What role does miscommunication play in the story? In what ways do silence and misunderstanding contribute to the tragic outcome?

Explore the role of pride in the narrator’s behavior. How does his sense of arrogance or superiority affect his actions toward his wife?

How does the narration impact the reading of the story? Examine how tense shifts, diction, and the monologue form reveal aspects of the narrator’s character.

Discuss the concept of moral responsibility in the text. Does the narrator achieve any genuine understanding of his role in his wife’s death? Does the narrative display any empathy for the narrator?

How does the story prioritize internal experience over external action? Use examples from the text to support your answer.

Consider the role of time in the narrative. How does the narrator’s shifting reconstruction of events affect the structure of the story?

How does the narrator attempt to impose order, and how does his wife resist or respond? Does the wife have any agency in the story?

What is the significance of the story’s title? In what ways does the idea of “gentleness” complicate the reader’s interpretation of the wife’s character?