Name:
Date:
Period:
“The Dinner Party”
By: Mona Gardner
Previewing Texts
1. Preview the text by looking at the pictures and reading the captions. What do you
predict this story will be about?
2. Fill out the first two boxes of the K-W-L Chart below. Write down what you know about
the topic in Box #1. Write down what you want to find out in Box #2. When you finish
reading the story, write what you learned or discovered in Box#3.
What I KNOW now
Box #1
What I WANT to find out
Box #2
What I LEARNED
Box #3
1.
1.
1.
2.
2.
2.
3.
3.
3.
4.
4.
4.
Pre-reading Vocabulary
Directions: Write the definition next to each of the following words. Next, write a sentence
that properly uses each word in context.
1. Spacious:
2. Impulse:
3. Forfeit:
4. Emerge:
Questions for Thought
Directions: Answer the following questions in complete sentences. Be sure to proofread
your answers and be prepared to share.
1. What is the American’s true motivation for asking Mrs. Wynnes about how she knew
about the snake?
2. Why doesn’t the American warn the other guests about the cobra? What can we infer
about his character?
3. How does the colonel from India believe women act in the face of a crisis?
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4. During the dinner party, what makes the cobra come out?
5. How does the American challenge the guests at the dinner party? Why do you
suppose he gives this response?
6. Why do people scream as the American slams the door safely shut?
7. Why do the guests believe that they have witnessed an example of a man in perfect
control?
8. Describe what happens as the American asks Mrs. Wynnes to explain how she knew
the cobra was in the room.
9. How might the attitude of the guests change after they realize what really happened?
Using Vocabulary Words
Directions: Answer the following vocabulary questions by choosing the best
definition.
1. The large dinner party took place in a spacious dining room. What is the meaning of
the word “spacious”?
a. tiny or small
b. great or vast
c. shabby or run-down d. fashionable
2. The American’s first impulse was to warn the others. Which of the following best
defines the word “impulse”?
a. Attempt or try
b. information or knowledge
c. instinct or urge
3. Anyone who moved would forfeit fifty rupees. The word “forfeit” means
a. surrender
b. earn
c. borrow d. display
At the count of 280, the American saw the cobra emerge. Which phrase best defines the
word “emerge”?
a. suddenly strike b. come into view c. slip slowly away d. blend into its surroundings
Literary Focus
Directions: Answer the questions about the following literary terms.
1. What is an exposition? What is revealed in the exposition of the story?
2. What is the conflict? What events build up the story (rising action)?
3. What are character motivations? What is Mrs. Wynnes’ motivation throughout the
story?
4. What part of the plot is the climax? What is the climax of “The Dinner Party”?
5. What is the resolution? How is the story resolved?
Identifying Story Elements
Directions: Each of the following questions tests your understanding of story
elements. Circle the letter of each correct answer.
1. What happened last in the plot of the story?
a. A young girl argued with a colonel.
b. The cobra moved toward the veranda doors.
c. The American began to count to three hundred.
2. Which sentence best characterizes Mrs. Wynnes?
a. She talked a lot but never listened.
b. She was calm and courageous.
c. She was easily frightened.
d. She was a poor hostess.
3. “The Dinner Party” is set in
a. England
b. India
c. The United States of America
d. Ireland
4. Which sentence best expresses the theme of the story?
a. Men are more courageous than women
b. Women are calmer than men.
c. Your gender has no impact on how courageous you are.
Thinking about the Story
Directions: Each of the following questions requires you to think critically about
the selection. Choose the letter of the correct answer.
1. In “The Dinner Party,” a young girl and a colonel have a difference of opinion. The
conclusion of the story suggests that
a. the colonel was right
b. the young girl was right
c. that both of them were wrong
2.
a.
b.
c.
Probably, a “strange expression” came over the face of the hostess because she
saw the cobra in the corner of the room
was unhappy that two of her guests were arguing
realized there was a cobra under the table
3.
a.
b.
c.
We may infer that the American decided to count to three hundred because he
wanted to find out which guest had the most control
thought it would make an amusing party game
realized it might take five minutes for the cobra to come out
4. Which statement is true of both the American and Mrs. Wynnes?
a. They were guests at a dinner party.
b. They were attacked by a cobra.
c. They were quick thinking.
5. Suppose the American had said nothing at all to the guests. How do you think the
story would have ended?
6. In the story, a colonel and a young girl have a difference of opinion. With whom do
you think the author agrees? Explain your position.
7. What do you think the young girl might have said to the colonel after it was
revealed that the cobra had been crawling across Mrs. Wynnes’ foot? What might
the colonel have responded?
Critical Thinking
Directions: People often make assumptions about others. In Mona Gardner’s short story
“The Dinner Party”, the colonel from India boasts to others that a woman’s unfailing
reaction to any crisis is to scream. What is your opinion of the colonel’s comments? Do
you feel as though he is wrong for his comments? Why or why not?
Name: ________________________________ Per. _____
Date: __________
“The Dinner Party” by Mona Gardner
Taking it Further
Directions: Write a well-constructed short response to this question.
A person’s personality and background can influence his or her beliefs and
actions. In the story “The Dinner Party” an argument springs up that women
cannot keep their composure in a crisis as well as men can. How does Mrs.
Wynne’s character prove this statement false?
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