The Catbird Seat By James Thurber 8 December

The Catbird Seat By James Thurber 8 December 1894 – 2 November 1961

About the author James Thurber was an American cartoonist best known for his contributions to the New Yorker magazine. He died from pneumonia at the age of 66

Narrator • The story has been written in the third person, omniscient narrator. • The story is being told from Mr Martins point view

Theme • Battle of the sexes The woman (Mrs Barrows) is the stronger character and the man (Mr Martins) is the weaker one. Mrs Barrows talks too loud, drinks alcohol, smokes and loves baseball and Mr Martins is the timid character who doesn’t smoke or like sports and prefers drinking milk. At the end, the weaker of the sexes overcomes the stronger one. • Power Everyone wants to sit in the catbird seat but Mr Martin eventually wins it • Alienation and loneliness Both are single people. Mrs Barrows prefers to have a more active social life where Mr Martins is a predictable and never-changing loner. He has remained stagnant at his position and he is perfectly content with his job until Mrs Barrows arrives and threatens his position.

Tone and style Tone The tone is very mysterious and driven. Mr Martin knows what he wants but Thurber doesn’t necessarily tell us everything at once. He leaves room for interpretation. “The clerk didn’t even glance at Mr Martin, who put the pack in his overcoat pocket and went out. If any of the staff at F&S saw him buy cigarettes, they would have been astonished, for it was generally known that Mr Martin did not smoke, and never had. No one saw him”. Style Precise and to the point. In this particular story, his style is also humorous (which Thurber isn’t known for at all) “I’m sitting in the catbird seat”, he said. He stuck is tongue out at her and left. Nobody saw him go. ”

Subject • Mr Martin, head of the filing department at F&S, is confronted by Mrs Barrows who recently got the job of ‘special advisor’after meeting the firms president, Mr Fitweiler, at a party. • Mr Martin decides to get rid of Mrs Barrows and does so by showing up at her home and acting outlandish. • When Mrs Barrows reports this to Mr Fitweiler, he sides with Mr Martin thinking Mrs Barrows had a severe mental breakdown.

Characters Erwin Martin – Round - Protagonist Mr Martin is the head of the filing department at the F&S firm. He is a neat and precise man and likes order and routine Ideal/model worker Employee at F&S for 22 years Doesn’t approve of Mrs Barrows Mrs Ulgine Barrows – Round - Antagonist Mrs Barrows if the newly appointed special adviser to Mr Fitweiler and has been hired to bring out the best in the firm. She is always calling out baseball phrases that Mr Martin doesn’t understand In her 18 months at the job she has hired 3 new employees, driven other to resign, made changes to nearly every single department and now she plans on making changes in Mr Martins department. She doesn’t not have much experience as Mr Martin (2 years vs 22 years)

Characters continued Mr Fitweiler - Flat The president of F&S He is easily swayed, especially by Mrs Barrows. He lets her become his special advisor when he hardly knows anything about her He thinks very highly or Mr Martin Minor characters – Flat Old Roberts Personnel Chief Joey Hart and Miss Paird Assistants to Mr Martin Miss Tyson, Mr Brundage, Mr Bartlett and Mr Munson ex – employees Dr Fitch – Mr Martin’s psychiatrist Stockton, Fishbein and Mrs Powell – Current employees

Exposition • This is where we get to know the character of Mr Martin. The exposition describes how he is the most efficient and reliable worker at F&S. He has been working there for 22 years as head of the filing department. Mr Fitweiler thinks highly of Mr Martin “Man is fallible, but Martin isn’t. ” • It also describes how Mrs Ulgine Barrows comes to work at F&S. “…Mrs Barrows had met Mr Fitweiler at a party, where she had rescued him from the embraces of a powerfully built drunken man who had mistaken the president of F&S for a famous retired Middle Western football coach. She had led him to the sofa and somehow worked upon him a monstrous magic. The aging gentleman had jumped to the conclusion there and then that this was a woman of singular attainments, equipped to bring out the best I him and in the firm. A week later he had introduced her as into F&S as his special advisor. ”

Exposition continued • We also get to know all the things that Mrs Barrows has done since she’s started working at F&S She stated working at F&S on March 7, 1941. She made all kinds of comments toward Mr Martin (questions that were baseball related) and continuously baited (to annoy, provoke, taunt) him by asking questions like: “Are you tearing up the pea patch? ” “Are you sitting in the catbird seat? ” She had 3 people fired and 1 person resigned. On November 2, 1942, she was now wanting to make changes to Mr Martins department by asking if he needed all the filing cabinets. He then decided that he needs to do something about Mrs Barrows. He talks to himself and says, “Gentlemen of the jury, I demand the death penalty for this horrible person. ”

Rising action • Mr Martin makes his way to Mrs Barrows house. He smokes cigarettes even though he isn’t a smoker to cover his tracks. • He arrives at her house at 21. 18 and she prepares a drink for them. • While she is preparing scoth-and-soda in the kitchen, he starts to look for a murder weapon in her house but is unable to find one. • They then sit together on the coach and drink their scotch and smoke their cigarettes. • He then portrays a fake personality and tells Mrs Barrows that he plans on killing Mr Fitweiler. She then asks him to leave.

Climax When Mrs Barrows has an outburst at Mr Fitweiler and tells him what Mr Martin had said about him and about his condition the previous night in her apartment

Falling action • Mrs Barrows then storms back to her own office and Mr Martin is called to Mr Fitweiler’s office. • He is told that Mrs Barrows has suffered a severe breakdown. He also says she is having distressing hallucinations about Mr Martin visiting her, drinking and smoking and saying insulting things about him. • Mr Fitweiler has also received an opinion from his psychiatrist to say that Mrs Barrows is in fact hallucinating.

Conclusion • Mrs Barrows storms back into Mr Fitweiler office and knows that he has taken Mr Martins side. She tried to ‘go for’ Mr Martins. • She is then escorted out of the building and to her home by Stockton, Fishbein and Mrs Powell. • Mr Martin then strolls back to the filing department without a single loss.