DAVE COOKS THE TURKEY BY STUART MCLEAN MICHAELLA

”DAVE COOKS THE TURKEY” BY STUART MCLEAN MICHAELLA CRAWFORD

SIGNIFICANCE OF THE TITLE • Title : “Dave Cooks the Turkey” • The title is very significant to how the story is going to go. It tells us exactly what will happen and has a very explicit, straight forward meaning

SETTING PHYSICAL SETTING • The story takes place leading up to Christmas and Christmas Day at Dave and Morley’s house and the hotel where Dave cooks the turkey

SETTING EMOTIONAL SETTING • The emotional setting of the story is quite intense but also humorous and lighthearted

PLOT – INITIATING INCIDENT THE STORY SETS OFF WHEN MORLEY, DAVE’S WIFE, JOINS THE CHRISTMAS CLUB.

RISING ACTION • Morley rants about how her life is “like a train” and that Dave does nothing to help her • They come to a decision that Dave will cook the turkey on Christmas. • Morley asks Dave if he has taken the turkey out of the freezer and Dave realizes that he doesn’t even have the turkey yet so he goes out in the middle of the night to get one • Once Morley and the kids head out to the food bank, Dave realizes that the oven will not be able to turn on until 5 pm… • Dave goes to a hotel to have the turkey cooked for him, where he runs into his neighbour Jim

CLIMAX • The climax of the story is when Dave finally makes it seem like he cooked the turkey. He did this but smearing gravy on the lightbulbs to make sure the house smells like Christmas dinner.

FALLING ACTION • Morley and the kids come home • Jim and his mother come over for a drink

CONCLUSION • Gravy starts dripping off the lightbulb onto Jim’s head • Dave realizes he needs to explain to Morley • Ending : cliffhanger, happy • We don’t know what happened between Morley and Dave • The turkey was successfully cooked

CHARACTERS PROTAGONIST ANTAGONIST OTHER • DAVE • TURKEY • MORLEY • Dave’s wife • Flat • Static • Dave is an older married man • Round • Static • Force against Dave • Causes him struggles

IRONY • Dramatic : an example of dramatic irony in the story would be when Morley asked Dave if he’d taken the turkey out of the freezer yet and he says yes but then thinks to himself that “of course he has not”. The audience is aware that he didn’t take the turkey out but Morley has no idea • When Dave said : “Oh great” this was verbal irony.

FORESHADOWING • When Jim comes over for dinner, it is foreshadowing that something could go wrong because Jim knows that Dave didn’t actually cook the turkey • The title : Dave Cooks the Turkey is also an example of foreshadowing because it tells us exactly what is going to happen

GENRE • Escape : the genre of “Dave Cooks the Turkey” is an escape because it is a light read with the intention to amuse and entertain the reader. It is comical and has clear themes and ideas. • Type of story : parable

SYMBOL • Christmas Club : family for Morley because her actual husband doesn’t act like it • Turkey : while Dave is trying so hard to get the turkey cooked, it is symbolic of him also trying to fix his marriage and prove himself.

MORAL & THEME • The moral of the story is to always appreciate your loved ones and to help them out. • The theme of the story is that you can do anything you put your mind to appreciate what people do for you before its too late.