The Dinner Party By Mona Gardner

The story “The Dinner Party” by Mona Gardner takes place in India at a large dinner party being thrown by a colonial official and his wife, Mrs. Wynnes. In the beginning, during the party, there was a discussion going on about men having more self control than a woman in a crisis situation. Meanwhile, Mrs. Wynnes notices a cobra in the room and quietly tells the native boy in the room to get a bowl of milk to draw the cobra out. The American man at the party sees the native boy doing as asked and figures out there is a snake. He doesn’t want to startle the others knowing the cobra will then strike. Therefore, challenges them to a contest of sitting still for 300 seconds as to prove their self control. In these 300 seconds, the cobra comes