I can't seem to figure out the tone of the narrator in "The Lottery Ticket", and how it is established.
http://www.google.com/search?q=%22The+Lottery+Ticket%22&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&client=firefox-a&rlz=1R1GGGL_en___US357
Which one?
It is "The Lotttery Ticket" from Anton Chekhov.
http://virtualsalt.com/litterms4.htm
Scroll down and read the entry explaining Tone. Let me know what you decide.
I think the tone of the narrator is formal. is that even right?
It is formal, yes.
But more important, what is his attitude toward his subject -- that is, his main characters and how they handle even the possibility of good fortune? Then how do they handle it when that possibility suddenly is gone?
What does he think of them?
I'm not sure, actually. I can't tell if the narrator feels sorry for Ivan.
Normally, their life has been predictable and routine. Suddenly, the possibility of a WHOLE LOT OF MONEY changes the attitudes of both people ... toward each other. But did they speak those thoughts, or did they keep them to themselves? Once the realization hit that it was all just fantasy, how did each one react? With anger? With laughter? What?
These people represent whom in any society? How does even the possibility of sudden wealth change their thinking? Do they act on it?
And what do you think all this indicates about Chekhov's attitude? Is he amused? Is he disgusted? Or what?