THE OPEN WINDOW- H. H. MUNRO (SAKI)
Summary
of Story: H.H.
Munro's (Saki) "The Open Window" brilliantly portrays how one's
nerves affect his/her personality. As Framton embarks on a trip intended as a
"nerve cure," he finds himself in an unfamiliar situation that
ultimately has a negative effect on his seemingly nervous personality.
Plot
Frampton
Nuttel suffers from a nervous condition and has come to spend some time alone.
His sister sets up introductions for him with a few members of the community.
His first visit is to the Sappleton house where he meets fifteen-year-old Vera,
the niece of Mrs. Sappleton. Vera keeps Nuttel company while he waits. Upon
hearing that Nuttel has not met the Sappletons, Vera tells Nuttel some
information about the family. Vera says that three years ago to the date, Mrs.
Sappleton's husband and two younger brothers went on a hunting trip and never
returned. Vera goes into detail about the clothes they were wearing, the dog
that accompanied them, and the song that Mrs. Sappleton's brother sang upon
their return. Vera says that her grief-stricken aunt watches out the window
expecting their return. When Mrs. Sappleton enters, she tells Nuttel that she
expects her husband and brothers to return at any moment. Nuttel listens,
thinking that Mrs. Sappleton has in fact gone crazy. Suddenly, Mrs. Sappleton
brightens as she tells Nuttel that they have returned. Nuttel turns only to see
the "dead" hunters. He becomes frightened and leaves in a rush. Mrs.
Sappleton doesn't understand Nuttel's strange behavior, but Vera replies that
he is deathly afraid of dogs. Not until the end of the story does the reader
realize that Vera has tricked Mr. Nuttel. This is revealed with the last line
of the story: "Romance at short notice was her [Vera's] specialty."
Sources: unit3english.blogspot.com/2011/.../open-window-h-h-munro-saki.ht...17.08.2012
Armed with a letter of introduction, Framton
Nuttel is visiting Mrs. Sappleton’s country estate for a “nerve cure.” Mr.
Nuttel is greeted by the niece, Vera, a polite “self-possessed young lady of
fifteen,” who begins telling him about her aunt’s great tragedy. Pointing to
the open French window, Vera (Latin, meaning “truth”) spins a yarn about her
aunt’s husband and two brothers who went out through the window on a hunting
trip through the moors fifteen years earlier and never returned. The aunt keeps
the window open in expectation of their imminent return. Suddenly the aunt
enters. Over the civilities of tea and polite conversation, she alludes to the
hunting trip, and Mr. Nuttel becomes gradually unnerved. When, indeed, the
hunting party returns, Nuttel, as if he had seen ghosts, flees. The niece, we
learn, had told the truth about the hunters, but had made up the part about
their disappearance. They had simply gone out that morning, but, says Saki,
Vera was incorrigible. “Romance at short notice was her specialty.” At first
glance the story appears to be a mere joke; but “THE OPEN WINDOW” can be reread
with pleasure because of its masterful tone--a finely honed, polite restraint
with only a hint of a smirk on the authorial face.Finally, the narrative works
as a parody of the traditional ghost story. Vera’s yarn has all the trimmings
of the standard mystery--the journey on the moors, the mysterious
disappearance, even Mr. Nuttel’s role as scared listener. In the end, the
tradition is subverted. Romance is but a prank.
"The Open Window'' is Saki's most popular short story. It was first
collected in Beasts and Super-Beasts in 1914. Saki's wit is at the
height of its power in this story of a spontaneous practical joke played upon a
visiting stranger. The practical joke recurs in many of Saki's stories, but
"The Open Window'' is perhaps his most successful and best known example
of the type. Saki dramatizes here the conflict between reality and imagination,
demonstrating how difficult it can be to distinguish between them. Not only
does the unfortunate Mr. Nuttel fall victim to the story's joke, but so does
the reader. The reader is at first inclined to laugh at Nuttel for being so
gullible. However, the reader, too, has been taken in by Saki's story and must
come to the realization that he or she is also inclined to believe a well-told
and interesting tale.The Open Window Summary
Framton Nuttel has presented himself at the Sappleton house to pay a visit. He is in the country undergoing a rest cure for his nerves and is calling on Mrs. Sappleton at the request of his sister. Though she does not know Mrs. Sappleton well, she worries that her brother will suffer if he keeps himself in total seclusion, as he is likely to do.Fifteen-year-old Vera keeps Nuttel company while they wait for her aunt. After a short silence, Vera asks if Nuttel knows many people in the area. Nuttel replies in the negative, admitting that of Mrs. Sappleton he only knows her name and address. Vera then informs him that her aunt's "great tragedy" happened after his sister was acquainted with her. Vera indicates the large window that opened on to the lawn.
Exactly three years ago, Vera recounts, Mrs. Sappleton's husband and two younger brothers walked through the window to go on a day's hunt.
D.N. Aloysius
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