THE NIGHT THE GHOST GOT IN JAMES THURBER QUESTION ANSWERS

 

THE NIGHT THE GHOST GOT IN

They began about a quarter past one o’clock in the morning, a rhythmic, quick cadenced walking around the dining-room table. My mother was asleep in one room upstairs, my brother Herman in another; grandfather was in the attic, in the old walnut bed which, as you will remember, once fell on my father. I had just stepped out of the bathtub and was busily rubbing myself with a towel when I heard the steps. They were the steps of a man walking rapidly around the dining room table downstairs. The light from the bathroom shone down the back steps, which dropped directly into the dining-room; I could see the faint shine of plates on the plate-rail; I couldn’t see the table. The steps kept going round and round the table; at regular intervals a board creaked, when it was trod upon. I supposed at first that it was my father or my brother Roy, who had gone to Indianapolis but were expected home at any time. I suspected next that it was a burglar. It did not enter my mind until later that it was a ghost.

 

Question: In this passage, how does the author create suspense and tension through the description of the footsteps heard by the narrator?

Answer: The author creates suspense and tension by describing the footsteps as rhythmic and quick-paced, suggesting a sense of urgency or purpose behind them. The repetition of the footsteps going "round and round the table" builds a sense of repetition and cyclical movement, which adds to the eerie atmosphere. Additionally, the fact that the narrator initially considers rational explanations like a family member or a burglar before considering the possibility of a ghost amplifies the uncertainty and fear in the scene. The use of sensory details, such as the faint shine of plates and the creaking of boards, enhances the vividness of the scene and contributes to the overall sense of unease experienced by the narrator.

 

Q: At what time did the rhythmic walking around the dining-room table begin?

A: The walking around the dining-room table began at about a quarter past one o'clock in the morning.

 

Q: Where was the protagonist when they first heard the footsteps?

A: The protagonist had just stepped out of the bathtub and was drying themselves with a towel when they heard the footsteps.

 

Q: Who else was in the house when the footsteps started?

A: The protagonist's mother was asleep in one room upstairs, their brother Herman was in another room, and their grandfather was in the attic.

 

Q: How did the protagonist initially rationalize the footsteps?

A: Initially, the protagonist thought it might be their father or their brother Roy, who were expected home soon. Then, they suspected it might be a burglar before considering the possibility of it being a ghost.

 

Q: What detail indicates that the protagonist could see into the dining room from where they were?

A: The light from the bathroom shone down the back steps directly into the dining room, allowing the protagonist to see the faint shine of plates on the plate-rail.

After the walking had gone on for perhaps three minutes, I tiptoed to Herman’s room. “Psst!” I hissed, in the dark, shaking him. “Awp,” he said, in the low, hopeless tone of a despondent beagle—he always half suspected that something would “get him” in the night. I told him who I was. “There’s something downstairs!” I said. He got up and followed me to the head of the back staircase. We listened together. There was no sound. The steps had ceased. Herman looked at me in some alarm: I had only the bath towel around my waist. He wanted to go back to bed, but I gripped his arm. “There’s something down there!” I said. Instantly the steps began again, circled the dining-room table like a man running, and started up the stairs toward us, heavily, two at a time. The light still shone palely down the stairs; we saw nothing coming; we only heard the steps. Herman rushed to his room and slammed the door. I slammed shut the door at the stairs top and held my knee against it. After a long minute, I slowly opened it again. There was nothing there. There was no sound. None of us ever heard the ghost again.

Q: How did the protagonist initially try to get Herman's attention? 

A: The protagonist hissed "Psst!" in the dark and shook Herman.

Q: Describe Herman's initial reaction to being woken up. 

A: Herman responded with a low, hopeless tone, likened to that of a despondent beagle, indicating his suspicion and fear of something lurking in the night.

Q: Why did the protagonist grip Herman's arm when he wanted to go back to bed?

 A: The protagonist felt compelled to hold onto Herman's arm because he was convinced there was something downstairs and wanted Herman to stay and listen with him.

Q: What happened when the protagonist and Herman listened for sounds downstairs? 

A: They heard no sound; the steps had ceased.

Q: How did the protagonist and Herman react when the footsteps resumed? 

A: Herman rushed to his room and slammed the door shut, while the protagonist closed the door at the top of the stairs and held their knee against it, feeling the need to barricade themselves in.

Q: What did the protagonist find when they reopened the door at the top of the stairs? 

A: There was nothing there; no sound or sight of anything.

 

The slamming of the doors had aroused mother: she peered out of her room. “What on earth are you boys doing?” she demanded. Herman ventured out of his 1THE NIGHT THE GHOST GOT IN room. “Nothing,” he said, gruffly, but he was, in color, a light green. “What was all that running around downstairs?” said mother. So she had heard the steps, too! We just looked at her. “Burglars!” she shouted intuitively. I tried to quiet her by starting lightly downstairs. “Come on, Herman,” I said. “I’ll stay with mother,” he said. “She’s all excited.” I stepped back onto the landing.

Q: How did mother react to the slamming of the doors? 

A: Mother peered out of her room and demanded to know what the boys were doing.

Q: What was Herman's response when mother asked about the running around downstairs? 

A: Herman gruffly replied, "Nothing," but his color suggested he was a light green, indicating he was scared or nervous.

Q: How did mother interpret the commotion?

 A: Mother immediately assumed it was burglars, shouting the word "Burglars!" intuitively.

Q: How did the protagonist attempt to calm mother down? 

A: The protagonist tried to quiet her by suggesting they investigate lightly downstairs together.

Q: What decision did Herman make regarding staying with mother or going downstairs?

 A: Herman chose to stay with mother because she was all excited, while the protagonist stepped back onto the landing to investigate further.

 

The police were on hand in a commendably short time: a Ford sedan full of them, two on motorcycles, and a patrol wagon with about eight in it and a few reporters. They began banging at our front door. Flashlights shot streaks of gleam up and down the walls, across the yard, down the walk between our house and Bodwell’s. “Open up!” cried a hoarse voice. “We’re men from Headquarters!” I wanted to go down and let them in, since there they were, but mother wouldn’t hear of it. “You haven’t a stitch on,” she pointed out. “You’d catch your death.” I wound the towel around me again. Finally the cops put their shoulders to our big heavy front door with its thick beveled glass and broke it in: I could hear a rending of wood and a splash of glass on the floor of the hall. Their lights played all over the living-room and crisscrossed nervously in the dining-room, stabbed into hallways, shot up the front stairs and finally up the back. They caught me standing in my towel at the top. A heavy policeman bounded up the steps. “Who are you?” he demanded. “I live here,” I said. “Well, whattsa matta, ya hot?” he asked. It was, as a matter of fact, cold; I went to my room and pulled on some trousers.

Q: How did the police arrive at the scene? 

A: The police arrived in a Ford sedan, two motorcycles, and a patrol wagon filled with officers, along with a few reporters.

Q: What did the police do upon arrival? 

A: The police began banging at the front door and shining flashlights around the property.

Q: Why did the protagonist hesitate to go down and let the police in? 

A: The protagonist's mother wouldn't allow it because the protagonist was wearing only a towel, and she was concerned they would catch a cold.

Q: How did the police gain entry to the house?

 A: The police eventually broke down the big heavy front door with its thick beveled glass, causing a rending of wood and glass splashing on the floor.

Q: What was the protagonist's interaction with the police officer who found them in a towel? 

A: The heavy policeman demanded to know who the protagonist was, to which the protagonist responded that they lived there. The officer then asked why they were not wearing clothes, to which the protagonist replied it was cold and went to put on trousers.

 

The officer in charge reported to mother. “No sign of nobody, lady,” he said. “Musta got away—whatt’d he look like?” “There were two or three of them,” mother said, “whooping and carrying on and slamming doors.” “Funny,” said the cop. “All ya windows and doors was locked on the inside tight as a tick.” Downstairs, we could hear the tromping of the other police. Police were all over the place; doors were yanked open, drawers were yanked open, windows were shot up and pulled down, furniture fell with dull thumps. A half-dozen policemen emerged out of the darkness of the front hallway upstairs. They began to ransack the floor: pulled beds away from walls, tore clothes off hooks in the closets, pulled suitcases and boxes off shelves. One of them found an old zither that Roy had won in a pool tournament. “Looky here, Joe,” he said, strumming it with a big paw. The cop named Joe took it and turned it over. “What is it?” he asked me. “It’s an old zither our guinea pig used to sleep on,” I said. It was true that a pet guinea pig we once had would never sleep anywhere except on the zither, but I should never have said so. Joe and the other cop looked at me a long time. They put the zither back on a shelf.

Q: What did the officer in charge report to the mother? 

A: The officer informed the mother that there was no sign of anybody and speculated that the intruders must have gotten away. He also asked the mother to describe the intruders.

Q: How did the police react to the situation inside the house?

 A: The police were puzzled because all the windows and doors were locked from the inside, suggesting no obvious point of entry for the intruders. They proceeded to search the house thoroughly, pulling open doors and drawers, and moving furniture.

Q: What did the police find while searching the protagonist's room?

 A: While searching the protagonist's room, one of the policemen found an old zither. He played it briefly before asking the protagonist what it was.

Q: How did the protagonist explain the old zither to the police? 

A: The protagonist explained that it was an old zither their guinea pig used to sleep on. Although true, the protagonist regretted mentioning it, fearing it might make them sound foolish.

Q: How did the police react to the protagonist's explanation of the old zither? 

A: The police officers looked at the protagonist for a long time but eventually put the zither back on the shelf without further comment or action.

 

The cops were reluctant to leave without getting their hands on somebody besides grandfather; the night had been distinctly a defeat for them. Furthermore, they obviously didn’t like the “layout;” something looked—and I can see their viewpoint—phony. They began to poke into things again. A reporter, a thin-faced, wispy man, came up to me. I had put on one of mother’s blouses, not being able to find anything else. The reporter looked at me with mingled suspicion and interest. “Just what the hell is the real lowdown here, Bud?” he asked. I decided to be frank with him. “We had ghosts,” I said. He gazed at me a long time as if I were a slot machine into which he had, without results, dropped a nickel. Then he walked away. The cops followed him, the one grandfather shot holding his now-bandaged arm, cursing and blaspheming. “I’m gonna get my gun back from that old bird,” said the zither-cop. “Yeh,” said Joe. “You—and who else?” I told them I would bring it to the station house the next day.

Q: Why were the police reluctant to leave the house? 

A: The police were hesitant to leave without apprehending someone besides the grandfather. The night had been a defeat for them, and they found something about the situation suspicious.

Q: What did the protagonist put on when approached by the reporter? 

A: The protagonist put on one of their mother's blouses when approached by the reporter, as they couldn't find anything else to wear.

Q: How did the reporter react when the protagonist told him about ghosts? 

A: The reporter gazed at the protagonist for a long time, seeming skeptical or puzzled, before walking away without further comment.

Q: What were the police discussing as they followed the reporter? 

A: The police were discussing the incident with the grandfather, particularly the one who had been shot and was holding his now-bandaged arm. They expressed their intention to retrieve their gun from the grandfather.

Q: How did the protagonist respond to the police's intention to retrieve their gun?

 A: The protagonist assured the police that they would bring the gun to the station house the next day.

Top of Form