Conflict
Review
The Night the Bed Fell
by James Thurber
Conflicts
Internal Conflict
External conflict

struggle that takes place w/in a character

struggle that takes place with another
character or an outside force

may involve making a decision or a fight
w/ certain feelings

may involve a machine, the weather, or
an animal
Directions:
Write E for external or I for Internal on the blank at the left of each statement.
If it helps, underline the characters/things involved in the conflict and the clue that helps
determine the conflict type.
1. Briggs thinking he’ll stop breathing in his sleep.
2. Narrator convinces Briggs he does not need to set an alarm
each hour.
3. Aunt Gracie Shoaf thought burglars were in the house so she
threw shoes down the hallway.
4. Mrs. Thurber is worried that Mr. Thurber will be hurt or killed if
the bed in the attic falls on him.
5. The narrator’s cot collapses on him.
6. The mother cannot get the attic door open because it seems to
be stuck.
7. The dog jumped on Briggs seeming to blame him for the night’s
events.
8. Confusion.
9. Superstition in the character of Old Aunt Melissa Beall.
10. The window was stuck when Briggs tried to open it to get air.