Saturday, July 25, 2015

What is an interloper and who are the interlopers in the story?

There are at least two types of interlopers in the short story, "The Interlopers," by Saki (H. H. Munro), but only one of the group is deadly. When lifelong enemies Georg and Ulrich finally decide to end their feud once and for all, fate gets in their way. Meeting in the forest one night, they both plan to kill one another with their rifles, but neither can pull the trigger. Suddenly, a tree is felled by a bolt of lightning, and both men are pinned helplessy beneath it. Each of them expect to be found by their friends, who will then leave the remaining man to die alone. But before this happens, the two men make nice and decide to end their quarrel for good. Joining forces, they both call out for help. When they see movement in the darkness, they think they are saved. But, no! They are not men, they are hungry wolves instead. The reader is left to guess what happens next.


The interlopers, or intruders, are the wolves. If the expected arrival of the other men had occurred first, they, too, could have been considered interlopers upon the two men's quarrel. And, the tree which fell on them could also be looked upon as an unwanted interloper as well.

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