The Stalled Ox by Hector Hugh Munro
A young man returns to his village after serving in the army and finds that nothing has changed despite his own personal growth. He becomes disillusioned with the stagnant lives of those around him and feels disconnected from their values and customs.
By Hector Hugh Munro · First published 1909 · Genre: Comedy, Satire, Short Story · 2,143 words
First lines
Theophil Eshley was an artist by profession, a cattle painter by force of environment. It is not to be supposed that he lived on a ranche or a dairy farm, in an atmosphere pervaded with horn and hoof, milking-stool, and branding-iron. His home was in a park-like, villa-dotted district that only just escaped the reproach of being suburban. On one side of his garden there abutted a small, picturesque meadow, in which an enterprising neighbour pastured some small picturesque cows of the Channel Island persuasion. At noonday in summertime the cows stood knee-deep in tall meadow-grass under the shade of a group of walnut trees, with the sunlight falling in dappled patches on their mouse-sleek coats. Eshley had conceived and executed a dainty picture of two reposeful milch-cows in a setting of walnut tree and meadow-grass and filtered sunbeam, and the Royal Academy had duly exposed the same on the walls of its Summer Exhibition.
What this Textopian page supports
The Stalled Ox is listed on Textopian as a short story by Hector Hugh Munro, dated 1909 CE.
This source record anchors work identity, reading entry points, and catalog context for checking claims about the work.
- Work type: Short story
- Author: Hector Hugh Munro
- Date: 1909 CE
- Language: English
- Genres: Comedy, Satire, Short Story, Social Commentary, Farce
- Length: 2,143 words
- Structure: 1 section, 38 paragraphs
- Reading fit: Standard (8th-9th Grade)
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- Work identity for The Stalled Ox by Hector Hugh Munro
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Discussion starters
- What should a reader notice first when entering The Stalled Ox?
- How does this short story by Hector Hugh Munro fit its genre, period, or classroom use?
- Where does Comedy first become important in the reading?
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Genres
- Comedy — The story is filled with humorous situations and witty dialogue, particularly in the interactions between the characters and the absurdity of the ox in the garden.
- Satire — The narrative satirizes societal norms and the art world, highlighting the absurdity of Eshley's artistic career and the pretensions of the characters.
- Short Story — The work is a concise narrative focusing on a single incident, characteristic of the short story format.
- Social Commentary — The story provides commentary on social class and the expectations of individuals within society, particularly through the character interactions and setting.
Tags
Satire · Social Commentary · Dark Humor · Anti-War · Fiction · Short Story Collection · British Literature · Edwardian Era · War Novel · Critique of Society · Morality Tale · Absurdism