Lamb to the Slaughter Plot Elements – Flashcards
Unlock all answers in this set
Unlock answersquestion
Exposition-event
answer
Mary Maloney is six months pregnant. She is a loving housewife and cares deeply about her husband. She is peacefully waiting for her husband's arrival home.
question
wife's name
answer
Mary Maloney
question
husband's name
answer
Patrick Maloney
question
Inciting Incident-event
answer
Patrick Maloney tells his wife some unfortunate news. His wife does not want to hear this bad news.
question
Conflict- type
answer
Person vs. Person
question
Climax-event
answer
Mary Maloney creates an alibi to avoid being caught for her crime.
question
Resolution-event
answer
The police officers eat the murder weapon, ensuring the Mary Maloney will not be caught for her crime.
question
Rising Action-events
answer
Mary Maloney insists on making her husband dinner, even though he wants to leave the house. She goes to the basement, and chooses a leg of lamb from the freezer.
question
Conflict- event
answer
Mary Maloney hits her husband on the head with the frozen leg of lamb, ultimately killing him.
question
Falling Action-events
answer
Mary Maloney relays her version of events, insisting on staying in the house while detectives search for the criminal. A detective notices the oven is still on and Mary Maloney insists that the detectives nourish their bodies by eating the meal she had so lovingly prepared for her husband.
question
Setting: Location
answer
a suburban home
question
Setting: Time
answer
in the 1950s
question
Inciting Incident-definition
answer
The event that sets the story moving forward. Without this event you only have background information about the characters.
question
Climax-definition
answer
This is the turning point of the story. It helps the story head toward the resolution.
question
Exposition-definition
answer
This is the element of a story that gives the reader background information about the characters and setting. It builds a relationship and investment between the reader and the characters, as well as the events that will happen in the story.
question
Conflict-definition
answer
the problem in the story
question
Rising Action-definition
answer
The sequence of events in a story that lead to the climax. They take place after the inciting incident.
question
Falling Action-definition
answer
The sequence of events in a story that lead to the resolution. They take place after the climax.
question
Setting-definition
answer
The time and location where a story takes place.
question
Resolution-definition
answer
The end of the story where loose ends are tied up
