reading proyect

Catalina Mora Pereira

Summary

• involves two families that have been feuding over a strip of forest for decades. The courts ruled in the Gradwitz family's favor but the Znaeym family never accepted this.

• One night, Ulrich takes a group of men into the forest with him searching for his enemy as he suspects he is hunting game on his land. When they finally come face to face, a lightning bolt strikes the tree and it falls, pinning them both to the floor, right beside each other.

• As they sit talking, they speak of what is going to happen when their men reach them first, how they will kill the other when their men release them from this massive tree. Ulrich drinks his wine flask and after a while he offers it to Georg. He wants to end their feud and Georg agrees. They offer to be friends after this ordeal.

• They decide to shout for their men to find them. After shouting for some time, they hear footsteps and noises in the distance. They shout louder as what they think are men come closer. When they get close enough, the men realize that these are not men, but are hungry wolves on their way to eat the two defenseless men.


Time and Place•The physical setting of "The Interlopers" is the eastern edge of the Carpathian Mountains, which range from the Czech Republic in the northeast to Romania in the south. The two main characters of the story -- Ulrich von Gradwitz and Georg Znaeym -- are in a "dark forest," a "narrow strip of precipitous woodland," which, ironically, is of no real use to either man but is the source of their dispute and continuing feud. As with many short stories, no specific time is mentioned, but we do know that the author lived from 1870 to 1916 and that in the story night is approaching.Weather•The weather adds additional mood and complications for the characters in "The Interlopers." It is a "wind-scourged winter night" that causes "unrest among the creatures that were wont to sleep through the dark hours." The "disturbing element in the forest" pushes Ulrich to wish "[i]f only on this wild night, in this dark, lone spot, he might come across Georg Znaeym, man to man, with none to witness." The wildness of the winter wind accentuates the wildness felt by the character.Setting Shift•Although the overall setting for "The Interlopers" remains the same, it shifts in the sense that it becomes more narrowed and focused. "[A] deed of Nature's own violence overwhelmed them both. A fierce shriek of the storm had been answered by a splitting crash over their heads, and ere they could leap aside a mass of falling beech tree had thundered down on them," pinning both characters to the ground. The setting then reflects the characters' own relationship: "All around them lay a thick-strewn wreckage of splintered branches and broken twigs." The characters' immobility illustrates a more immediate setting as they lay side by side, nearly able to touch each other.Irony in Setting•The final use of setting in "The Interlopers" occurs shortly after Znaeym and Gradwitz become pinned by the fallen tree. After exchanging curses, the two eventually realize that their feud over a useless bit of wild land is pointless. The cold, desolate, unfriendly, isolated winter weather has actually brought the two men closer together. The final irony is that in this wild setting, there are naturally wild creatures, and after finally ending their feud, Znaeym and Gradwitz suddenly realize that a pack of wolves is about to descend upon them.


Setting Shift•Although the overall setting for "The Interlopers" remains the same, it shifts in the sense that it becomes more narrowed and focused. "[A] deed of Nature's own violence overwhelmed them both. A fierce shriek of the storm had been answered by a splitting crash over their heads, and ere they could leap aside a mass of falling beech tree had thundered down on them," pinning both characters to the ground. The setting then reflects the characters' own relationship: "All around them lay a thick-strewn wreckage of splintered branches and broken twigs." The characters' immobility illustrates a more immediate setting as they lay side by side, nearly able to touch each other.

Irony in Setting•The final use of setting in "The Interlopers" occurs shortly after Znaeym and Gradwitz become pinned by the fallen tree. After exchanging curses, the two eventually realize that their feud over a useless bit of wild land is pointless. The cold, desolate, unfriendly, isolated winter weather has actually brought the two men closer together. The final irony is that in this wild setting, there are naturally wild creatures, and after finally ending their feud, Znaeym and Gradwitz suddenly realize that a pack of wolves is about to descend upon them.


Characters• Ulrich von Gradwitz: A stubborn,

selfish man; but with further development in the story he becomes more open to becoming friends with Georg, his worst enemy.

• Georg Znaeym: He is hardheaded and self-centered like Ulrich. He is jealous of Ulrich because he has so much land and hunting grounds. Eventually he becomes open to being friends with Ulrich.


The theme of The interlopers is about hatred and it may lead to tragedy. The story is a example of the feud between the two families. If the two families could have compromised over the ownership of the forest. Ulrich and Georg wouldn't make themselves into crisis or even lost their life in the end. Just like the story of Romeo and Juliet, if the two families hadn't fight with each other and made peace between them instead of feud. It wouldn't lead to the death of their daughter or son. Ulrich and Georg had never thought to do other than hate each other in their life until they were in bad situation, like the two families of Romeo and Juliet didn't have peace until they lost their family. However, it seems like it's too late to bring the situation better. The idea Is like people never value what they already have and take it for granted until they really lose it.Furthermore, the story also tells us not to be greedy. At the time the author wrote the story, he was a soldier in World War I, a global war the each countries were assembled in two opposite alliance, the Allies and the Central Power. The two hostile families may be like the two opposite side in World War I and the feud between them has last for many years. The conflict of the Ulrich and the Georg was caused by greedy that they both want the forest land and no one was willing to give up. It's like those countries participated in the World War I wanted to gain more power and territories. However, even the Allies won in the end of the World War I, the economy of was badly affect because of the war.


Answer the following questions.

1. How did the Gradwitzes receive all the land they have? 2. Why do Ulrich von Gradwitz and Georg Znaeym not get along? 3. What is Ulrich von Gradwitz hunting in the story? 4. What was Ulrich von Gradwitz’s wish when he wandered away from his crew? 5. What happened once Ulrich von Gradwitz and George Znaeym meet in the forest? 6. How do the two men behave once they are stuck? 7. What makes Gradwitz start to behave differently? 8. What happens to them at the end?


http://bpidbere.blogspot.com/2009/11/interlopers-summary.html

https://www.google.com/search?q=the+interlopers&rlz=1C1GGGE_esCR429CR432&es_sm=122&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=0xdXU5n0FbfNsQSAh4KoBA&ved=0CAgQ_AUoAQ&biw=1440&bih=775#q=lobo+en+bosque&tbm

https://honorsenglishi.wikispaces.com/The+Interlopers

https://sites.google.com/site/theinterlopersbysaki/theme

http://www.dukeofdefinition.com/interlopers.pdf

http://bpidbere.blogspot.com/2009/11/interlopers-summary.html

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