INB, page 36 – Complete 7 questions on “The Dinner Party” – Red Lit Book, pages INB, page 41 – Student Self Checklist for Written Responses INB, page 39 -Citing Text Evidence How does each text differ in its treatment of women? RTT - Nagaina, Darzee’s wife Dinner party – heated discussion, hostess, resolution

How does each text differ in its treatment of women? In the short stories “Rikki-Tikki-Tavi” and “The Dinner Party,” women play an important role. In Rudyard Kipling’s famous tale, Nagaina, a female snake, plots the evil plan to kill the family; she tells her husband what to do. She states to her husband, “When the house is emptied of people, … the garden will be our own again” (81). Likewise, Darzee’s wife is portrayed as wiser than her husband. In fact, the text reads that Darzee was “featherbrained” and could not “hold more than one idea at a time,” but his wife was “sensible and she knew that cobra’s eggs meant young cobras later on” (84). The author of “Rikki-Tikki-Tavi” treats women as important and intelligent members of society. In “The Dinner Party” the role of women in society is up for debate more than in “Rikki-Tikki-Tavi.” The main conflict of the story centers around whether women have “the actual nerve control of men” (28). When a cobra crawls across the feet of the hostess, a woman, she maintains her composure and asks the native boy to place milk on the veranda. She demonstrates the greatest rational behavior in the story, thus settling the argument of who has the most control between men and women. Though both authors treat women with respect and honor, “The Dinner Party” seems to debate the issue, while “Rikki-Tikki-Tavi” assumes the fact from the outset.

INB, page 38 How does each text develop the cobras as characters using other characters’ reactions to them?