Characters
Based on her observations, what is Miss Martha Meacham's incorrect conclusion about her customer, Mr. Blumberger?
Miss Martha concludes that Mr. Blumberger is a very poor, struggling artist ("a draughtsman") who is starving in a garret. She believes he is too proud to accept charity and thus only buys two stale loaves of bread daily, which she assumes is his only food.
What is the main message or theme of the story about making assumptions?
The main theme is that making assumptions about people without knowing the facts can lead to harmful and embarrassing consequences. Miss Martha assumes Mr. Blumberger is poor and starving, and her actions based on this assumption ruin his work.
From whose point of view do we see the story? Why is this important for the surprise ending?
We see the story from a third-person limited point of view, which only follows Miss Martha's thoughts and feelings. This is important because the reader is "trapped" in her head and believes her assumptions, making the final twist just as surprising to the reader as it is to her.
Describe the setting of Miss Martha's bakery.
The setting is a small, quiet bakery on a side street, away from the "roaring" city. It's described as her "little" world, which is clean and contains her baked goods and a romantic painting of Venice.
What is the central misunderstanding that sets the main plot of the story in motion?
The plot starts because Miss Martha misunderstands why Mr. Blumberger buys stale bread. She assumes he is a poor, starving artist who can't afford fresh bread, which causes her to develop a romantic fantasy and decide to interfere.
Analyse Miss Martha's primary motivation for her actions. Is she motivated by pure kindness, or are there other factors at play?
While Miss Martha's actions appear to be kindness, her primary motivation is a romantic fantasy. She is a lonely, "forty, plump, and unmarried" woman who projects a narrative onto Blumberger. Her "kindness" (adding butter, then quinine) is driven more by her desire to play a role in this imagined romance—as the nurturing saviour of a "starving artist"—than by genuine, selfless altruism.
The story's theme is often called "misguided kindness." Explain what this means using Miss Martha as an example.
"Misguided kindness" is when someone tries to be kind, but their actions are based on wrong information ("misguided") and end up causing a problem. Miss Martha thinks she is being kind by adding butter and quinine, but she is "misguided" because he doesn't need food or medicine, and she ends up ruining his work.
Define situational irony and explain how the end of the story is a perfect example.
Situational irony is when the result of an action is the complete opposite of what was intended. Miss Martha intends to help (be kind, provide food/medicine), but the result is that she destroys Mr. Blumberger's valuable work. This is the opposite of her kind intention.
How does the setting of the small bakery affect Miss Martha's personality and actions?
The small, quiet setting isolates Miss Martha. Because she is alone in her "little" world without much real excitement or interaction, she lives in her head and builds up her romantic fantasies about her customer.
Describe the key events of the rising action. How does Miss Martha's first attempt to "help" Mr. Blumberger escalate the situation?
The rising action consists of Miss Martha's escalating attempts to help.
First, she adds fresh butter to his stale loaves.
This action backfires, causing Mr. Blumberger to return looking "angry" and speak "harshly" to her for the first time.
Miss Martha misinterprets his anger as a sign of illness, which escalates the plot and leads her to her second, more drastic action: adding quinine to his bread.
Contrast the character of Miss Martha with that of Mr. Blumberger. How do their perspectives and concerns differ throughout the story?
Miss Martha is a character defined by romantic fantasy, assumption, and her internal world. Her concerns are emotional and imaginative. Mr. Blumberger, in contrast, is a thoroughgoing realist. He is pragmatic, focused on his professional work (an architectural draughtsman), and entirely literal. He buys stale bread not because he is poor, but because it is the perfect consistency for erasing pencil marks from his architectural plans. He exists in a world of technical precision, while she exists in a world of vague, sentimental daydreams.
How does O. Henry use the story to explore the theme of fantasy versus reality?
The story explores this theme by contrasting Miss Martha's internal fantasy with Mr. Blumberger's reality. She imagines a romantic story of a starving artist. The reality is that he is a practical draughtsman with a technical job. The entire plot is driven by the moment her fantasy crashes into his reality.
What do the stale bread and the butter symbolize (represent) in the story?
The Stale Bread: It symbolizes the gap between fantasy and reality. To Miss Martha, it symbolizes his poverty. In reality, it is just a practical tool (an eraser).
The Butter: It symbolizes Miss Martha's "kindness," which is rich and domestic. However, her kindness is messy and destructive when it interferes with his technical, precise work.
What is the importance of the painting of Venice ("the picture of the Venetian gondola") in her shop?
The painting is a key part of the setting that reveals her character. It symbolizes her desire for romance and a more exciting, beautiful life than her simple bakery. She throws it away at the end, showing her fantasy is over.
Identify the climax of the story. What specific action and revelation mark the story's highest point of tension?
The climax is when Mr. Blumberger storms back into the bakery. The peak of the tension is when he slams the bread on the counter, revealing it is "full of butter and quinine." The key revelation is the truth: he is an architectural draughtsman, and the bread was his eraser. Her "kindness" has ruined his $5,000 architectural drawing by smudging the ink.
In what ways is Mr. Blumberger an "antagonist" to Miss Martha's story, even though he is not a villain?
Mr. Blumberger is an "antagonist" not through malicious action, but by his very existence. He is the unintentional antagonist to Miss Martha's fantasy. His mundane reality (a well-paid draughtsman who needs an eraser) directly conflicts with and ultimately shatters her romantic narrative (a starving artist who needs food). He is not a villain, but his true nature makes her story impossible.
Besides assumptions, what does the story suggest about the theme of loneliness?
The story suggests that loneliness can make people create fantasies to feel connected. Miss Martha is lonely ("forty, plump, and unmarried") and invents a romantic story about Mr. Blumberger to make her life more exciting. Her loneliness is the root cause of her "misguided kindness."
Identify one clue (an example of foreshadowing) that O. Henry gives the reader that Miss Martha's assumptions are wrong before the ending.
One key clue is the description of the man's fingers. Miss Martha assumes it's paint, but the narrator specifically notes he has "black" stains, like "ink." This hints at a drafting or technical job, not painting. (Another good answer: The story's title "Witches' Loaves" hints that her "gift" is more like a curse.)
In what way is the bakery a "safe" place for Miss Martha's fantasy to grow?
The bakery is "safe" for her fantasy because it's her territory. She is in control and can interpret everything that happens (like Mr. Blumberger's looks or his choice of bread) entirely on her own terms, without anyone from the outside world correcting her.
O. Henry is famous for his plot twists. How does the plot twist in "Witches' Loaves" function to resolve the story's central conflict?
The central conflict is Miss Martha's internal fantasy versus reality. The plot twist—the revelation that Blumberger is a draughtsman, not an artist—resolves this conflict instantly and violently. It's the moment reality shatters her fantasy. The conflict is "resolved" not by her winning him over, but by her entire narrative being proven false.
Discuss whether Miss Martha Meacham is a static or a dynamic character. Does the story's ending suggest she has learned anything, or is she simply defeated?
Miss Martha is largely a static character. The story's climax is the destruction of her fantasy, not her personal growth. The ending, where she "ransacks" the quinine and throws away her romantic paraphernalia ("the picture of the Venetian gondola"), suggests a violent rejection of her fantasy rather than a thoughtful evolution. She doesn't learn to see people more clearly; she simply learns that this specific fantasy was wrong. Her final action of wearing the "blue-dotted silk waist" signifies a bitter return to her lonely reality, not a new, wiser perspective.
How does the story critique (criticise) the popular idea of the "starving artist"?
The story critiques this idea by making it the center of Miss Martha's foolish fantasy. She buys into the romantic trope of a "starving artist in a garret." O. Henry shows this trope is silly and disconnected from the real world by revealing Mr. Blumberger is actually a well-paid technical professional who just needs an eraser.
Describe the narrator's tone (attitude) toward Miss Martha. Is the narrator being mean or sympathetic?
The tone is a mix of both; it's gently satirical but also sympathetic. The narrator makes fun of her romantic fantasies by using formal language for silly ideas. But he also calls her "poor Martha" and shows her loneliness, which makes the reader feel sorry for her at the same time.
How does the setting of the story (a bakery) make the central irony stronger?
The irony is stronger because a bakery is a place for providing food and nurturing. Miss Martha's job is to feed people. The central irony is that she uses her position as a "nurturer" and the very items in her shop (bread, butter) to destroy something valuable, not to help.
Analyze the story's falling action and resolution. What do Miss Martha's final actions tell us about the true resolution of the plot?
The falling action is brief: Blumberger leaves, and Miss Martha, alone, "ransacks" the quinine and throws the romantic painting of Venice in the trash. The resolution is her changing from her "brown" silk waist (which she wore for him) into her "other," less special one. This shows the plot is fully resolved: her fantasy is not just over, but dead and rejected. The resolution is not her finding new hope, but her bitter, complete return to a lonely reality.