one hand, I'd like to think that I'm selfless and would want the person I love to live, even if they can't be with me. On the other hand, I know I'm jealous and don't like to share, but am I so selfish to want someone to die?

dyslexzak's review

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Simple and fascinating. If you've ever complained about an ambiguous ending, read this. This is an open-ended conclusion done right.
This shows that an ambiguous ending shouldn't be a story unfinished. This is a story about a question, a question about human nature. What better way to pose a question, than to leave it unanswered?

grantig's review

emotional inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

mcmendez's review

reflective fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.75

agdistis's review

tense medium-paced

3.5

shanziakhan's review

challenging dark

4.5

chilotte's review

challenging reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Loveable characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

carringtonshaw's review

adventurous dark funny hopeful mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I read this today as the first in an effort to reread as many short stories from my school days as I can, whose titles I clearly recall but whose plots I have long since forgotten. This was one of numerous stories I remember loving from those days.

I'm not sure I ever read anything else by Stockton. I was trying to decide whether to rate the story alone or the entire collection I bought. I had just decided to go on and finish the collection first and was right in the middle of the second story, when I discovered two pages were missing. I took that as a sign to rate the story alone. I'm eager to read the next story when I can locate a complete copy, as well as the others in the book. I really enjoyed the prose, but am not at all surprised--I doubt it ever would have made it into a schoolroom were the prose not top-notch.

The question asked in the title does not seem at all mysterious, though--it is obviously the tiger, in my opinion.

zoe243's review

challenging reflective fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? N/A
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

paella's review

challenging emotional reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0