Phone Call Writing Assignment

created by L. Lopez, 9/26/09

“Phone Call” Writing Assignment

The Questions:
Even though this story seems far-fetched, it has verisimilitude, that is, the quality in a story that would cause a person to believe either that the story is true or could be true. To accomplish this, we have been given details early on that make the later actions seem possible.

Why does Mrs. Timothy's believe that the young man is there to harm her? How is her reasoning logical, if not correct?

What makes the fact that Mrs. Timothy suddenly brandishes a knife believable?

"Phone Call" The Ending:

“Then she began to scream.”…

This story ends very abruptly with the young man striking Mrs. Timothy with a clarinet. On a separate piece of paper, write an ending to the story. You should continue it in the spirit of the author, trying to make your ending sound like the original story, using the young man's point of view ("I"), appropriate diction, and details that were already supplied. (For example, the supposed "husband," the neighbor's dog, Mr. Lester at the market, etc.). YOU MUST USE AT LEAST TEN DETAILS FROM THE ORIGINAL TEXT TO CREATE QUALITY VERISIMILITUDE.

To be sure I appreciate your creative use of details from the original story, underline (or highlight) them within your story. This way we can ensure proper credit for your innovative ideas. This writing assignment is worth a quiz grade.

Use the space below to make a list of details you may want to use for your ending.