The Catbird Seat by James Thurber

The Catbird SeatJames Thurber

Jesper SilvaBSEd II-A, English

JAMES THURBERNotable Life Experiences: Both of his parents

greatly influenced his work.

William Tell shot James in the eye with an arrow, and Thurber lost that eye.

Genre: Short stories, cartoons, essays

JAMES THURBERNotable Works: My Life and Hard Times

"The Dog That Bit People" "The Night the Bed Fell"

CLASSICS The Secret Life of Walter Mitty The Catbird Seat A Couple of Hamburgers The Greatest Man in the World

If Grant Had Been Drinking at Appomattox

75 fables The New Yorker (1939)Fables for Our Time &

Famous Poems Illustrated (1940)

Further Fables for Our Times (1956)

PROSE IN THE NEW YORKER Humurous essays

JAMES THURBER

WRITING STYLE: Full of sophistication, charm and wit,

his stories and essays manifest a comic style that is never folksy but still quintessentially American.

NOTABLE AWARD: Thurber won a special Tony Award for

the adapted script of the Carnival.

JAMES THURBER

LEGACY: Established in 1997, the annual

Thurber Prize honors outstanding examples of American humor.

DEATH: 66 Pneumonia

JAMES THURBER

ON THE PROCESS . . .

WORD GAME: DIAL IT!5—2—7777—7—33—777gemstone: a red, iron-bearing chalcedony.

JASPER

CODES1. 222—88—66—66—444—66—42. 333—2—555—555—444—22—555—333. 7—777—666—333—2—66—33—34. 2—7—7—2—555—555—33—35. 7-33—222—222—2-3—444—555—555—666

ANSWERS

1. CUNNING2. FALLIBLE3. PROFANED4. APALLED5. PECADILLO

CHARACTERS Mr. Erwin Martin - decides he must

kill Mrs. Barrows

Mrs. Ulgine Barrows - an assistant that is redoing the format of the company

Mr. Fitweiler - the owner of the company

Miss Paird - Mr. Fitweiler's other assistant

TRIVIASatire Vices, follies, abuses, and

shortcomings are held up to ridicule, ideally with the intent of shaming individuals, corporations, government or society itself, into improvement.

To draw attention to both particular and wider issues in society using wit

TRIVIA Strong irony or sarcasm but parody,

burlesque, exaggeration, juxtaposition, comparison, analogy, and double entendre are all frequently used in satirical speech and writing

Jesper SilvaBSEd II-A, English

TRIVIA GAME

Who wrote The Catbird Seat?1

James ThuberJames Patrick Sayao

James ThurberJames Caesar Ventura

Who is the antagonist in the satire?2

Mr. Erwin MartinJames Thurber

Mr. FitweilerMrs. Ulgine Barrows

Who was Thurber’s inspiration for most of his characters in his stories?

3His friendHis fatherHis brotherHis mother

What genre of literature does The Catbird Seat

belongs?4

Short StoryNovelSatireEssay

James Thurber is known for being a _________.5

DramatistKiller

Great teacherHumorist

This is an illness which James Thurber has.6

Ebola VirusCharles Bonnet

syndromeFeverCharles Bronté

syndrome

Who is the protagonist in the story?7

Mr. Erwin MartinJames Thurber

Mr. FitweilerMrs. Ulgine Barrows

He maybe inherited his comic ability from his

_______.8

PetCrush

BrotherMother

In the satire, he is the boss.9

Dr. Ronald Candy LasatenMr. Fitweiler

Mr. Erwin MartinJesper Silva

He was the cause of James Thurber’s lost

vision.10

WilliamTony

RobertMr. Martin

AnalysisJesper Silva

BSEd II-A, English

Catbird Seat• phrase

meaning to be sitting pretty, or in a good position

What’s with the title?

Literal

Section One“Planning the Mysterious Revenge”

What is the point of view?Describe the main character.Why is it that the main

character has a plan?Does the main character

need to grow out of something (Stop) or grow into something (Start)?

VOCABULARY STOPRub out – fixing a mistake

Ex. 2.Mr. Martin had decided to rub out Mrs. Ulgine Barrows.

Tearing up the pea patch – to go on a rampageEx. 4.Are you tearing up the pea patch?

Expression of Red Barber, an announcer, over the radio about

Dodger games

Section Two“The Revelation”

How did Mrs. Barrows entered the scene?

Why is Mrs. Barrows plan to reorganize the company?

What is the problem in the story?

What is the goal?What is the conflict?

Section Three“The Revenge”

What is the main character’s approach to solving problems? Does he at first confront a dilemma head-on (Do-er), or does he adapt himself to the situation at hand (Be-er)?

Section Four“Facing a Crossroad”

What was the original plan of Mr. Martin?

Why did he tend to change it all of a sudden?

Section Five“The Trophy Laughter”

At the end of the story, has the main character changed or remained the same?

Is the outcome of the story a success or a failure?

Reflection

What can you observe from the way James Thurber described Mrs. Ulgine Barrows?

Do you agree that the satire should be titled The Catbird Seat? Why?

What is your insight from the satire?