Many readers find the short story, “The Lady or the Tiger”, maddening because of the unresolved ending. My students would always react with, “What?!?” We are not used to stories and movies not tied up neatly at the end, and it can be frustrating to us as readers. We want to know whether the Princess signaled her lover to choose the door with the tiger or the door with the beautiful lady! However, I think you need to analyze why Frank Stockton might have written the story in the first place. It is a tale of morality that lends itself to discussion on what is right and what is wrong. The right thing would be for the Princess to signal to her lover the door with the beautiful woman, thus saving his life. However, the Princess is “semi-barbaric” which suggests she would rather see her lover die than give him...
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to another woman. The story asks the reader to find context clues and to speculate about the Princess’ motivation and intentions. As we interact with the text, we analyze character and motive. I think this is what Frank Stockton wanted his readers to do.
So, I think what you can say about the story is that although frustrating, it does lend itself to debate and the search for what is right. We will never know that the outcome of the story is, so we might as well enjoy it as a vehicle to discover our own morality.
Stockton's "The Lady or the Tiger?" is a good story to learn about ambiguity and inference because the ending is not clear. The princess gets caught by her father, the king, dating a man without his permission. The man is thrown into prison and later sent to the arena to choose between two doors. Behind one is a man-eating tiger and behind the other is a beautiful young woman who will be his bride. Under no circumstances will the man be able to marry the princess, though. The man's fate is either to marry a beautiful woman he probably does not know, or die a gruesome death. The princess, however, discovers which door the young woman will be waiting behind. She also knows the lady from her court and actually hates her; so, the trial becomes really one for the princess. Should the princess send her lover to his death or allow him to marry a woman she despises?
"The only hope for the youth. . . was based on the success of the princess in discovering this mystery; and the moment he looked upon her, he saw she had succeeded. . . Then it was that his quick and anxious glance asked the question: 'Which?' It was as plain to her as if he shouted it from where he stood."
The story does not explicitly say which end the boy receives. The story ends ambiguously; hence, the reader must infer, based on textual evidence, which door the princess would advise her lover to open.
What is the purpose of the story "The Lady, or the Tiger?"
In the Holt textbook Elements of Literature (Third Course), Frank R. Stockton is quoted to have said, "If you decide which it was--the lady or the tiger--you find out what kind of a person you are yourself" (304).
Stockton's "The Lady, or the Tiger?" ends ambiguously so the reader can decide if the princess saves her lover's life by awarding him a beautiful wife, or if she would rather see him die than be with another woman. Some readers wish that the author would have provided an explicit ending to the story so they would know for sure what the author was thinking when he wrote it. With ambiguous endings, the author is inviting readers to finish the moral dilemma within themselves, which is a clever device to use for a story such as this. The final paragraph in the story even clearly states the author's purpose, as follows:
"The question of her decision is one not to be lightly considered, and it is not for me to presume to set myself up as the one person able to answer it. And so I leave it with all of you: Which came out of the opened door--the lady, or the tiger?"
The above passage shows the author turning over the ending of the story for readers--the purpose being that they all must find out for themselves who they are by what decision they would make.
What is the main action in "The Lady, or the Tiger?"
Your question is extremely vague, but I will try to do my best. In the short story, "The Lady or the Tiger," the king’s daughter has taken a lover and the king finds out. The king has a strategy in which he deals with disputes in the kingdom. People who displease the king are put in the arena and must choose one of two doors. Behind one door will be a tiger, and behind the other will be a beautiful lady. The princess’s lover is put in this situation. The princess, however, uses her will to find out who the beautiful lady is and behind which door she is waiting. This is a young woman whom the princess feels has flirted with and been flirted with in return by the lover. On the day of the contest, the lover looks to the princess because he knows she will find out which door he should choose, and he is not disappointed. The princess indicates which door he should choose.
"The Lady or the Tiger?" is one of my most favorite short stories. In it, there is a "semi-barbaric" king, who has a different method for trying supposed criminals in his kingdom. Instead of going through a trial, the accused is taken to an arena and must choose to open one of two doors. If the person is guilty, that guilt will be shown if the accused opens the door containing a ferocious tiger. If the person is innocent, he will be rewarded by opening the door behind which lies a beautiful woman. The king also has a very beautiful young daughter, who falls in love with one of his courtiers. The king gets wind of this and is not happy. He sends the courtier to the arena, and the two lovers agree that the princess will discover which door hides the tiger. The story ends with the daughter pointing to a door for her lover to open, but the reader is left to wonder which door the man opens.
The action in the story deals mostly with the way in which the king handles the accused, the goings-on in the arena, and the princess' train of thought as she wonders which door she should choose for her lover.