Theme Of Jealousy In Frank R. Stockton's The Lady Or The Tiger

In the ruckus of life, love and jealousy can become intertwined and destroy the other. Jealousy can strangle all life out of the love that has been formed over time. In Frank R. Stockton’s short story titled “The Lady or the Tiger?”, this exact situation occurs. A youth falls in love with a king’s daughter, which is forbidden by society, so in return, the youth is thrown into jail by the king and put on trial for his convicted crime of treason against the kingdom. In the story, it is revealed that often times jealousy causes one to question their loyalty to a person due to their immediate emotions overriding reason and the relationship previously built. In the story, the theme of jealousy is introduced through the external conflict expressed within the text. This story takes place in the Middle Ages, during which a physical
The princess in “The Lady or the Tiger” struggles when determining the youth’s fate either consisting of death or marriage to another beautiful lady as she contemplates “Which [door to open. The answer is] as plain to her as if [the youth] shouted it from where he stood. There was not an instant to be lost. The question [of which door to open] was asked in a flash; it must be answered in another” (Stockton 302). The princess is forced to decide the youth’s fate in a split second. The short amount of time that is taken for her to make her decision suggests that her emotions may have overruled reason and could lead to her regretting her decision later in life. In a single second, lives could be drastically changed. Up until the last moment, the youth, that the princess had loved, believes that she will spare him; he has a blind faith in the princess and trusts in her choices. The king’s daughter’s heart is torn during this point of decision. She must decide whether she would prefer to see the youth dead or with the lady whom she