Dr.+Heidegger's+Experiment

i Short Stories - Literary Devises Title: Dr. Heidegger’s Experiment

Point of View:

Protagonist: Dr. Heidegger

What type of character is the Protagonist? He is a round, dynamic character.

Antagonist: Dr. Heidegger’s conscience

Describe the setting: the story is set in the mid-to late-1700’s, inside Dr. Heidegger's house.

Type of Conflict: Man vs Self

Describe the main conflict: The main conflict embodies Dr Heidegger wondering whether drinking the fountain's water would allow him to relive and correct his past mistakes.

Describe the Climax of the Story: The climax of the story is when Dr. Heidegger's container of the fountain's water is knocked onto the floor, preceding the end of the fountain water's temporary effects.

How does the Protagonist change over the course of the story? The protagonist changes over the course of the story from being slightly sceptical of the fountain's water to amused and somewhat horrified at how it effected his "test subjects".

Describe the relationship between the title and the theme. The title is related to the theme of "time repeats itself" because the key to experimentation is repeated testing.

How does the main conflict help to illustrate the theme? Dr. Heidegger speculating whether or not ingesting the fountain's water could lead to him having to relive his past mistakes helps to illustrate the theme by showing the fear the protagonist has towards repeating all the difficult anomalies in his life.

How does the climax help to illustrate the theme? The climax illustrates the theme of time repeating because it marks the turning point before The Doctor's friends are returned to their old age as the effect of the fountain's water wears off. It also is the end of them repeating their youth, forming a cycle of sorts from young to old, old to young and young back to old again.

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

Simile: "They felt like new-created beings, in a new-created universe."

Metaphor: "Now Dr. Heidegger was a very strange old gentleman, whose eccentricity had become the nucleus for a thousand fantastic tales."

Personification: "The crushed and dried petals stirred, and assumed a deepening shade of crimson, as if the flower were reviving from a deep slumber..."

Symbol: "In the obscurest corner of the room stood a tall and narrow oaken closet, with its door ajar, within which doubtfully appeared a skeleton..." The Skeleton in the closet symbolizes Dr Heidegger's eccentricity as well as his reluctance to be young again and live out past mistakes.

Foreshadowing (give both elements): The mirror in Dr. Heidegger's study showing his friends as still old after drinking water from the fountain of youth foreshadows The temporary effect of the fountain's water.

"...The tall mirror is said to have reflected the figures of the three old, gray, withered grandsires, ridiculously contending for the skinny ugliness of a shrivelled grandam..." foreshadowing " ...Was it an illusion? Had the changes of a life time been crowded into so brief a space, and were they now four aged people, sitting with their old friend Dr. Heidegger?"

Irony: There is situational irony in the story when the protagonist's friends vow never to repeat their past mistakes if given another chance at youth "...so very ridiculous was the idea, that, knowing how closely repentance treads behind the steps of error, they should ever go astray again..." Then behave the same way they had previously acted at their more youthful age "...Mr Gascoigne's mind seemed to run on political topics....", "Colonel Killigrew all this time had been trolling forth a jolly bottle song...", etc.

Imagery: "...It was a dim, old-fashioned chamber, festooned with cobwebs, and besprinkled with antique dust..."

Describe the relationships between the class theme and the story. The story is related to the class theme because each of the protagonist’s friends is hooked to the notion of the power they had when they were young. By drinking the fountain's water, their youthful power, vigour and strength were restored, allowing them to struggle for power over one another and over the (younger) widow.

Questions

1) According to Dr. Heidegger, the main purpose of his experiment is to test the effects water from the fountain of you has on people (his misguided) friends.

2) The thing the doctor's friends have in common is a checkered, misguided, lamentable past in which they have many regrets. All of them would be perceived as "bad" people by so-called "respectable citizens"; and not only for their past deeds. Thus they are eager to try the fountain's water (after their greed kicks in).

3) Dr. Heidegger would not stoop to drink or even bathe his lips in the fountain's water because he realizes from the experiment an his friends that he would not be able to change his past mindset, let alone be able to avoid or clear away the "skeletons in his closet". His friends, on the other hand, are almost ashamed of their age and greedy for the delight they have in being youthful. They have no reservations when it comes to regaining what the now cherish, even if it means drinking many times a day from the Fountain of Youth.

4) Though the author reveals barely anything about him, the narrator of the story appears to be an outsider who has heard about the events that unfolded at Dr. Heidegger's house. He obtained his information through rumours and gossip, so he is not too sure about it's credibility.

5)The points of view made on youth and ageing in the story are that youth is a cherished thing, age does not necessarily mean wisdom, and that some people never truly change their mindset with age. I agree with these points mainly because they do not attempt to generalize and categorize human traits in a "one size fits all format". However, I believe that youth is not always cherished by the young or even by some of the elderly.

7) I personally DO NOT think that is desirable for the human race because of the implications involved. even without anti-ageing "miracles", we still have overpopulation and crowding. Death, surprisingly, clears the world for a fresh start like a forest decomposes organic material so that new things can grow. In the case of mankind, it allows new mindsets, ideas, even cultures can spring up and flourish. I also think that if the elderly really have something useful to pass on, they will probably try to do it in whatever time they have--those who will not just won't--even if you gave them a millennium...

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

total 14.5/15

Questions Completion Mark 5/5

total 19.5/20