The Inheritor

The Inheritor

1. Conflict

   • Physical Conflict
     • man vs. man - Man vs. Dingo
     • man vs. man - Ewe vs. Dingo
   • Mental Conflict
     • Man vs. Himself
       • Man contemplates whether or not to save the sheep
   • Man vs. Nature
     • Man vs. Flood
   • Dilemna
     • The inner problem is a choice between saving the Ewe or letting it die

2. Symbol

   • allegory
     • man could equal government, Dingo could equal a Dictator and the Ewe would equal innocent people
   • allusion
     • "and hanging on to that trussed sheep with both hands as though it had a golden fleece"
       • literature story 'Jason and His Band of Argonauts'
   • symbolic characters
     • man = government, Dingo = Dictator, Ewe = innocent people
   • universality
     • representing a bigger picture about the fight between the government, dictators and the innocent

3. Theme

   • what it takes to be a hero
     • protect the weak from the cruel and vicious
     • a hero is created only if they protect the innocent

4. Plot

   • complicating incident
     • conflict introduced when the man spots the ewe in a crisis and the Dingo turns and snarls at the man
   • rising action
     • the think processes in which the man debates whether to save the ewe or not
   • crisis
     • the decision whether to save the ewe or not
   • foreshadowing
     • "the tree had made a monument for war"
       • could explain the war that was about to occur
   • climax
     • when the man jumps on the Dingo, strangling it to death
   • denouement
     • matters resolved when Dingo is killed
   • impact of setting on plot
     • the flood forces the survivors into panic
       • causes drastic measures, such as killing the dog for safety
   • point of view
     • the view shift occurs when the helicopter crew shows up for the rescue

5. Character

   • hero
     • the man is the hero of the story because he rids of the dangerous Dingo to save the innocent Ewe
   • motivation
     • the motivation was the flood forcing them to make a quick choice
   • dynamic character
     • the man changes from ignoring the helpless Ewe to being compassionate and saving it
   • situational irony
     • suspected outcome- man fleds to tree for safety
       • what occurs- saves life of Ewe
   • dramatic irony
     • audience knows the sheep is just a sheep
       • man believes the sheep is really more

6. Form

   • action-adventure tale
     • story is well described but also moves fairly quickly

7. Vocabulary

   • lacerated
     • to tear or make deep cuts (in flesh/skin)
   • propinquity
     • the state of being close to someone or something: proximity