The Lady or the Tiger?
(an ESL-modified version of the short story by Frank Stockton)
4 O
1 nce upon a time in a faraway land, there lived a powerful king. He had many
2 different ideas about ruling his kingdom. Some of these ideas were modern;
3 others were quite wild and strange. One of the king’s more unusual ideas was
about crime and punishment. The king believed a crime should be punished, or
5 innocence decided, as the result of chance. Fate should determine what happened to a
6 person accused of a crime.
7 Here’s how the king’s system worked. After a man was accused of committing a crime,
8 he would be put into jail for some time. Then, an announcement was made for everyone
9 to come to the stadium on a certain day. All the people would gather in this arena. The
10 king sat high up in his special chair. He gave a sign, and a door under him opened. The
11 accused person stepped out into the arena. Directly across from the king were two doors.
12 They were side by side and looked exactly alike. Finally, the person on trial had to walk
13 to these doors and choose one of them.
14 Behind one of the doors, there was a hungry tiger, the fiercest in the land. The tiger
15 immediately jumped on the man and tore him to pieces. Fate had decided that he was
16 guilty and deserved to be punished. Bells would ring sadly, and everyone cried. They
17 would walk home slowly, with their heads hung down and hearts feeling low.
18 On the other hand, if the accused opened the other door, there came from behind it a
19 beautiful woman, especially chosen for this person. Fate had decided he was innocent
20 and not be punished. The man and the beautiful lady would be immediately married.
21 Bells would ring loudly, and everyone would feel happy. The man would lead his new
22 wife to his home, followed by children throwing flowers. (It wasn’t important if he
23 already had a fiancée or wife. The king didn’t let anything stop his punishment system. )
1 24 This was the king's method of justice, and it was popular. When people gathered together
25 on one of the great trial days, they never knew whether they would see a bloody killing or
26 a joyful marriage. This kept them interested. People believed this system was fair
27 because the accused person himself was the one who chose his own destiny.
28 The king had a beautiful daughter whom he loved more than anything else. Like her
29 father, she was passionate and strong-willed. The princess loved her father very much,
30 but she was hiding something from him. She secretly loved a very handsome young man,
31 but he was a commoner from a poor family.
32 For several months, the princess and her young man kept their relationship secret. They
33 were blissful and very much in love. But one day, the king discovered his daughter’s
34 secret love. He was furious and had the young man put into jail immediately. A date
35 was selected for the young man to appear in the arena. Announcements were made about
36 the young man’s trial in the arena. The people were especially keen to see this trial
37 because never before had a poor man loved a princess.
38 The angry king was satisfied with the plan, knowing that the young man would suffer no
39 matter which door he chose.
40 door with the lady, he would also be separated from the princess. Fate would decide.
41 The day of the trial arrived. From far and near people gathered in the arena. The king
42 and his advisors were in their seats in the center of the stadium, from which they had a
43 clear view of the two doors. Everything was ready. A signal was given, and the door
44 under the king opened. The lover of the princess entered the arena.
45 He was tall and good-looking.
46 lived among them. No wonder the princess loved him! What a terrible thing for him to
47 be there! As the young man entered the arena, he turned to face the king. He was not
48 thinking about the king; his eyes were on the princess, sitting to the right of her father.
49 From the day that her love was put in jail, the princess thought of nothing else. She was
50 as determined as her father and used all of her power to find out the secret of the doors.
Her father would never accept him.
If he chose the tiger door, he would die.
Most people had not known so perfect a young man
2 If he chose the
51 She gave much gold to a jailer who told her which door would have the tiger and which
52 would have the lady.
53 loveliest in the kingdom. The princess knew this lady. She remembered seeing this
54 beautiful lady talking to her love once or twice. The princess hated this woman!
55 The young man kept looking at the princess. His eye met hers as she sat there nervously.
56 He could see in her eyes that she knew the secret of the doors. His face asked the
57 question: "Which?" She looked at him, lifted her hand a little and pointed to the right
58 door. No one else noticed this. Every eye in the arena was on the young man.
59 He turned, and with a firm, quick step he walked across the field. Every heart stopped
60 beating, every breath was held. He went to the door on the right and opened it. Now, the
61 question is: what happened next? What was behind the right door?
62 The more we think about this question, the harder it is to answer. It involves a study of
63 the human heart. We cannot think only about how we would do in this situation; we must
64 also think about the heart of the young princess. She loved the young man beyond
65 limits, but she was also hot-blooded and jealous.
66 love and burning fire.
67 For many nights she had stayed awake trying to decide what to do. Even in her dreams
68 she would see tigers, doors, and the gorgeous women.
69 opening a door and shrieking as the tiger ripped him to pieces. Other times, she imagined
70 him kissing another woman. Both of these scenes were like a knife through her heart.
71 Would it not be better for him to die quickly, and go to wait for her in the future? And
72 yet, that tiger, those cries, that blood! No, maybe it would be better for him to marry
73 someone else. But when she imagined them happily together, she wanted to tear her hair
74 out and scream.
The jailer also told the princess who the lady was -- one of the
Sometimes she saw her lover
You must decide: which came out of the door: the lady, or the tiger?
3 Her heart was a mixture of soft, pure