1. What type of woman was Ruth Barlow? Was she genuinely in love with Roger? Why did she decide to marry him? Ruth Barlow was

1. What type of woman was Ruth Barlow? Was she genuinely in love with Roger? Why did she decide to marry him? Ruth Barlow was an unhappy woman who had been divorced twice. Both of her marriages were unsuccessful. She did not love Roger, but he was attentive and well-groomed, so she agreed to marry him.
2. Was Roger in love with Ruth? Was it a serious and profound emotion? Initially, Roger believed he was in love, but the feeling quickly faded. It was a passion rather than love.
3. What kind of man was Roger? How do his flat-chase tactics characterize him? How should he have behaved? Roger could be described as a cowardly and insecure individual. Instead of honestly explaining his change of heart and admitting that he had fallen out of love, he chose to run away.
4. Whose side do you take in the conflict: Ruth’s or Roger’s? In this conflict, I sympathize with Ruth. She desired happiness, but Roger was unable to provide it, so she chose to find someone else.
5. Isn’t there anything to be said in Ruth’s defense? Ruth desired happiness.
6. What is the social significance of the story? Marriages that are initially arranged have no future. People cannot stay together for a long time without love.
7. How does the story begin? Does it immediately pique the reader’s interest? If so, how does the author achieve this? The story begins with Roger taking an interest in Ruth, who, in turn, allows him to court her and considers him a suitable candidate for marriage. At first glance, everything seems predictable, but when Roger loses interest, Ruth acts unpredictably by ignoring meetings and writing a letter about finding another man.
8. What is gained by telling the story in the first person? From whose perspective is it told? Identify passages that reflect the narrator’s, Roger’s, and the author’s attitudes. Is the author detached in his attitude toward Ruth? Support your opinion. The author exhibits more sympathy toward Ruth than Roger. He states that she is unlucky in both choosing men and other aspects of her life. The author’s description of her shows pity. Furthermore, the author makes it clear to Roger at the end of the story that Ruth has found a man who will take care of her, indicating his sympathy for her.
9. Is the plot an important aspect of the story? Briefly outline the stages of the unfolding narrative. The narrative of this story can be divided into five stages. First, the story starts with the resolution, when Roger runs away from Ruth with hopes that she will forget about him soon. Then, the story takes us back to the time when Roger became interested in Ruth, but soon realizes that his interest faded and he doesn’t want to marry her. He uses the pretext of finding the perfect home to stall and avoid marriage, while Ruth is unaware that Roger simply doesn’t want to marry her. Eventually, Ruth distances herself from him and writes a letter to Roger, stating that she has found someone else with whom she can be happy.
10. Does the story end as the reader expects? Identify passages that create suspense. The reader hopes that Ruth will find happiness, but the story ends ambiguously. On one hand, Ruth writes to Roger that she has found a man who will take care of her, but we doubt her sincerity and can infer that she said this out of resentment for his lack of honesty throughout their relationship.
11. Is the title appropriate? Does it capture the essence of the story? I believe the title partially reflects the story. The main idea of the plot is not only about Ruth’s escape but also about people lying to each other and lacking the courage to admit their true feelings. They get carried away but then quickly cool down without finding the courage to confess and instead make various excuses for their actions.