The Lady or the Tiger续写

The End Of The Lady Or The TigerWithout the slightest hesitation, he went to the door on the right and opened it, and there came out an awful tiger. The whole arena fell in a breathless silence. A terrible scream bursted out but soon died down and was replaced by the sounds of tearing clothes and flesh. Doleful iron bells clanged, and never before had the princess’s face been so pale. All of a sudden, she felt that there was a smile flashing by on her father’s face，which was as evil as the Devil did. And now, she understood. Clever as she was, herfather knew her too well. Her childish trick had never escaped his eyes. From the beginning till the end, his father, no, it’s the king that controlled everything, showing no mercy for the poor lady’s feeling whose name was called daughter. “Stupid is what I have done.” The princess finally made a bitter smile to herself. Her lover was dead, eaten up all by the monster but his bones. The most scaring sight of the world. She felt things turned black in her eyes and unconsciously fell into a dead faint.When she came to conscious, the funeral had already been given. She ran out insanely and found herself crying beside her lover’s grave alone. So miserable did she feel that she might even cry to death. But at that time, a shadow stepped towards her, which a broken heart would never have noticed until he stood just in front of her. She kept her eyes wide open and stayed in shock. “Her lover’s soul” tenderly bent over and kissed away her tears, and she felt, felt the breath came from him. He was alive! He handed over a letter to her which explained well for why he stood here and alive.Dear brother,News came that you were casted into prison and the trial is around the corner, which haunts me day and night. Though all our family told me that my illness will be cured of, I know Azrael will take me away soon as it has got harder and harder for me to take even a breath. Now I have found a wonderful end of my life. Yes, quite as you expect at the moment, I will take the place of you. I am sure I can do that for we resemble each other in both appearance and nature if it is not because of my illness. Sorry that I can’t tell you a bit earlier to do the farewell. When you see the letter, I shoule have been in Heaven. So just pray for me, and don’t forget to tell my story to my fairysister-in-law.Farewell…Your sincereThat night, the couple married in front of his brother's tomb. There was no music and no priest , but they had got the most precious blessing of the world.They ran away and no one knew where they had gone, only the moon and the tree that night saw the sweet secret.An Appreciation of “the Lady, or the Tiger” by Frank Richard StocktonAbstract：As the most popular short story written by Frank R. Stockton, “the Lady, or the Tiger”, known for its suspending end, sparked heated and enduring discussion and remained a staple in literature classes. How could a fairy tale be so fascinating as to draw perennial attention among readers? The present paper is an attempt to explore the depth of the story and the subliminal message of the text to throw light on readers’ understanding of Stockton’s works.A widely read American novelist and humorist in his time, Frank R. Stockton produced a number of influential works like “the squirrel Inn”, “Mrs. Cliff’s yacht”, and so on. But today he is remembered chiefly as the author of “the Lady, or the Tiger”, a fairy tale characterized by wizard plotting, bold imagination, archaically elegant language and most of all, a dangling end, or rather, an end without end, that strikes burning curiosity and initiated a persistent “sequel-itis”续集炎，续篇炎amongreaders of intense interest. Its popularity, as a result, has spanned generations since its first publication in 1882.In telling the story, Stockton designed an ancient country as the background where there lived a semi-barbaric king who institutes a savage penal system gloried by himself as an embodiment of the “poetic justice”. As is prescribed by this primal首要的，根本的legal system, when a subject is accused of a crime serious enough to interest the king, he would be taken to an arena in which there are two doors—behind one of them is a ravenous饿极了的tiger and the other a lady. The accused person is given a chance to open either of them to decide his fate. If he chooses the former, he would be ripped into pieces by the tiger as a punishment for his crime. But if chance decides otherwise with his choice of the latter, he would be married to that lady. The system is thus applauded by all subjects for its “absolute justice”. When one day the king happened to discover the romance between his cherished daughter and a young man far beneath her status, he doesn’t hesitate for a single moment to implement his “great scheme of retribution报应，惩罚and reward”. The young man, as a result, is forced to bet his luck in the arena. Before he made a decision between life and death, however, he cast his inquisitive好奇的，好问的eyes upon theprincess, who, with her great power, has made plain to herself the secret of the doors. Then came the most elaborate and intricate description of the inner conflict of the princess who is, as a matter of fact, seared煎熬by the choice day and night. Loving the young man with great ardor热情and fiery火热, she is reluctant to see the tragedy of her lover’s being devoured by the tiger; but her reluctance is greater to see him tie the knot with the fair lady, toward whom she harbored abysmal深不可测的，无底的，极坏的jealousy and venom毒液，恶意. Day after night, love, self-interest, grudge吝啬，怀恨，怨恨and suspicion are intertwined together to complicate her mind, making her waver between the lady and the tiger. W ould she save her lover for old times’ sake? Or would she steel her heart and prefer her lover’s death to his marrying another one? Readers hold their breath and wait for an immediate answer as the princess makes a secret gesture to one door.Yet the story ends abruptly here. Stockton refrains from making any personal choice between the Lady and the Tiger. In fact, his own voice as the writer vanishes in the end, leaving ample scope for every reader to search his own conscience and ask himself the natural question: “what would I choose if I were the princess?” The open end just has in it all possibilities forexploration. Since the publication of the story, a multitude of sequels续集have turned up to “round off the suspenseful story” as thus intended. However, “the lady, or the tiger” is far beyond a story or a detective fiction merely for the public entertainment or amusement. Behind its legendary plot there lies profound life reality which necessitates a close scrutiny审视，审查.In a narrow sense, Stockton fictionalizes a love dilemma in which some of us would be entangled, yet more broadly, it is a life confusion that all of us would encounter.The heroine’s vehement强烈的emotional conflict is, as a matter of fact, a revelation of mankind’s preoccupation with self-interest which has gone so wild as to dim是暗淡love, the noblest human emotion, into triviality无足轻重. If love is benevolence, blessing and devotion as eternally extolled赞美，颂扬, the young man could naturally escape the jaw of Death by the princess’s mercy to him that is only too common between doting溺爱的，偏爱的lovers. Ironically, it is none other than 不是别人，正是the princess he loves with his whole being who is irresolute in throwing the light of compassion when his life is on a razor’s edge. It can be easily found that the hesitation is due to her commitment to opposite poles, one commitment to herlover’s interest and the other to her own interest. And as any thinking readers could discern, whatever her choice is, the princess can’t be spared免不了the loss of her lover, the only difference being his death and his marriage to another girl. Her vexation, that is to say, doesn’t primarily originate from the deprivation of her beloved one, but from her perverse reluctance of allowing anyone else to take what she herself would lose possession of. She claims to love him with all fervor and enthusiasm. But somewhere in her soul lurks the spark of egoism, which, if fuelled by impulsion, would spread into a big blaze burning down all around her. Her love toward the youngster is thus in its nature possessive and selfish that go astray from the essence of true love. And the young man is taken only as her personal belonging or an embellishment装饰品serving her needs and comforts. When his life is in collision with her self-interest, she falters犹豫，踌躇. Egoism from within gets the upper hand of love. The violent emotional conflicts harassing her mind day and night explain nothing but her prevailing selfishness and hegemony霸道mentality. Though nothing is exposed in the end, still some clues could be caught by meticulous小心翼翼的，注重细节的readers. For instance, the writer’s description of the princess’s agony fromopening the door of tiger is only half the length of the exhaustive portrayal of her morbid病态的，不正常的craze from another choice. And her distorted psychology from jealousy is much more vividly delineated详细记述than her lamentation upon her lover’s wretched destiny. Stockton does devote more endeavors in depicting a self-interested heroine. The vague end, as a result, could not conceal her seamy恶劣的side, let alone absolve赦免her from the sin of apathy and selfishness. In this sense, it is not the young man but the princess who is actually under the trial------in the court of conscience.A fictitious story as it is, “The Lady, or the Tiger” is a true reflection of the dark side of human nature in reality. The princess is in the tale deliberately depicted as a “semi-barbaric” soul with beastly nature, a fact bespeaking 显示，表示，表明her ferocity凶猛，残暴and absurdity of the choice itself. However, can’t it be said that the semi-barbaric heroine is seized by the egoism 自私自利，that is easy to identify in many of her civilized counterparts. It is not uncommon that modern men tirelessly jostle挤，撞，推with each other for fame and fortune, crush discord minds, slaughter their peers同伴and even provoke sibling兄弟姐妹wars, all merely for the purpose ofmaximizing their own interest. Aren’t these civilized being just as selfish as a semi-barbaric creature when wedged楔入between their own interest and other people? In this way, the evil of egoism hidden in the heart of modern men is startlingly alike with the ancient vulgar beings. Instead of using didactic说教的，为人师表的moralizing, however, the writer applies clever humor and an incomplete plot to invoke read ers’ attention and poke揭穿at jealousy, violence, selfishness and other human foibles小缺点，小毛病. It is vintage葡萄收获季节Stockton, indeed. Apart from that, a multitude of vivid metaphors, vibrant振动的，鲜明的，活泼的description and elaborately-chosen diction greatly spice up the story and set its tone as a light and humorous one. These amalgam混合物of elements helps to attain the writer’s goal of mocking at the modern civilization not violently but in a moderate way, which contributes to the sustaining appeal of the work upon readers.。

The Ending of the Lady, or the Tiger Finally, the princess pointed to the right door. The young man saw it clearly. Every mouth in this country, every people was talking about the princess and the young man. At the moment in the arena, every eye was fixed on the man. They were all nervous and talked about the grand and handsome youth. They wondered that whether he would die or be alive and could not imagine such a perfect man would disappear among them. The awful tiger and the glaring, horrible blood were merged in princess’s mind. But a few seconds later, her eyes were full of cold and detached. The young man went to the right door and opened it and saw the tiger. No, it was not true. It was his imagines. However, her lover’s choice was a wholly unexpected position to her. The young man stepped firmly and rapidly across the empty space to the door on the left and opened it without any hesitation. Everyone, including the princess was surprised by his quick action. The whole arena was silent at that moment. But then there burst out loud shouts of joy. A lovely woman who blushed and trembled stood behind the door. The crowds were all very glad that the young man could survive and marry such a beautiful woman. But the princess flushed with anger. She could not bear the happiness on her lover and the woman’s face. What she wanted to do was to kill everyone who was shouting. Why he can live a happy life? Why he betrayed me? No, I can’t let such a thing happen. The princess thought.She whispered to her servant to open the right door. The whole arena was immersed in exciting atmosphere. However, good times didn’t last long. Suddenly, there came another horrible silence. A man cried, “the tiger came out!” Before the princess’s lover found what had happened, the savage and relentless tiger rushed and roared to him. He pushed the lovely woman away and fought with the tiger. But the tiger was too fierce to be defeated. Quickly, the most miserable thing happened. The young man was tore into pieces. The young lady also could not run away and became the food of the tiger.Why the young man chose the left door, because he knew the princess very well. He knew what kind of person she was. She was such a selfish and cruel woman that he could not believe her. Although he loved her, he wanted to survive.The princess saw the whole procedure of her lover and the lady’s death with dreadful calmness. She thought: I can’t marry him and no one can marry him even he dies.。

As the young man noticed the princess’s hint, he turned and with a firm and steady step, he walked across the trail area to the selective section. His eyes fixed on the right door, which his lover had chosen for him. Everybody’s heart stopped beating. Everyting seemed in a static mode. No one gave out shouting sound. They were just staring at the handsome young man and their eyesights were moving on the movement of this human’s body. The silence is tense and horrible. Even a tiny needle’s falling sound could be heard crearly.The man lifted up his right arm, then put his right hand on the handle of the door without any sightest tremble on his finger. He closed his eyes and a wealth amount of horrible picture immediately occurred in his mind. He knew his lover so well that there must be a tiger behind the right door, but he determined to follow the choice made by her. Because whether it came out an esurient tiger or a fair lady, he would become the most unfortunate and ill-fated man in the world. Actually, he had lost his affection—his lover, his princess.At the same time, the princess stared at her lover in wild horror. She knew clearly that the hungry, most cruel and fiercest tiger would rush out from the door as soon as the man opened it. Her lover would be soon torrn into pieces. All of a sudden, the ground was filled with scarlet blood. She was scared and trembling. Her body was in a cold sweat. But when she thought the lady behind the left door was going to marry her lover, she was mad and crazy. She would lose her lover evenly rather than bear the betrayal of her love. Her heart was extremely tortured, but she had to pretend normal with proper manners.After a little while mediatation, the young man finally opened his eyes and left the last smile to his lover, indicated that he had well prepared to face the consequence of this trial—death. A quick pull from the man, the door opened. There came out nothing. Everyone was surprised except the semi-barbaric king. “How could be…”,the princess shouted, she couldn’t believe her eyes. The other were all whispering and wanted to know the fact. The man stood there with dumbfounded eyes, he didn’t have enough time to realize what happened to him. All like dreams.Then, the king stood up slowly and said to the man, “I know everything my daughter has done for you. I am her father and I know her choice must be the tiger for the inheritance of semi-barbaric characteristic from mine. You recognize this point and your choose the dead way till the end. Your royalty wins my honor. I have changed the tiger to the left door and empty the right door before trial unnoticed. In this case, if you turn to the left door, you would be dead….Now, you’re free.”After knowing it, the young man walked towards the princess and said,”I love you, most ardently, your myjesty. I want you know no matter what you have chosen for me,I will accept it. The only one I trust in this world is you, your myjesty. Plesase do mea favor to accept my hand and love.” The princess replied with her eyes tearing, “I’m sorry, but I love you.”The crowd were cheering and shouting gold hurrahs. All the people including were happily to see the youth was innocent and could marry the princess.The end。

The Lady or the Tiger?At this very moment,his heart is full of contradictions.On the one hand, he thought that her love for him is warm and sincere; on the other hand, he was afraid of that the fact may not be the same as what he considered, for that the princess was so imperious that she could not bear such insultsthat her lover became other lady’s husband. He was wonderingif an accident were to happen, what he woulddo.With uneasy steps, he walkedslowly towards the door on the right. No sooner had he touched the doorknob than he turned into another direction to the left. Holding a deep breath, he opened the door. Then from the door, came out a beautiful lady, blushed and trembled.Fortunately, the man relaxed and glanced at the princess as if he was talking to her: “I see what you mean. Whoever cannot possess what you cannotget, right?” Keeping silence,the princesswas cold, and turned around.The crowd applauded as a band of choristers came out with a priest. With the maidens dancing and the golden horns played, the wedding was promptly and cheerily. The pair stood side by side, accepting people’scongratulations.A few years passed. Their marriage life was quite simple, but happy. But the princess was not as fortunate as them. It is said that she was dead due toambition and gloom.。

续写美女与老虎的结局英语作文The young man pushed the door and saw that it was a big tiger. Scared, he quickly hid in the corner. The tiger rushed to him with a big mouth, and scared him to cover his face with his arm. But instead of eating it, the tiger licked him, Suddenly said: "Benefactor, you forget that when I was a child and was about to be captured by a hunter, you hid me and told the hunter that you didn't see me. But the hunter found me. At the moment of crisis, you blocked an arrow for me and saved my life. I heard that you were in this country and heard about you and the princess. I deliberately let the king find out and let the king catch me. I waited for you every day. Today, I finally waited for you. I I have already dug a secret road. Come with me. " Then they walked out of the room through the secret passage.The young man and the tiger built a house outside and taught him how to survive in the wild. But the princess hid in the house where they used to live every day, because she already had a baby in her belly, and he took care of the young man's baby every day. One day, when the princess woke up, she miraculouslyfound her husband waiting for her at the bedside. The young man explained the reason to the princess and led her to their new house.From then on, the young man, the princess and the tiger lived happily together.。

【VOA】the-lady--or-the-tigerLong ago, in the very olden time, there lived a powerful king. Some of his ideas were progressive. But others caused people to suffer.One of the king's ideas was a public arena as an agent of poetic justice. Crime was punished, or innocence was decided, by the result of chance. When a person was accused of a crime, his future would be judged in the public arena.All the people would gather in this building. The king sat high up on his ceremonial chair. He gave a sign. A door under him opened. The accused person stepped out into the arena. Directly opposite the king were two doors. They were side by side, exactly alike. The person on trial had to walk directly to these doors and open one of them. He could open whichever door he pleased.If the accused man opened one door, out came a hungry tiger, the fiercest in the land. The tiger immediately jumped on him and tore him to pieces as punishment for his guilt. The case of the suspect was thus decided. Iron bells rang sadly. Great cries went up from the paid mourners. And the people, with heads hanging low and sad hearts, slowly made their way home. They mourned greatly that one so young and fair, or so old and respected, should have died this way.But, if the accused opened the other door, there came forth from it a woman, chosen especially for the person. To this lady he was immediately married, in honor of his innocence. It was not a problem that he might already have a wife and family, or that he might have chosen to marry another woman. The king permitted nothing to interfere with his great method of punishment and reward.Another door opened under the king, and a clergyman, singers, dancers and musicians joined the man and the lady. The marriage ceremony was quickly completed. Then the bells made cheerful noises. The people shouted happily. And the innocent man led the new wife to his home, following children who threw flowers on their path. This was the king's method of carrying out justice. Its fairness appeared perfect. The accused person could not know which door was hiding the lady. He opened either as he pleased, without having knowing whether, in the next minute, he was to be killed or married. Sometimes the fierce animal came out of one door. Sometimes it came out of the other.This method was a popular one. When the people gathered together on one of the great trial days, they never knew whether they would see a bloody killing or a happy ending. So everyone was always interested. And the thinking part of the community would bring no charge of unfairness against this plan. Did not the accused person have the whole matter in his own hands? The king had a beautiful daughter who was like him in many ways. He loved her above all humanity. The princess secretly loved a young man who was the best-looking and bravest in the land. But he was a commoner, not part of an important family.One day, the king discovered the relationship between his daughter and the young man. The man was immediately put in prison. A day was set for his trial in the king's public arena. This, of course, was an especially important event. Never before had a common subject been brave enough to love the daughter of the king.The king knew that the young man would be punished,even if he opened the right door. And the king would take pleasure in watching the series of events, which would judge whether or not the man had done wrong in loving the princess.The day of the trial arrived. From far and near the people gathered in the arena and outside its walls. The king and his advisers were in their places, opposite the two doors. All was ready. The sign was given. The door under the king opened and the lover of the princess entered the arena.Tall, beautiful and fair, his appearance was met with a sound of approval and tension. Half the people had not known so perfect a young man lived among them. No wonder the princess loved him! What a terrible thing for him to be there!As the young man entered the public arena, he turned to bend to the king. But he did not at all think of the great ruler. The young man's eyes instead were fixed on the princess, who sat to the right of her father.From the day it was decided that the sentence of her lover should be decided in the arena, she had thought of nothing but this event.The princess had more power, influence and force of character than anyone who had ever before been interested in such a case. She had done what no other person had done. She had possessed herself of the secret of the doors. She knew behind which door stood the tiger, and behind which waited the lady. Gold, and the power of a woman's will, had brought the secret to the princess. She also knew who the lady was. The lady was one of the loveliest in the kingdom. Now and then the princess had seen her looking at and talking to the young man.The princess hated the woman behind that silent door. She hated her with all the intensity of the blood passed to her through long lines of cruel ancestors.Her lover turned to look at the princess. His eye met hers as she sat there, paler and whiter than anyone in the large ocean of tense faces around her. He saw that she knew behind which door waited the tiger, and behind which stood the lady. He had expected her to know it.The only hope for the young man was based on the success of the princess in discovering this mystery. When he looked at her, he saw that she had been successful, as he knew she would succeed.Then his quick and tense look asked the question: "Which?" It was as clear to her as if he shouted it from where he stood. There was not time to be lost.The princess raised her hand, and made a short, quick movement toward the right. No one but her lover saw it. Every eye but his was fixed on the man in the arena. He turned, and with a firm and quick step he walked across the empty space. Every heart stopped beating. Every breath was held. Every eye was fixed upon that man. He went to the door on the right and opened it. Now, the point of the story is this: Did the tiger come out of that door, or did the lady?The more we think about this question, the harder it is to answer. It involves a study of the human heart. Think of it not as if the decision of the question depended upon yourself. But as if it depended upon that hot-blooded princess, her soul at a white heat under the fires of sadness and jealousy. She had lost him, but who shouldhave him?How often, in her waking hours and in her dreams, had she started in wild terror, and covered her face with her hands? She thought of her lover opening the door on the other side of which waited the sharp teeth of the tiger!But how much oftener had she seen him open the other door? How had she ground her teeth, and torn her hair, when she had seen his happy face as he opened the door of the lady! How her soul had burned in pain when she had seen him run to meet that woman, with her look of victory. When she had seen the two of them get married. And when she had seen them walk away together upon their path of flowers, followed by the happy shouts of the crowd, in which her one sad cry was lost!Would it not be better for him to die quickly, and go to wait for her in that blessed place of the future? And yet, that tiger, those cries, that blood!Her decision had been shown quickly. But it had been made after days and nights of thought. She had known she would be asked. And she had decided what she would answer. And she had moved her hand to the right. The question of her decision is one not to be lightly considered. And it is not for me 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 open door – the lady, or the tiger?。

The Lady，or the Tiger（PartⅢ）He turned ,and with a firm and rapid step he walked across the empty space .Every heart stopped beating .Every breath was held ,every eye was fixed immovably upon that man .Without the slightest hesitation ,he went to the door on the right ,opened it .he think the lady will appear after the right door open. He believed his lover. However, when he opened the door, he saw a tiger crouching there. At that time, his heart was broken, he felt despaired. Then he knew he made a mistake that the princess was not what he thought like and her nature is alike to her father----semi-barbaric. But he didn’t see the princess’ slight smile. Actually no one saw it for they all kept their eye on that young man and what is going happen to him. He closed his eyes and waited for that tiger sprang upon him and tore him. But a few minutes over, the man opened his eyes, finding himself still alive, he felt excite, he yelled. All the people cheered up and shouted the young man’s name.All people felt confused, why this tiger didn’t attack him? The man also felt strange. Then out of all people’s surprise, the tiger talked. “Man, you are so lucky! Your lover found me and asked me to let off you. Her sincerity moved me. And I decided to set you free.” The man shocked, he turned his eyes to the princess.It turned out to be that after the princess knew this result, she went to the tiger in private to beg for mercy. At first, the tiger didn’t pay attention to her. She cried and entreated piteously: “Mr. tiger, please! Let him off, I love him so much! I am willing to dead instead of him!”The tiger said: “I must eat him, for I am so hungry.”She said: “I can instead him, please don’t eat him.” Finally, the tiger give in: “you touched me. I promise to set him free.”No one including knew how to deal with this situation, because it never happened before. Everyone waited the king to make this decision. “Releasehim! Release him!” scream from the mas s. Then all the people cried out .The king hesitated and had to claim that the young man was free. The young man looked at the princess with the excitement. And she smiled to him. After the event, the man went to the princess and hugged her. he kissed her and said nothing.After a while, the princess said “how can we persuade my father to allow our marriage?”The man thought for a while, then he put forward an idea: “You tell your father that I will fight with those who want to marry. If I win, I can get you for my wife.” She agreed.Next day, the princess went to the king and said: “My dear dad, I know that several princes from other countries want to marry me, and you will choose one from them. I have a request, we may give an open challenge, and let them fight with each other. I will marry with the winner. But you should allow my lover to take part in the race. Dad, can you promise me?”The king thought: it maybe a chance to prove the youth’s capability. If he was stronger than other, he can protect my daughter and he can give a better life to my daughter. So he consented to his daughter’s request.A few days later, the fighting began. There are five princes in the arena. The young man walked slowly to the arena. He must beat five people. Soon, he defeated the first four princes. But the last one looks so strong and the youth heard that this prince was good at grapple. Finally, the youth win by a narrow margin. All people cheered for the man, including the princess. The king was also pleased. He said to the young man: “I will allow you to marry my daughter, but you must promise me that you will love her forever. If you unable to do it, you will not see my daughter any longer.” The youth promised seriously.Soon after, a grand wedding was hold in this country. The youth and the princess lived a happy life from then on.。

The Lady, or the Tiger? Part ⅢAll the people were holding their breath and waiting for the result. The young man had a quick look at the princess, all dewy-eyed with love, and then turned, and with a firm and rapid step he walked across the empty space to the door on the right. He closed his eyes and a wealth amount of horrible picture immediately occurred in his mind, and he is ready to die. He knew his lover so well that there must be a tiger behind the right door, but he determined to follow the choice made by her. Because whether it came out an esurient tiger or a fair lady, he would become the most unfortunate man in the world.But when he opened the door, seeing there standing a stunning beauty and she was watching him lovingly. The audience could n’t help breaking out the cheers, except the princess. She had seen him lead her forth; his whole frame kindled with the joy of recovered life, and heard the glad shouts from the multitude, and the wild ringing of the happy bells. The priest, with his joyous followers, advance to the couple, and make them man and wife before her very eyes. He couldn't believe that the princess choose the lady.The moment when the princess finding her one despairing shriek was lost and drowned, the young man went to the king, holding the hand of beauty, knelt, and he asked the king to withdraw the beauty, indicating that princess was his true love and he only loved her for always.After seeing this, the princess could not hold back her feelings any longer. She rushed to the arena immediately, and they embraced tightly. She told her father that she couldn’t live without him. If the king insisted on breaking them up, she had no choice but to open the other door, let the awful tiger out and died with her lover. It showed her fervent and imperious soul as her father.It was to everyone’s surprise that finally the king announce the young man and the princess man and wife. The audience all ignored the fact that whenever there was a hitch and some of his orbs got out of their orbits. After all princess was the apple of the king’s eye. He was blander and more genial still, for nothing pleased him so much as to make the crooked straight, and crush down uneven places. The outcome of this judgment was obviously pleased him to a great degree. Yes, nobody paid attention to the king’s fondness, except the king’s beloved daughter, who finally won the happiness of herself, as well as the favor of her father.。

The End Of The Lady Or The TigerWithout the slightest hesitation, he went to the door on the right and opened it, and there came out an awful tiger. The whole arena fell in a breathless silence. A terrible scream bursted out but soon died down and was replaced by the sounds of tearing clothes and flesh. Doleful iron bells clanged, and never before had the princess’s face been so pale. All of a sudden, she felt that there was a smile flashing by on her father’s face，which was as evil as the Devil did. And now, she understood. Clever as she was, herfather knew her too well. Her childish trick had never escaped his eyes. From the beginning till the end, his father, no, it’s the king that controlled everything, showing no mercy for the poor lady’s feeling whose name was called daughter. “Stupid is what I have done.” The princess finally made a bitter smile to herself. Her lover was dead, eaten up all by the monster but his bones. The most scaring sight of the world. She felt things turned black in her eyes and unconsciously fell into a dead faint.When she came to conscious, the funeral had already been given. She ran out insanely and found herself crying beside her lover’s grave alone. So miserable did she feel that she might even cry to death. But at that time, a shadow stepped towards her, which a broken heart would never have noticed until he stood just in front of her. She kept her eyes wide open and stayed in shock. “Her lover’s soul” tenderly bent over and kissed away her tears, and she felt, felt the breath came from him. He was alive! He handed over a letter to her which explained well for why he stood here and alive.Dear brother,News came that you were casted into prison and the trial is around the corner, which haunts me day and night. Though all our family told me that my illness will be cured of, I know Azrael will take me away soon as it has got harder and harder for me to take even a breath. Now I have found a wonderful end of my life. Yes, quite as you expect at the moment, I will take the place of you. I am sure I can do that for we resemble each other in both appearance and nature if it is not because of my illness. Sorry that I can’t tell you a bit earlier to do the farewell. When you see the letter, I shoule have been in Heaven. So just pray for me, and don’t forget to tell my story to my fairysister-in-law.Farewell…Your sincereThat night, the couple married in front of his brother's tomb. There was no music and no priest , but they had got the most precious blessing of the world.They ran away and no one knew where they had gone, only the moon and the tree that night saw the sweet secret.An Appreciation of “the Lady, or the Tiger” by Frank Richard StocktonAbstract：As the most popular short story written by Frank R. Stockton, “the Lady, or the Tiger”, known for its suspending end, sparked heated and enduring discussion and remained a staple in literature classes. How could a fairy tale be so fascinating as to draw perennial attention among readers? The present paper is an attempt to explore the depth of the story and the subliminal message of the text to throw light on readers’ understanding of Stockton’s works.A widely read American novelist and humorist in his time, Frank R. Stockton produced a number of influential works like “the squirrel Inn”, “Mrs. Cliff’s yacht”, and so on. But today he is remembered chiefly as the author of “the Lady, or the Tiger”, a fairy tale characterized by wizard plotting, bold imagination, archaically elegant language and most of all, a dangling end, or rather, an end without end, that strikes burning curiosity and initiated a persistent “sequel-itis”续集炎，续篇炎amongreaders of intense interest. Its popularity, as a result, has spanned generations since its first publication in 1882.In telling the story, Stockton designed an ancient country as the background where there lived a semi-barbaric king who institutes a savage penal system gloried by himself as an embodiment of the “poetic justice”. As is prescribed by this primal首要的，根本的legal system, when a subject is accused of a crime serious enough to interest the king, he would be taken to an arena in which there are two doors—behind one of them is a ravenous饿极了的tiger and the other a lady. The accused person is given a chance to open either of them to decide his fate. If he chooses the former, he would be ripped into pieces by the tiger as a punishment for his crime. But if chance decides otherwise with his choice of the latter, he would be married to that lady. The system is thus applauded by all subjects for its “absolute justice”. When one day the king happened to discover the romance between his cherished daughter and a young man far beneath her status, he doesn’t hesitate for a single moment to implement his “great scheme of retribution报应，惩罚and reward”. The young man, as a result, is forced to bet his luck in the arena. Before he made a decision between life and death, however, he cast his inquisitive好奇的，好问的eyes upon theprincess, who, with her great power, has made plain to herself the secret of the doors. Then came the most elaborate and intricate description of the inner conflict of the princess who is, as a matter of fact, seared煎熬by the choice day and night. Loving the young man with great ardor热情and fiery火热, she is reluctant to see the tragedy of her lover’s being devoured by the tiger; but her reluctance is greater to see him tie the knot with the fair lady, toward whom she harbored abysmal深不可测的，无底的，极坏的jealousy and venom毒液，恶意. Day after night, love, self-interest, grudge吝啬，怀恨，怨恨and suspicion are intertwined together to complicate her mind, making her waver between the lady and the tiger. Would she save her lover for old times’ sake? Or would she steel her heart and prefer her lover’s death to his marrying another one? Readers hold their breath and wait for an immediate answer as the princess makes a secret gesture to one door.Yet the story ends abruptly here. Stockton refrains from making any personal choice between the Lady and the Tiger. In fact, his own voice as the writer vanishes in the end, leaving ample scope for every reader to search his own conscience and ask himself the natural question: “what would I choose if I were the princess?” The open end just has in it all possibilities forexploration. Since the publication of the story, a multitude of sequels续集have turned up to “round off the suspenseful story” as thus intended. However, “the lady, or the tiger” is far beyond a story or a detective fiction merely for the public entertainment or amusement. Behind its legendary plot there lies profound life reality which necessitates a close scrutiny审视，审查.In a narrow sense, Stockton fictionalizes a love dilemma in which some of us would be entangled, yet more broadly, it is a life confusion that all of us would encounter.The heroine’s vehement强烈的emotional conflict is, as a matter of fact, a revelation of mankind’s preoccupation with self-interest which has gone so wild as to dim是暗淡love, the noblest human emotion, into triviality无足轻重. If love is benevolence, blessing and devotion as eternally extolled赞美，颂扬, the young man could naturally escape the jaw of Death by the princess’s mercy to him that is only too common between doting溺爱的，偏爱的lovers. Ironically, it is none other than 不是别人，正是the princess he loves with his whole being who is irresolute in throwing the light of compassion when his life is on a razor’s edge. It can be easily found that the hesitation is due to her commitment to opposite poles, one commitment to herlover’s interest and the other to her own interest. And as any thinking readers could discern, whatever her choice is, the princess can’t be spared免不了the loss of her lover, the only difference being his death and his marriage to another girl. Her vexation, that is to say, doesn’t primarily originate from the deprivation of her beloved one, but from her perverse reluctance of allowing anyone else to take what she herself would lose possession of. She claims to love him with all fervor and enthusiasm. But somewhere in her soul lurks the spark of egoism, which, if fuelled by impulsion, would spread into a big blaze burning down all around her. Her love toward the youngster is thus in its nature possessive and selfish that go astray from the essence of true love. And the young man is taken only as her personal belonging or an embellishment装饰品serving her needs and comforts. When his life is in collision with her self-interest, she falters犹豫，踌躇. Egoism from within gets the upper hand of love. The violent emotional conflicts harassing her mind day and night explain nothing but her prevailing selfishness and hegemony霸道mentality. Though nothing is exposed in the end, still some clues could be caught by meticulous小心翼翼的，注重细节的readers. For instance, the writer’s description of the princess’s agony fromopening the door of tiger is only half the length of the exhaustive portrayal of her morbid病态的，不正常的craze from another choice. And her distorted psychology from jealousy is much more vividly delineated详细记述than her lamentation upon her lover’s wretched destiny. Stockton does devote more endeavors in depicting a self-interested heroine. The vague end, as a result, could not conceal her seamy恶劣的side, let alone absolve赦免her from the sin of apathy and selfishness. In this sense, it is not the young man but the princess who is actually under the trial------in the court of conscience.A fictitious story as it is, “The Lady, or the Tiger” is a true reflection of the dark side of human nature in reality. The princess is in the tale deliberately depicted as a “semi-barbaric” soul with beastly nature, a fact bespeaking 显示，表示，表明her ferocity凶猛，残暴and absurdity of the choice itself. However, can’t it be said that the semi-barbaric heroine is seized by the egoism 自私自利，that is easy to identify in many of her civilized counterparts. It is not uncommon that modern men tirelessly jostle挤，撞，推with each other for fame and fortune, crush discord minds, slaughter their peers同伴and even provoke sibling兄弟姐妹wars, all merely for the purpose ofmaximizing their own interest. Aren’t these civilized being just as selfish as a semi-barbaric creature when wedged楔入between their own interest and other people? In this way, the evil of egoism hidden in the heart of modern men is startlingly alike with the ancient vulgar beings. Instead of using didactic说教的，为人师表的moralizing, however, the writer applies clever humor and an incomplete plot to invoke read ers’ attention and poke揭穿at jealousy, violence, selfishness and other human foibles小缺点，小毛病. It is vintage葡萄收获季节Stockton, indeed. Apart from that, a multitude of vivid metaphors, vibrant振动的，鲜明的，活泼的description and elaborately-chosen diction greatly spice up the story and set its tone as a light and humorous one. These amalgam混合物of elements helps to attain the writer’s goal of mocking at the modern civilization not violently but in a moderate way, which contributes to the sustaining appeal of the work upon readers.。