Dr. Heidegger's Experiment

Question 1

what did mr. medbourne represent and what was his past?

Answer 1

greed; banker/merchant who only cared about money

Question 2

what did colonel killingrew represent and what was his past?

Answer 2

gluttony; used to indulge in sinful pleasures

Question 3

Widow Wycherly

Answer 3

immorality, vanity; used to be a beautiful young girl who was chased after by all three men

Question 4

what did mr. gascoigne represent and what was his past?

Answer 4

deceit; ruined politician

Question 5

what do the opening details tell us about the friends in the story?

Answer 5

they are melancholy

Question 6

what does the description of Dr. Heideggers office convey

Answer 6

uses many details to show us the friends are melancholy

Question 7

what happens to dr. heideggers fiancee?

Answer 7

she is killed from his potion; turns the doctor into a tragic figure

Question 8

dr. heideggers interest in experiementation overrides what

Answer 8

his care for his friends well being

Question 9

what dies the 55 year old rose symbolize

Answer 9

doctors love for sylvia his fiancee

Question 10

what does the doctor suggest about becoming young again?

Answer 10

although his friends may want to, he doesnt want to go through the aging process again

Question 11

what doe the first drink do to the guests

Answer 11

makes their ashen faces look healthy

Question 12

what does the colonel again chasing after the widow symbolize

Answer 12

he is once again after sinful pleasures

Question 13

what does hawthornes opinion of politicians seem to be

Answer 13

believes they are dishonest (gascoigne)

Question 14

what does the guests reverting to their youthful folloes symbolize

Answer 14

people will always go back to their old ways

Question 15

what do the doctors actions show about himself

Answer 15

he is detatched and cool

Question 16

what does dr h sitting in a throne-like chair represent

Answer 16

he could symbolize father time

Question 17

what differentiates the doctor from his guests

Answer 17

he is more realistic about age and life

Question 18

what does the vase smashing represent

Answer 18

the guests wasting their youth

Question 19

allegory

Answer 19

literary work in which characters, settings, and events represent abstract ideas or moral qualities

Question 20

what do we find out about heideggers past

Answer 20

his fiancee committed suicide and he still loves her

Question 21

why is the rose important to the doctor

Answer 21

it is a 55 year olf sign of sylvias love for him given to him by her; it springs to life when put back into water

Question 22

what is the warning heidegger gives about the elixir

Answer 22

dont go back and try to change your mistakes

Question 23

how does each guest act after their change

Answer 23

they begin to act as they did when they were young, chasing after the widow

Question 24

how does each guest repeat the folly of their youth

Answer 24

medbourne begins calculating and doing money math, killingrew begins to joyously sing and take in the widow, gascoigne begins to talk about political topics, widow looks at herself in the mirror

Question 25

how does the fate of the rose foreshadow the fate of the guests

Answer 25

the rose, old and withered but still alive may be brought back by the water, but it cannot last

Question 26

what do the foolish four learn by the end

Answer 26

they do not learn anything, they go out to look for more water

Question 27

what do the details of the setting suggest

Answer 27

its creepy

Question 28

what is the story behind the painting in the study

Answer 28

full length portrait of his fiancee, who had a slight disorder and killed herself by swallowing one of the doctors potions

Question 29

what does the mirror reflect during the story

Answer 29

the truth

Question 30

what has the doctor learned by the end of the experiment

Answer 30

nothing can bring people back to youthfulness, people cant go back, only forward