After Twenty Years

by O. Henry

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After Twenty Years Questions and Answers

Examine how O. Henry builds suspense and provides a twist in the story "After Twenty Years."

What is the moral lesson of the story, "After Twenty Years"?

Compare and contrast Bob and Jimmy's characters in "After Twenty Years."

What is a character sketch of Jimmy Wells in the story "After Twenty Years" by O. Henry?

In "After Twenty Years" by O. Henry, what is the surprise at the end of the story?

What is the conclusion of "After Twenty Years"?

Describe the appearance of the man in the doorway in "After Twenty Years." How do his possessions help you understand his economic condition?

What is a plot diagram for the short story "After Twenty Years"?

Why is the ending of "After Twenty Years" tragic? How does the story take a turn and the happy ending of two friends become a tragic one?

What is the main conflict in "After Twenty Years"?

Identify the climax in "After Twenty Years" by O Henry.

What is the theme of "After Twenty Years" by O. Henry?

Why did Jimmy get Bob arrested in "After Twenty Years"?

Write a dialogue between Jimmy Wells and the plain clothes policeman.

In O. Henry's story "After Twenty Years," why was Bob called 'Silky Bob'?

In "After Twenty Years'" by O. Henry, Bob calls his friend Jimmy Wells "the finest chap in the world" and "the truest,  staunchest man in the world." Does Jimmy Wells justify this description? Pick sentences from the story to support your opinion.

What does the title "After Twenty Years" mean?

Why did the two friends part in "After Twenty Years"? What did they promise each other twenty years ago?

In "After Twenty Years," why do you think the Chicago police had been looking for Bob, whom they have nicknamed Silky Bob? Pick sentences from the story that show the kind of life Bob had led in west.

At one point in "After Twenty Years," the narrator calls this appointment "an uncertain appointment." Do you agree with him? Why?

In "After Twenty Years," what does this passage mean? "It takes the West to put a razor edge on him"

Why do you think Jimmy sent the note to Bob in "After Twenty Years"?

What is the setting at the beginning of "After Twenty Years?" Why didn't Officer Wells arrest Bob?

Imagine you are Jimmy in "After Twenty Years." Make a diary entry of your feelings at the thought of meeting your friend after twenty years, your excitement about the meeting and your pain at finding out that he is a criminal. Also write how you got him arrested.

What are some examples of situational irony in "After Twenty Years?"

How are "Silky" Bob and Jimmy Wells described in "After Twenty Years"?

What is the tone and mood of "After Twenty Years" by O. Henry?

In "After Twenty Years," how must Jimmy have felt when he realized that his friend Bob had turned out to be the criminal wanted in Chicago and he ought to arrest him?

What literary devices are used in "After Twenty Years"?

Where is the story set? What is the atmosphere, or feeling, of the story? How do the setting and the time of day affect the story?  

When does Bob realize that the man to whom he is talking is not Jimmy Wells, and how does he react in "After Twenty Years"?

In the story "After Twenty Years" by O. Henry do you think Jimmy Wells' colleague played his role well? Using words and phrases from the story, explain how he managed to fool Bob.

"The man from the West, his egotism enlarged by success, was beginning to outline the history of his career." What does this sentence tells you about Bob's personality?

What is the symbol in the story "After 20 Years" by O. Henry?

How does O.Henry create a balance between foreshadowing and surprise in "After Twenty Years."? 

Why was the place deserted in O. Henry's "After Twenty Years"?

Why does the policeman not tell Bob that he is the real Jimmy Wells in the story "After Twenty Years?"

Describe the character of Patrolman Wells in "After Twenty Years."

In "After Twenty Years," Jimmy makes a decision early in the story to conceal his identity when Bob strikes the match to light his cigar. How does that decision leads to the surprise at the end of the story?

"After Twenty Years" is about an appointment between two friends. What is special about their appointment?

What is the resolution in "After Twenty Years"?

What does guardian of the peace mean in "After Twenty Years" by O. Henry? How did the officer suit the role of guardian of the peace?

Where does Jimmy live in "After Twenty Years"?

How did Jimmy and Bob first get to know each other in "After Twenty Years" by O. Henri?

When did Silky Bob realize that the plain clothes man was not Jimmy Wells in "After Twenty Years"?

Show that the policeman's impressiveness was habitual and not for show? 

How does Bob describe Jimmy in both his strengths and weaknesses in "After Twenty Years"?  

How is the idea that "twenty year is a long time...it take sometimes changes a good man into bad one" presented in "After Twenty Years?"

In "After Twenty Years," based on his words and actions, how can the reader describe Bob's personality? 

What is the genre of the story "After Twenty Years" by O. Henry?