Story Analysis: The Lie

After reading The Lie I think the main idea of the story is that you're judged by your own skills and capabilities, not by how well off your family is. In this story, Eli wasn't accepted into Whitehill because his exam scores didn't meet the requirements. As Sylvia mentioned, there were still students who came from less well off families, such as the African American students or the students who received scholarships. At first, both Sylvia and the doctor seemed entitled to the fact that Eli should be enrolled into Whitehill, and the doctor even attempted to persuade members of the school board to make an exception. On page 11, it says that "Doctor Remenzel stood impressively, angry and determined. "I mean," he said, "I'm going to see how quickly