Vocabulary #1
Having or showing compassion or kindness.
Humane
Describe the bet.
The banker and the lawyer make a bet that the lawyer would not stay imprisoned for 15 years. If he does, the banker must pay the lawyer 2 million.
Who is the protagonist?
The lawyer
What are the two settings of this story? (Where does this story take place?)
1) The party takes place at the banker's residence, 15 years before the end of the story.
2) Some of the story takes place in the dwelling where the lawyer is confined.
A person possessing a highly developed intellect
Intellectual
Having no meaning; making no sense.
Nonsensical
1) Which group of guests thought that the death penalty was out of date?
2) Why?
1)The majority of the guests (Journalists & Intellectual Men)
2) It was immoral and unsuitable for Christian States.
Who is the antagonist?
The banker
What is the worst part about the first year of imprisonment for the lawyer?
He is suffering from loneliness and depression.
The state of being imprisoned; captivity.
Imprisonment
A sudden desire.
Caprice
1) Did the banker agree or disagree about the death penalty being immoral?
2) Explain.
1) He disagreed
2) He thought it was more moral and humane than life in prison. He felt that life imprisonment kills a man slowly, while the death penalty kills them quickly.
What point of view is "The Bet" told in?
Third Person Limited
What dilemma does the banker face near the end of the 15 year bet?
He has lost most of his money and racked up a lot of debt. Losing the bet and paying the 2 million would ruin him.
The action or process of calculating or estimating something.
Reckoning
The state of being enclosed and limited.
Confinement
What are the arrangements of the lawyer's imprisonment?
He has to stay in a house in the banker's garden under strict supervision for 15 years. He is allowed to play music, write letters, and read books.
How many languages did the lawyer learn during confinement ?
six
Explain why the lawyer renounces the 2 million.
During his time spent reading in prison he discovered that money was pointless. He felt it was as illusionary and deceptive as a mirage.
An act or course of action to which a person is morally or legally bound; a duty or commitment.
Obligation
Not having any serious purpose or value.
Frivolous
Explain how the prisoner spent the fifth year of his confinement. (Name 2)
1) In the fifth year, music could be heard again.
2) He spent a lot of time doing nothing but eating and lying on his bed.
3) He angrily talked to himself
What happened when the banker went into the lawyers room?
1) The banker noticed the lawyer was sleeping
2) The lawyer looked old, tired, and emaciated
3) The banker found a letter about how the lawyer is not going to follow through with the bet. This made the banker happy because he did not have to kill him.
What had the banker planned to do to the lawyer?
BE SPECIFIC
1) Kill him
2) He was planning on smothering him with a pillow.
Abnormally thin or weak, especially because of illness or a lack of food.
Emaciated