Dr.+Heidegger's+Experiment

Short Stories - Literary Devises Title:__

Point of View: 3rd person omniscient Protagonist: Dr Heidegger What type of character is the Protagonist? Round Antagonist: Dr Heidegger Describe the setting It's Dr. Heidegger's study which is dimly lit and old fashioned. There are many cob webs and it is filled with dust. There are many bookshelves holding big leather bounded books. There is a skeleton in a closet that is slightly open. There is a bust of Hippocrates. There is also a life size picture of his dead wife on the wall. Type of Conflict: Man v. Himself

Describe the main conflict: Dr. Heidegger is conflicted with himself because he partly wants to drink the water to possibly change his youth but he doesn't want to drink the water if he has to go through his youth again, he needs to solve the question of wether it's worth it. Describe the Climax of the Story: The climax is when the old people become young again and start making the same mistakes they did years ago. How does the Protagonist change over the course of the story? Dr. Heidegger does not change in the story the people who change both physically and mentally are the four old people and they change because they now have something to live for, the fountain of youth they now know what it's like to feel young again.

Describe the relationship between the title and the theme. I believe that the title has little to do with the theme because the theme of the story is aging and the title just foreshadows that the story is about an experiment.

How does the main conflict help to illustrate the theme? The main conflict helps to illustrate the theme because it shows Dr Heidegger in a situation where he can become younger but by doing he might relive the problems of his past or he might retain the wisdom of his years which helps to illustrate the theme because Dr Heidegger doesn't want to age again if he can't fix the mistakes of his past.

How does the climax help to illustrate the theme? The climax illustrates the theme of aging because the four old people become young again however they do not retain the wisdom of their years.

Give examples of each of the following literary terms in the story (use quotes):

Simile:

Metaphor: The skeleton in his closet is a metaphor for problems in his past.

Personification: p. 161 "as if the flower were reviving from a deathlike slumber" a deathlike slumber gives the flower human qualities.

Symbol: The rose which is now old and almost dust is a symbol of love and of his bride to be who died before they got married. Foreshadowing The title "Dr. Heidegger's Experiment" foreshadows an experiment is going to take place by someone named Dr.Heidegger. Irony: The irony is that the four old people who hate their lives are now going to replay their lives everyday by drinking from the fountain of youth.

Imagery: The imagery on page 159 makes one think of and old dimly lit dusty old lab of a mad scientist when the narrator describes Dr. Heidegger's study.

Describe the relationships between the class theme and the story. The class theme, power has a lot to do with the story because the four older people are regaining the physical power of their youth and it becomes such a powerful feeling in them that they can't let go of the feeling and that's why they vow to take a pilgrimage to the fountain of youth once a year.

1. According to Dr. Heidegger, what is the purpose of the experiment? To see if the water from the fountain of youth which he has been sent actually works on humans. 2. What do Dr. Heidegger's friends have in common? How does each of them behave during the experiment? They are all old and miserable, there greatest misfortune is not to have died along time ago. They were all infamous during there middle ages and the three gentlemen all had a thing for Widow Wycherly. 3. Why would Dr. Heidegger not stoop to bathe his lips in the Fountain of Youth? Do his friends feel the same way? Comment. Because he had a bad past and would not want to go back to his past again, his friends however would drink and in fact vow to drink from the fountain everyday because there old lives are so miserable. 4. Who is the narrator of the story? Though he is not a participant in the experiment, the narrator relates all the details. How does he know what happened to the doctor and his friends? How certain of his facts is the narrator? We don't know who the narrator is but we do know that he can't be Dr. Heidegger or the four old people because the narrator says that some of his stories have caused trouble for Dr. Heiddeger. Probably the narrator is a friend of Dr. Heidegger who heard the story from Dr. Heidegger. 5. What points are made about youth and aging in the story? Do you agree with the views in the story? Comment. That when you are younger you make more mistakes however bad judgement stays with some people for their lives. 7. Some scientists hope to develop a vaccine against aging. They speculate that human beings could then live approximately 800 years. Do you feel this is desirable? Explain your answer. For some reasons yes, because with a longer life span comes more knowledge, however obviously if most people were living to 800 there would be huge over crowding of the world which would lead to lack of food and water.

Completion: 4.5/5 Effort 4/5 Content: 4/5

total 12.5/15

Questions Completion Mark 5/5

total 17.5/20