Vengeance is Mine by Blanche Colton Williams
Williams’s study guide examines “Vengeance Is Mine” as a story of ideas shaped by wartime feeling, written before the United States entered war against Germany yet reflecting an Allied spirit while allowing Germany its own ideal or “vision.” Rather than retelling the fiction, the section directs readers to test whether the dénouement undermines that ideal and how “fear or desire” governs its outcome. The analysis focuses on the dream’s setting and chronology, including external sounds such as the batteries and internal evidence for Christmas Eve, 1916. It studies the narrator’s military role, the value and risks of dream-based viewpoint, and Mr. Jordan’s handling of that device. It also separates outer action from dreamed action, identifies the inner action’s chief incident, compares its construction with “Mr. Eberdeen’s House,” and probes the force of the ending, including the narrator’s thanks for the Germans.
By Blanche Colton Williams · First published 1919 · Genre: Literary Analysis, Literary Criticism, Non-Fiction · 305 words
First lines
THEME. Like "The Strange-Looking Man," this story is pre-eminently one of idea. Written before the United States declared war against Germany, it none the less is of the Allied spirit. At the same time, it hints that Germany has an ideal. (See page 151: "a vision which it alone had understood. ") Would the same author probably hold in 1919 his original concept? Does his dénouement negate the ideal?
How is the "fear or desire" (page 145) bound up with the dénouement?
Similar titles
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Genres
- Literary Analysis — Examines theme, setting, viewpoint, action, technical devices, and the dénouement through directed critical questions.
- Literary Criticism — Assesses the implications of the story’s wartime ideas and asks how successfully its author handles the dream method.
- Non-Fiction — This is a study-volume section offering interpretive prompts rather than a work of fiction.
Tags
Blanche Colton Williams · Vengeance Is Mine · short-story study · dream device · wartime ideas · Allied spirit · Germany’s ideal · narrator viewpoint · military narrator · inner and outer action · dénouement · Christmas Eve 1916
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Vengeance is Mine is listed on Textopian as an essay by Blanche Colton Williams, dated 1919 CE.
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- Work type: Essay
- Author: Blanche Colton Williams
- Date: 1919 CE
- Language: English
- Genres: Literary Analysis, Literary Criticism, Non-Fiction
- Length: 305 words
- Structure: 1 section, 6 paragraphs
- Reading fit: Fairly Easy (7th Grade)
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