James Thurber

The Great Macbeth Mystery

Work Sheet

Questions on the text:

1. Why did the American woman buy and actually read Macbeth?

2. Collect the rules the American woman has for good crime fiction and list them.

3. Take every suspect the American presents and argue why she must be wrong.

4. What is the narrator’s reaction to the woman’s theories? How would you characterize the way he behaves towards her?

5. What kind of man do you think is the narrator?

6. What kind of woman is the American woman?

7. Why is the story funny? Explain the humour used by Thurber.

8. What do you think is wrong with the American woman’s approach to literature?