the open window summary essay

A Summary and Analysis of Saki’s ‘The Open Window’

By Dr Oliver Tearle (Loughborough University)

‘The Open Window’ is one of Saki’s shortest stories, and that’s saying something. Few of his perfectly crafted and deliciously written tales exceed four or five pages in length, but ‘The Open Window’, at barely three pages, outstrips even ‘ The Lumber-Room ’ or ‘ Tobermory ’ for verbal economy.

It is so brief it has almost the air of a parable about it, except that it’s far from clear what the ‘moral’ of the story is, or even if there is one. Saki uses language so deftly and to such effect, that it is worth unpicking and analysing ‘The Open Window’ (which can be read in full here ) a little.

Although on first glance it seems different from some of Saki’s better-known stories, such as his classic werewolf tale ‘Gabriel-Ernest ’ and his story about a polecat worshipped as a god, ‘Sredni Vashtar’ , ‘The Open Window’ follows the same essential setup as many of Saki’s other stories, in having an adolescent character whose supposed innocence (supposed by the adult character, that is) turns out to be guile, cunning, and the mischief in disguise.

But whereas Nicholas in ‘The Lumber-Room’, Conradin in ‘Sredni Vashtar’, or Gabriel-Ernest actively seek to cause harm to their adult antagonists (or, in the case of Nicholas, to refuse to help an aunt who has got herself trapped in the water tank), Vera’s only weapon is her imagination. Yet this alone suggests that she shares some kinship with Conradin in ‘Sredni Vashtar’, whose cousin and guardian dislikes her ward’s imaginative streak.

‘The Open Window’: plot summary

What happens in ‘The Open Window’, in summary, is this: a man, who has the glorious name of Framton Nuttel, has newly arrived in a ‘rural retreat’, to help him settle his nerves. His sister, worried that he will hide himself away there and ‘mope’, thus making his nerves worse, has given him the names and addresses of all the people she knows in the area, and told him to go and introduce himself to them. (His sister had stayed at the rectory four years earlier.)

‘The Open Window’ takes place at the house of one of Framton’s sister’s contacts, a woman named Mrs Sappleton and her 15-year-old niece, Vera, whom Framton has gone round to visit so he might introduce himself.

While Mrs Sappleton is upstairs making herself ready to meet their new guest, Vera entertains Framton. After she learns that Framton knows barely anything about her aunt, Vera tells him that three years ago Mrs Sappleton’s husband and her two brothers went out through the French window on a shooting trip, and never returned. They drowned in a ‘treacherous piece of bog’ and their bodies were never recovered. The spaniel they took with them was lost, too.

Vera tells Framton that her aunt has kept the French window open ever since, in the belief that her husband and brothers are going to walk back through the open window any moment, alive and well.

Mrs Sappleton then arrives from upstairs and apologises for being late coming down. She mentions the open window and explains that her husband and brothers are out shooting but will be back any minute. They exchange small talk about shooting and birds, and Framton iterates that he has been told to have complete rest and avoid ‘mental excitement’, when Mrs Sappleton announces that her husband and brothers are returning home.

Framton looks with horror at the sight of three men and a ‘tired brown spaniel’ approaching the open window – he sees that Vera shares his look of shock. Believing he is seeing three ghosts (four if you include the dog!), he picks up his hat and coat and runs from the house as fast as he can.

Back at the house, Mrs Sappleton remarks that Mr Nuttel was an odd man – all he could do was talk about his ailments, and then he ‘dashed off’ as soon as the men arrived. Vera suggests that he was scared of dogs, and the sight of the spaniel caused him to run off. The final sentence of the story refers to Vera: ‘Romance at short notice was her speciality.’

‘The Open Window’: analysis

‘The Open Window’ is an amusing little story; but is it more than this? Closer analysis of Saki’s tale reveals that the devil is in the detail. Note that Framton is not presented as a gullible fool, and if he is, we as readers are encouraged to be gulled, too, for we are supposed to be taken in by Vera’s lie about the dead husband and brothers as well.

But as Framton is wondering whether Mrs Sappleton is married or widowed, he senses a male presence in the house: ‘An undefinable something about the room seemed to suggest masculine habitation.’ His first instinct is correct, but Vera’s entirely fabricated narrative leads him to believe he was mistaken about the ‘masculine’ atmosphere.

And she convinces him that she should be believed by a number of subtle details: the spaniel that accompanied the men on their apparently ill-fated trip, for instance, and the white waterproof coat which the husband was carrying over his arm when they left. Vera obviously saw the men leaving with the dog and coat, and weaves them into the narrative she feeds to Framton, so that when the men return – with the dog and the coat, as described – the idea that Framton is seeing dead men walking is all the more powerful.

Vera’s look of horror when they see the men returning to the house is also a nice touch. Of course, being still technically a child, female, and named Vera (meaning literally ‘truth’), all help, too. But you can never trust children in Saki, those ‘feral ephebes’ in Sandie Byrne’s memorable phrase.

But does ‘The Open Window’ mean anything else beyond itself? That is, can it be analysed as a commentary on anything other than lying teenage girls? Well, the story does raise questions which, we might argue, prefigure the concerns of the modernist writers who were active a few years after Saki, in the immediate post-WWI period.

There is no absolute truth or absolute reality, writers such as James Joyce and Virginia Woolf suggest, because everything is mediated through personal human experience, and we cannot know everything. Virginia Woolf’s first great novel, Jacob’s Room (1922), is a good example of this: no one character fully knows or understands the title character, and everyone gets a slightly different glimpse of who he is. Framton has only Vera’s word to go on about Mrs Sappleton’s husband and brothers.

But, conversely, Mrs Sappleton, unaware that her niece has been spinning their guest a web of lies, has a different perception of him, too, believing him to be an odd man who has an excessive reaction to the sight of her male relatives. Vera, the fiction-master (and thus the author-surrogate in the story), is the only one who knows both sides and can enjoy playing these two characters, with their partial glimpses of the whole story, off each other.

Although Saki’s style and approach are very different from someone like Virginia Woolf, the preoccupation with ‘fiction’ and ‘perception’ is the same – only Saki’s take on this issue is funnier.

Vera’s lie in ‘The Open Window’ about three members of one family – all of them male – going off together on a shooting trip and never returning, leaving the female characters at home to grieve for them, seems eerily to prefigure the events of a few years later, when hundreds of thousands of Englishmen – including, in many cases, every single man in a particular family – would go off to fight in the First World War and never come back. (When we consider that, in Vera’s fictional account, the three men meet their end by drowning in boggy mud, and their bodies are never recovered, the foreshadowing of the Western Front becomes downright spooky.)

Saki himself would be one of them, killed in action in 1916. With him, and many like him, the Edwardian way of life that Saki so ruthlessly skewers in his stories would die, too. But ‘The Open Window’ remains more than a window (to reach for the inevitable metaphor) onto a vanished world. It is a timeless tale about truth and fiction, and, yes, a parable without a moral. For that reason, it deserves to be revisited, analysed and studied, discussed, and celebrated.

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1 thought on “A Summary and Analysis of Saki’s ‘The Open Window’”

I love the ending to this story – the irony and surprise packed into a single sentence reminds me a lot of O. Henry’s works…

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The Open Window Summary & Analysis

One of Saki’s best-known short stories, “The Open Window”, originally published in  1911 , describes an encounter of Framton Nuttel, with the fifteen-year-old niece of Mrs. Sappleton, Nuttel’s hostess for the duration of his temporary rural retreat. The story is narrated by an omniscient, third-person narrator. 

British author Hector Hugh Munro, better known by his pen name, Saki , is one of the greatest writers of short stories in Britain, often compared to the likes of O. Henry. 

The Open Window | Summary

The story begins  in medias res  with Mrs. Sappleton’s niece,  Vera, who is “a very self-possessed young lady of fifteen ”, who explains to Framton that her aunt would meet him shortly. As Framton waits for Mrs. Sappleton, he is unable to carry on a conversation with the young girl, being naturally shy and introverted. He doubts if living with total strangers will cure his nerve symptoms, but his sister insists on introducing him to the people that she knows in the village. Vera asks him if he knows anything about her aunt, and Frampton replies that all he knows about her is her name and address. He tries to figure out if Mrs. Sappleton is married or widowed, and by observing the room, he finds subtle signs of masculine habitation. 

Vera suddenly mentions the ‘ great tragedy ’ that befell her aunt three years ago, to attract his curiosity. It works, and Framton curiously enquires about the tragedy. She draws his attention to the large French window in the room, asking if he wonders why the window is open on a late October afternoon. He asks if it is somehow connected to the tragedy. She explains that  three years ago, her aunt’s husband and two brothers had gone shooting along with their dog, a little brown spaniel. In that “dreadfully wet summer”, they drowned in an inobtrusive piece of bog, and none of their bodies could be recovered.  Not being able to deal with the tragic demise of her husband and brothers, her aunt still hopes for their return,  keeping the window open every day in the hope that they will return , as she still narrates the story of their departure that day, her husband with a white coat over his shoulders, her youngest brother singing “Bertie, why do you bound?” to deliberately annoy his sister. 

At this point, Mrs. Sappleton herself comes down to greet her guest, hoping that Vera had kept him amused in the meantime. She hopes that Framton will excuse the open window, as her husband and brothers will return from their snipe hunt in the marshes. Thinking that she is delusional, Framton attempts to change the subject by narrating the details of his sickness. Suddenly, Mrs. Sappleton cries, “Here they are at last!”, and Framton looks at her niece to nod in sympathetic comprehension. However, seeing Vera looking out the window with “dazed horror in her eyes”, he looks up at the window and sees three figures walking towards the window in the deepening twilight, armed with guns and a white coat flung over one of their shoulders, a tired brown spaniel at their heels. Thinking that he is seeing ghosts, Framton flees the spot terrified. 

As Mr. Sappleton and his brothers-in-law enter the house, they ask who it was who bolted out the door. A surprised Mrs. Sappleton is herself puzzled, unable to comprehend Framton’s sudden, unexplained departure. Her niece, Vera, however, explains that it must have been because of his fear of dogs, as he was telling her that he was once chased by a pack of pariah dogs in India, being forced to spend the night inside a dug grave which the dogs snarling and drooling over him.

The last line explains that “ Romance at short notice was her specialty .”

The Open Window | Analysis

The  humorous and ironic short story  explores the  outstanding creativity of a fifteen-year-old girl who is able to come up with thrilling, fictitious explanations behind real events in a matter of seconds,  fooling all adults around her. While ethically, Vera’s actions constitute lying, Saki is not condemning the little girl’s habit, but taking an indulgent, paternalistic attitude to her marvelous ability and creative genius. Even her  acting skills  are so convincing that she changes her voice tone and expression according to the demands of the situation, her body language shifting from her natural sense of self-possession to an expression of ‘dazed horror’ at will, making Framton Nuttel completely forget about his own observations of the rectory that would have helped him uncover Vera’s prank. Naturally shy and timid, he completely forgets that he had seen signs of ‘masculine habitation’ in the house, or that there is a perfectly rational explanation for keeping the window open in an exceptionally hot October. Instead of reacting in a rational manner and enquiring about Mr. Sappleton from her wife instead of relying solely on the words of a child, he is so convinced by Vera’s story that he runs away in horror the moment he sees the men return, not even providing an explanation to his hostess, or waiting for one from her side. The comicality of the situation is strikingly in contrast to the horrifying quality of Vera’s stories, and the audience, aware of the reality, is able to enjoy the irony and humor of the story. 

The last line “Romance at short notice was her speciality”, is an exceptional use of a  plot twist  by Saki, successfully explaining the entire story in one brief line.

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The Open Window

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Welcome to the LitCharts study guide on Saki's The Open Window . Created by the original team behind SparkNotes, LitCharts are the world's best literature guides.

The Open Window: Introduction

The open window: plot summary, the open window: detailed summary & analysis, the open window: themes, the open window: quotes, the open window: characters, the open window: symbols, the open window: literary devices, the open window: theme wheel, brief biography of saki.

Historical Context of The Open Window

Other books related to the open window.

• Full Title: The Open Window
• When Written: 1914
• Where Written: England
• When Published: 1914
• Literary Period: Edwardian
• Genre: Short story
• Setting: An English country house in the early twentieth century
• Climax: Thinking he is seeing ghosts enter the Sappleton home through an open window, Framton Nuttel runs away in horror, much to the confusion of his host.
• Point of View: Third person

Extra Credit for The Open Window

Nom de Plume. The exact origin of the pen name Saki remains up for debate. It may be in reference to an ancient Persian poem, or a South American monkey of same name.

Private Life. Saki never married and is believed to have been gay. Because homosexuality was considered a crime in Britain at the time, he was forced to keep this part of his identity hidden.

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“The Open Window” Analysis, Theme & Summary by Saki: Sparknotes Substitute

“The Open Window” might be Saki ‘s most anthologized and widely read short story. It’s very brief, easy to read, and highly entertaining, making it a standout even among Saki’s stories. It’s a popular  short story for students . Can’t find any Sparknotes? No problem. This analysis of “The Open Window” starts with a summary then looks at a theme and questions.

“The Open Window” Summary

He calls on Mrs. Sappleton, but is let in by her niece, Vera, a young lady of fifteen. She asks if he knows about the people in the area, particularly her aunt. He doesn’t know much at all, including whether she’s married or not.

Mr. Nuttel explains his situation—he’s been ordered complete rest, no mental excitement, and no strenuous physical exercise. Mrs. Sappleton is bored, but suddenly perks up when she sees the men and dog walking toward the house. Mr. Nuttel looks sympathetically at Vera, but is shocked to see horror in her eyes. He looks out the window and sees the figures approaching.

“The Open Window” Analysis

“the open window” theme analysis: power of fiction.

The power of a good story is clear in “The Open Window”, both in the inner tale Vera weaves and in the complete story that the reader gets.

Mr. Nuttel believes it, causing him to interpret Mrs. Sappleton’s normal words as proof of her insanity. Rather than snapping him out of the illusion, Mrs. Sappleton speaking truthfully of her husband and brothers ironically serves to strengthen the story, as Vera said she was in denial over their deaths.

Unlike Mr. Nuttel, the reader gets the complete story , inner and frame. The opening frame doesn’t give us any information that Mr. Nuttel doesn’t also have, so we’re on equal footing with him when Vera starts her story. The reader has the same reasons for believing Vera as Mr. Nuttel does.

“The Open Window” Analysis Questions

1. what clues are given to suggest the surprise ending.

In a story this short, there aren’t going to be a lot of clues, but there are some:

2. Is Mr. Nuttel gullible? What about the readers?

A reader might judge Mr. Nuttel gullible without also applying the quality to themselves because they know they’re experiencing a piece of fiction. Being surprised by the ending doesn’t make one gullible, as a piece of fiction could present something paranormal as being “real”. As a reader, it’s only the fact we can see that the story ends in a few paragraphs that suggests a twist ending.

3. What does the open window symbolize?

Vera makes the open window a symbol of Mrs. Sappleton’s (supposed) insanity, as she believes her dead loved ones will walk through it.

We would generally expect an open window to symbolize transparency, honesty or freedom. Saki (and Vera) cleverly uses these associations to add to the veracity of the story. The ending subverts our expectations, as Vera also turns it into a symbol of deception.

The Young Girl’s Name in “The Open Window”

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The Open Window Summary, Characters and Themes

“Hector Hugh Munro, known by his penname Saki, masterfully satirizes Edwardian society in his frequently anthologized short story ‘The Open Window.’ 

First appearing in the Westminster Gazette on November 18, 1911, and later included in his 1914 collection ‘Beasts and Super-Beasts,’ this tale is a classic example of Saki’s wit and insight.

The story unfolds with a clever use of the middle-of-things storytelling strategy, introducing us to the protagonist, Framton Nuttel, in the midst of an unexpected situation. 

Nuttel, a man besieged by anxiety, arrives in the countryside seeking a cure for his nerves. Armed with letters of introduction from his sister, he visits Mrs. Sappleton, only to be greeted by her 15-year-old niece.

This precocious young girl, known simply as ‘the niece,’ quickly discerns Nuttel’s unfamiliarity with local affairs. 

Seizing the opportunity, she weaves a tragic tale: Three years ago, she recounts, Mrs. Sappleton’s husband, two brothers, and their spaniel left through the large French window to hunt snipe in the marshes. Tragically, she claims, they were swallowed by a bog, their bodies never recovered. 

The niece poignantly describes Mrs. Sappleton’s unwavering belief that they will return through the open window, a symbol of her hope and denial.

The story takes a turn with Mrs. Sappleton’s entrance. She introduces herself and Vera, her niece, to Nuttel. 

Oblivious to the story her niece has just spun, Mrs. Sappleton talks about the open window and her anticipation of her husband’s return. This conversation, coupled with Nuttel’s heightened nerves, sets the stage for the story’s climax.

In a dramatic twist, Mrs. Sappleton suddenly exclaims that the hunting party is returning. Nuttel, seeking a sympathetic look from Vera, is instead met with feigned horror as she gazes toward the open window. 

His anxiety reaching a breaking point, Nuttel witnesses what seems to be the ghostly return of the hunting party, prompting him to flee the house in terror.

However, the twist in Saki’s tale is that the hunting party is very much alive. As the adults wonder about Nuttel’s abrupt departure, Vera concocts another tale: Nuttel, she says, was terrified of dogs due to a traumatic experience involving a pack of dogs and an overnight entrapment in a cemetery.

Saki concludes the story with a line that perfectly encapsulates Vera’s talent for improvisation: ‘ Romance at short notice was her specialty.’ 

This ending serves as a clever denouement, untangling the story’s threads while highlighting the themes of absurdity, escapism, control, and the contrast between appearance and reality that pervade Saki’s work.

Framton Nuttel

Framton Nuttel is the central character in “The Open Window.” Portrayed as a nervous, anxious man, he visits the countryside to seek relief for his nerve issues. Nuttel is an outsider to the area and lacks knowledge about the local people and their histories. 

His naivety and anxious disposition make him a prime target for Vera’s mischievous story.

Vera, Mrs. Sappleton’s 15-year-old niece, is a pivotal character known for her inventiveness and storytelling ability. 

She is astute and quickly gauges Nuttel’s ignorance about local events. 

Vera fabricates a tragic and ghostly story about her aunt’s family, demonstrating her skill in improvisation and her penchant for creating dramatic narratives.

Mrs. Sappleton

Mrs. Sappleton is the hostess to whom Nuttel was sent with a letter of introduction. She is unaware of the fictitious story Vera has told Nuttel. 

Mrs. Sappleton’s conversation about her husband and brothers returning through the open window inadvertently reinforces the fabricated story, contributing to Nuttel’s mounting anxiety.

Mrs. Sappleton’s Husband and Brothers

Mrs. Sappleton’s husband and brothers are indirectly involved in the story. 

They are the subjects of Vera’s fictional tale, believed to have been lost in a bog while hunting. Their unexpected return towards the end of the story, very much alive and well, triggers Framton Nuttel’s panicked exit.

The Spaniel

The family’s spaniel is a minor but significant character in the story. The dog accompanies the hunting party and is mentioned in Vera’s fabricated tale. Its presence with the returning hunters serves as a crucial detail that lends authenticity to Vera’s story in Nuttel’s eyes.

1. The Absurdity of Social Etiquette and Class Norms

Saki’s story masterfully dissects the often rigid and absurd nature of Edwardian social etiquette. 

Through the character interactions and the unfolding of events, Saki portrays how societal expectations can lead to awkward, and even bizarre, situations. The story highlights the discomfort and misunderstandings that arise from the strict adherence to social norms, as seen in Framton Nuttel’s visit to Mrs. Sappleton. 

Nuttel, adhering to the social protocol of his time, finds himself entangled in an increasingly strange scenario due to his expectations of proper conduct. 

This theme underscores Saki’s critique of the superficial aspects of social life, where appearances and manners often overshadow sincerity and understanding.

2. Escapism and the Power of Storytelling

Escapism is a central theme in the story, exemplified through the character of Vera and the stories she concocts. 

Vera’s vivid imagination and ability to create elaborate tales serve as a form of escape from the mundanities of her everyday life. 

For Nuttel, the encounter with Vera and her fantastical story becomes an unintentional escape from reality, albeit a terrifying one. Saki uses this theme to explore how storytelling can be a powerful tool for manipulation, distraction, and transformation of reality. 

The story within a story structure not only serves as an escape for the characters but also invites the reader to question the line between fiction and reality, blurring the boundaries of what is believable and what is not.

3. Appearance Versus Reality

Saki skillfully plays with the theme of appearance versus reality throughout the narrative. 

The story challenges the perceptions and expectations of both the characters and the readers. Vera’s fabricated story about the tragic hunting accident and the perpetually open window creates a false reality for Nuttel, leading him to misinterpret the events that unfold. 

This theme is further reinforced by the twist ending, where the presumed supernatural occurrence is revealed to be a misunderstanding fueled by Vera’s deception. 

Through this theme, Saki comments on the ease with which reality can be distorted, and the fine line that often exists between what is real and what is perceived to be real. 

The story ultimately serves as a commentary on the deceptive nature of appearances and the human propensity to be influenced by them.

Final Thoughts

“The Open Window” is a masterful example of Saki’s sharp wit and ability to weave complex themes into a short narrative. The story is not just an entertaining read but also a clever commentary on human nature and society. 

Saki’s use of irony and the unexpected twist at the end not only amuse but also provoke thought about how easily reality can be manipulated by a skilled storyteller. 

Analysis of "The Open Window" by Saki

Twist Ending in a Classic Tale

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Saki is the pen name of the British writer Hector Hugh Munro, also known as H. H. Munro (1870-1916). In " The Open Window ," possibly his most famous story, social conventions and proper etiquette provide cover for a mischievous teenager to wreak havoc on the nerves of an unsuspecting guest.

Framton Nuttel, seeking a "nerve cure" prescribed by his doctor, visits a rural area where he knows no one. His sister provides letters of introduction so he can meet people there.

He pays a visit to Mrs. Sappleton. While he waits for her, her 15-year-old niece keeps him company in the parlor. When she realizes Nuttel has never met her aunt and knows nothing about her, she explains that it has been three years since Mrs. Sappleton's "great tragedy," when her husband and brothers went hunting and never returned, presumably engulfed by a bog (which is similar to sinking in quicksand). Mrs. Sappleton keeps the large French window open every day, hoping for their return.

When Mrs. Sappleton appears she is inattentive to Nuttel, talking instead about her husband's hunting trip and how she expects him home any minute. Her delusional manner and constant glances at the window make Nuttel uneasy.

Then the hunters appear in the distance, and Nuttel, horrified, grabs his walking stick and exits abruptly. When the Sappletons exclaim over his sudden, rude departure, the niece calmly explains that he was probably frightened by the hunters' dog. She claims that Nuttel told her he was once chased into a cemetery in India and held at bay by a pack of aggressive dogs.

Social Conventions Provide "Cover" for Mischief

The niece uses social decorum very much to her favor. First, she presents herself as inconsequential, telling Nuttel that her aunt will be down soon, but "[i]n the meantime, you must put up with me." It's meant to sound like a self-effacing pleasantry, suggesting that she isn't particularly interesting or entertaining. And it provides perfect cover for her mischief.

Her next questions to Nuttel sound like boring small talk. She asks whether he knows anyone in the area and whether he knows anything about her aunt. But as the reader eventually understands, these questions are reconnaissance to see whether Nuttel will make a suitable target for a fabricated story.

Smooth Storytelling

The niece's prank is impressively underhanded and hurtful. She takes the ordinary events of the day and deftly transforms them into a ghost story. She includes all the details needed to create a sense of realism: the open window, the brown spaniel, the white coat, and even the mud of the supposed bog. Seen through the ghostly lens of tragedy, all of the ordinary details, including the aunt's comments and behavior, take on an eerie tone .

The reader understands that the niece won't get caught in her lies because she's clearly mastered a lying lifestyle. She immediately puts the Sappletons' confusion to rest with her explanation about Nuttel's fear of dogs. Her calm manner and detached tone ("enough to make anyone lose his nerve") add an air of plausibility to her outrageous tale.

The Duped Reader

One of the most engaging aspects of this story is that the reader is initially duped, too, just like Nuttel. The reader has no reason to disbelieve the niece's "cover story"—that she's just a demure, polite girl making conversation.

Like Nuttel, the reader is surprised and chilled when the hunting party shows up. But unlike Nuttel, the reader finally learns the truth of the situation and enjoys Mrs. Sappleton's amusingly ironic observation: "One would think he had seen a ghost."

Finally, the reader experiences the niece's calm, detached explanation. By the time she says, "He told me he had a horror of dogs," the reader understands that the real sensation here is not a ghost story, but rather a girl who effortlessly spins sinister stories.

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The Open Window by Saki Plot Summary

The open window summary.

The open window summary offers a great way of learning about the story in brief. It follows the life of Framton, who moves into a new town. He wishes to cure his nerves and his sister helps him as she lived there. She arranges a meeting with one of her acquaintances, Mrs Sappleton. On reaching her house, he encounters her niece, Vera. She points to an open window and tells him about the reason behind it. She tells Framton that her aunt’s husband and his two brothers got killed in a tragic hunting accident.

Moreover, she warns him that Mrs Sappleton anticipates their return so she keeps the window open. Finally, Mrs Sappleton comes to meet him and tells him that she is waiting for her husband. This disturbs Framton and he gets horrified when he sees three male approaching him in hunting gear. Thus, he flees the house.

The Open Window Summary in English

The open window summary takes us through Framton Nuttel’s arrival at a new town. The story is written by Saki. Framton is not a social man so his sister has set up him to know her acquaintances.

He arrives at her acquaintance’s house, Mrs Sappleton. Her niece, Vera, greets him. She entertains him till the aunt arrives to greet him. During this encounter, we learn a few things about the Sappletons.

When talking to Vera, Framton reveals to her about his lack of social skills. Thus, she starts telling him about the story of the open window. She says it was a great tragedy which took place in her aunt’s life.

The open window summary explains the great tragedy that took place three years ago. Vera points at the large French window which was open even in the chilly weather. Thus, she begins to tell all about it.

Mrs Sappleton’s husband and her two brothers left through the same window for hunting. However, she says the earth swallowed them up as they never returned. Thus, her aunt still in grief keeps the window open waiting for them to return.

She describes the same exact way in which they left. Her husband was carrying a white coat. At this point, her aunt comes in to greet Framton. She apologizes for being late and hopes Vera amused him meanwhile.

After that, to Framton’s shock, Mrs Sappleton makes a remark on the open window. She tells him it is open as she is waiting for her husband and brothers to return from a hunting trip.

This convinces Framton even more of Vera’s story. He is shocked to see her still fixated on their death. Moreover, Mrs Sappleton continues looking at the open window anticipating their return.

But, what shocks Framton the most is the arrival of three men in hunting attire. They approach the house and Framton is convinced they are ghosts. Thus, he runs away frantically.

Finally, we see Vera has a story for this as well. Framton’s reaction confuses Mrs Sappleton. But she assures her that Framton got scared of the hunting dog because he has a phobia of dogs.

Thus, we look at how Vera is so good at spinning tales. She utilizes the situation at hand and is quick to whip tales back to back without any hesitation.

C onclusion of The Open Window Summary

The Open Window summary tells us about the ability of clever people weaving deceptive stories to be manipulative to others. Moreover, it also shows how tough it can be to determine the truth in a story.

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The wonderful summary thank you for this.

They did not belong to the family of gorden cook and you also didn’t write the spelling correct it’s James cook 😶😑

What’s funny is that Miss Fairchild said the line- “Money isn’t everything. But people always misunderstand things and remain stupid-” when she herself misunderstood the situation.

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The Open Window

27 pages • 54 minutes read

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Absurdity of Etiquette

Saki satirizes the social practices of his time and class, displaying them as absurd through their failure and misappropriation. At the beginning of the story, the antagonist is introduced as “a very self-possessed young lady of fifteen” (Paragraph 1). She has been allowed to greet a visitor on her own, which is inappropriate according to Edwardian-era custom. At 15, she was not yet presented to society, thus, she was not considered a woman fit to entertain—especially if the guest was a man—no matter how “self-possessed” she was. Already out of place due to her age, Vera takes advantage of Edwardian customs for her entertainment, gaining control of a situation in which, as a young woman, she had no formal power.

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Wednesday 13 may 2020, "the open window" by h.h. munro- summary, 2 comments:.

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Officials had braced for more unrest on Wednesday, but the night’s anti-immigration protests were smaller, with counterprotesters dominating the streets instead.

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After days of violent rioting set off by disinformation around a deadly stabbing rampage, the authorities in Britain had been bracing for more unrest on Wednesday. But by nightfall, large-scale anti-immigration demonstrations had not materialized, and only a few arrests had been made nationwide.

Instead, streets in cities across the country were filled with thousands of antiracism protesters, including in Liverpool, where by late evening, the counterdemonstration had taken on an almost celebratory tone.

Over the weekend, the anti-immigration protests, organized by far-right groups, had devolved into violence in more than a dozen towns and cities. And with messages on social media calling for wider protests and counterprotests on Wednesday, the British authorities were on high alert.

With tensions running high, Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s cabinet held emergency meetings to discuss what has become the first crisis of his recently elected government. Some 6,000 specialist public-order police officers were mobilized nationwide to respond to any disorder, and the authorities in several cities and towns stepped up patrols.

Wednesday was not trouble-free, however.

In Bristol, the police said there was one arrest after a brick was thrown at a police vehicle and a bottle was thrown. In the southern city of Portsmouth, police officers dispersed a small group of anti-immigration protesters who had blocked a roadway. And in Belfast, Northern Ireland, where there have been at least four nights of unrest, disorder continued, and the police service said it would bring in additional officers.

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While scavenging the deep ends of a derelict space station, a group of young space colonists come face to face with the most terrifying life form in the universe. While scavenging the deep ends of a derelict space station, a group of young space colonists come face to face with the most terrifying life form in the universe. While scavenging the deep ends of a derelict space station, a group of young space colonists come face to face with the most terrifying life form in the universe.

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The Open Window

By saki (h.h. munro), the open window literary elements.

Short Story, Period Fiction

Setting and Context

Rural Countryside, Edwardian England

Narrator and Point of View

Omniscient Third-Person Narrator

Tone and Mood

As the story features two levels--a main story and a story-within-a-story--the tone and mood oscillate between comically light and eerily dark. The story ends with a tone of the absurd as Framton makes his escape and Vera spins one more tale, this one more outlandish than the first.

Protagonist and Antagonist

Vera (Protagonist); Adulthood (Antagonist)

Major Conflict

Mrs. Sappleton has delusions that her husband and brothers will return from a hunting trip so she leaves the window open until dusk. However, according to Mrs. Sappleton's niece, Vera, the party will not be returning because they tragically died during their last hunting trip. In apparent denial, Mrs. Sappleton leaves the window opens and waits expectantly for the return of the hunting party.

The hunting party approaches the window and Mrs. Sappleton exclaims gleefully. Pitying the poor woman's delusions, Framton turns towards Vera who is looking towards the window in shock. When Framton sees three figures approaching the house he takes them for ghosts and quickly bolts from the sitting room.

Foreshadowing

When Mrs. Sappleton first enters the room she says to Framton, "I hope Vera has been amusing you?" (226.) This is one of a few clues that Vera is playing the trickster in the story and that the reader ought not believe everything she says to be true.

Understatement

Saki uses imagery to create an eery feeling as the hunting party returns. Saki employs images like "deepening twilight," noiseless walkers, and a hoarse voice that comes out of the dusk in order to keep the reader guessing about whether the hunting party is a part of the living or the undead (227).

Framton finds it paradoxical that the rural countryside should be anything but a retreat. When he learns of the supposed tragedy Mrs. Sappleton experienced, he thinks, "somehow in this restful country spot tragedies seemed out of place" (225).

Parallelism

Metonymy and synecdoche, personification.

In the story's last scene, the dogs that supposedly hunted down Framton are said to be grinning as they look down on him in the newly dug grave. Readers may imagine that Vera gives the dogs of her story the human characteristic of grinning at someone's misfortune because she herself is amused at her successful trick on Framton.

The Open Window Questions and Answers

The Question and Answer section for The Open Window is a great resource to ask questions, find answers, and discuss the novel.

The Open Window by Saki

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The open window

Girl Trickster (Situational Irony)

In Saki’s time girls were frequently portrayed as trustworthy and honest people. It is thus ironic that he chooses a female character to play the role of trickster and storyteller in “The Open Window.”

Do you mean literary element? Please specify the literary element that you mean.

Study Guide for The Open Window

The Open Window study guide contains a biography of Saki (Hector Hugh Munro), literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis.

• About The Open Window
• The Open Window Summary
• The Open Window Video
• Character List

Lesson Plan for The Open Window

• About the Author
• Study Objectives
• Common Core Standards
• Introduction to The Open Window
• Relationship to Other Books
• Bringing in Technology
• Notes to the Teacher
• Related Links
• The Open Window Bibliography

Wikipedia Entries for The Open Window

• Introduction