THE OPEN WINDOW 读书报告

THE OPEN WINDOW

The author of The Open Window is Saki, pseudonym of Hector Hugh Munro(1870-1916). He was known as a satirist and author of short stories with a taste for the witty and outrageous. He was born in Akyab, Burma on December 18th, 1870. In 1896, Saki left for London and began to write political satires for the Westminster Gazette. Saki loved wild animals and had a knack of finding the most interesting individuals any places wherever he went. His varied interests are apparent in his political satires, short stories and plays. He has published The Rise of the Russian Empire, Reginald, The chronicles of Clovis and other famous work.

The Open Window describes that a fifteen-year-old girl Vera makes up a horrible story for a stranger with the topic of the open window. That day, her uncle and his two brothers go shooting by coincidence. And Vera tells the stranger that her uncle and his two brothers died four years ago, which is a terrible shock for her aunt. After that tragedy, her aunt will always leave the window open and believes that her husband and brothers will come back one day. Therefore, when the men really come back, the poor young men cannot say a word but escape rudely. To explain the strange action of the man, Vera makes up another story that he is afraid of the dog, which shows her wisdom.

The Open Window is a brilliant story. The description of the characters is so vivid that whole story is very lively to audience. At the age of fifteen, Vera doesn’t act and think like a child at all. A fifteen-year-old girl is mostly shy and pure, but Vera is calm and self-possessed. What forms a strong comparison to Vera’s characteristic is the nervous, dull and sensitive of the stranger, Mr. Nuttel. This also indicates the following of the story. The logic of the story made up by the little girl is very rigorous. She says that the tragedy happened three years ago, which ensures that the young man doesn’t know anything in that period of time. What’s more, the action a nd expression of Vera are also very dramatic and funny. When she sees the men are coming back, she pretends that she is nervous, which adds the horrible feeling of the poor young man. The vivid description of the scenes is so successful that even I cannot help feeling afraid as the young man. And the quick reaction of Vera after the man fled

away with great scary makes audience surprised for her cleverness and wisdom. The last sentence, “Romance at short notice was her specialty”, has revealed everything and highlights the whole story, which also reaches a climax for the whole story.