READING CHECK for “The Feather Pillow” by Horatio Quiroga
Directions: Answer in complete sentences using text evidence where requested.

1. List three examples of imagery in the text. Explain how they help build the story's atmosphere.

2. Find and list one simile and one metaphor. What is the effect of each?

3. There is a point where the third-person narrator turns the story to its horrific path. Find and write the sentence that you think marks this turn and explain your choice.

4. Personification is a technique where a writer gives human traits to an inanimate object, such as a house. Find and write down two phrases where personification is used to describe Jordan and Alicia’s home.

5. Alicia was killed by a blood-sucking monster. How might the monster have made its way into Alicia’s pillow? What does it symbolize?

6. What responsibility, if any, does Jordan hold in regard to his wife’s death? Could he or Alicia have prevented this tragedy?

7. Essential Question Connection: What is the allure of fear in this story? How does the fear factor enhance the story?