Text Appreciation

●Text Analysis

1. Theme

What if you were told that you could make a fortune just by pushing a button on a box? But pressing this button will simultaneously cause the death of another human being somewhere in the world — someone you don't know. Would you still push the button? "Button, Button" delivers a one-two punch of story and character in Matheson's trademark unadorned prose, telling a chilling tale of greed and temptation.

2. Structure

1) Part 1 (Paras. 1-36): A Mr. Steward called the Lewises in the evening, and a push-button unit was delivered to them.

2) Part 2 (Paras. 37-54): The couple reacted differently to what Mr. Steward said.

3) Part 3 (Paras. 55-116): Norma got deeply involved in the matter and this made her husband very unhappy.

4) Part 4 (Paras. 117-129): Norma was to get the amount in the form of Arthur’s insurance policy.

3. Further Discussion

1. Why did Norma consider the tone and attitude of Mr. Steward offensive?

Because he was insistent like a salesperson and kept speaking even after Norma’s excuse of being busy at home. Moreover, Norma felt his expressive style very odd and disrespectful.

2. Why did Arthur disagree with his wife?

Because he was not interested in the offer. He considered the death of some unidentified person a shameful and immoral act. His conscience could not allow him even to think of such heartlessness and selfishness.

3. Why did Norma try to persuade her husband to agree with her?

Because she was a greedy and desirous lady who wanted to accomplish her materialistic desires with the valuable amount of $50000. She wanted to take a trip to Europe with her husband, buy a cottage on the Island and spend a luxurious life.

4. What were the reasons Norma gave to her husband to accept the offer?

She said that it might be a psychological research in order to study human reactions or a game played by some eccentric millionaire. According to her they would not have any concern with the death of an unknown person and it was a golden chance for them to realize their dreams and improve their life style.

5. Why did Mr. Steward continue persuading Norma?

Because he had already perceived Norma’s greedy and selfish nature through her interest in the temptation of $50,000. He had gathered that she could go to every extent of immorality for the sake of money.

6. What was the message Norma received on pushing the button?

Norma received a message from Lenox Hill Hospital about her husband’s death. A voice informed her of the subway accident. She remembered his life-insurance policy for $25,000 with double indemnity.

7. How do you define Norma’s personality?

Norma is an average woman. She is not particularly selfish, cruel, or greedy. She wants to have more money to buy a bigger house and travel. That is perfectly normal. When she is offered a large sum of money for a simple act of pressing the button, she cannot resist the temptation, although by doing so, she will cause somebody somewhere in the world to die. Norma is no murderer. She will never pick up a gun and shoot somebody for money. But when she is reassured that that person who dies will not be somebody she knows, she begins to waver.

8. Is there anything allegorical about Norma and her behavior?

The morals seem involved in the modern symbolic tale. There is increasing lamenting over the moral decay of our society, because people seem to be obsessed with money and ready to “push the button”, which sends innocent people to their early graves. They actually know the consequences of what they are doing. But that does not stop them, because the monetary reward is too attractive. Besides, they don’t know the victims personally and they don’t have to watch them die. This is particularly true with modern wars. We must all be accountable for our actions. Nobody can be excused for being indifferent to other people’s sufferings. In the long run, nobody can cause the death and suffering of others without getting hurt themselves either.

9. What main style of writing is used in the story?

Richard Matheson uses situational irony to get readers interested, and did the same with Girl of My Dreams. Situational irony, also called irony of events, is most broadly defined as a situation where the outcome is incongruous with what was expected, but it is also more generally understood as a situation that includes contradictions or sharp contrasts.

●Writing Device: Narration

There are four types of writing styles:

Expository, Descriptive, Persuasive and Narrative.

Often, the word narrative is synonymous with story. A narrative is the story (fiction or non-fiction) told in an order. Sometimes, there is a narrator, a character or series of characters, who tell the story. Sometimes, as with most non-fiction, the author himself/herself in the narrator.

You are narrators of your own lives all the time. Something happens in class. You go to lunch; then, you tell the details that are important. The story that you tell is a narrative, which is shaped by details. These details offer clues about the author’s purpose.

Every work of literature, and much nonfiction narrative, is based on the following conflicts. When you write a story or relate a true event, you should identify the conflicts inherent in your composition and apply them as you write.

1. Person vs. Fate / God    2. Person vs. Self

3. Person vs. Person       4. Person vs. Society

5. Person vs. Nature       6. Person vs. Supernatural

7. Person vs. Technology    (by Mark Nichol)

Three principles for narrative writing:

●To involve readers in the story. It is more interesting to recreate an incident for readers than to simply tell about it.

●Find a generalization from the story, which is the only way the writer's personal experience will take on meaning for readers. The generalization does not have to encompass humanity as a whole; it can concern the writer, men, women, or children of various ages and backgrounds.

●Although the main component of a narrative is the story, details must be carefully selected to support, explain, and enhance the story.

●Sentence Paraphrase

1. The package was lying by the front door — a cube-shaped carton sealed with tape. (Para. 1)

2. I’ll get it… (para. 5)

I’ll go and see who the visitor is…

*It is a commonly used expression in daily life. “Get” here means “take” or “deal with”.

I’ll get it. (=I’ll answer the phone.)

3. Norma repressed a smile. (para. 10)

She wanted to smile but didn’t, because it would not be polite. She thought the visitor was a salesman who had left the package by her door. She believed he was there to persuade her to buy the package.

4. She was sure now that it was a sales pitch. (para. 10)

a sales pitch: salesmen’s way of

persuading people to buy the

goods they are trying to sell

5. Is this a practical joke? (para. 32)

a practical joke: a trick played on somebody in order to make them appear ridiculous or to amuse others

6. You aren’t making sense. (para. 34)

It’s hard to understand what you are talking about. / You are talking nonsense.

7. … picked up the subject... (para. 42)

… started talking about the push-button unit again…

8. … it’s a sick one. (para. 43)

a sick joke: one in bad taste about a serious or important or highly valued thing and therefore extremely unpleasant and makes you feel upset (令人恶心的玩笑)

9. Impulsively, she dropped them into her purse. (para. 53)

She suddenly picked up the torn card and dropped them into her purse without giving too much thought to it.

*impulsively: acting on impulse

10. Not that I believe a word of what you told us. (para. 61)

I am curious about the unit, but it does not mean that I believe what you told me.

11. Well, of all the nerve, she thought. (para. 70)

She is angry that Mr. Steward assumed that she would want the package.

Here “nerve” means impudence. “Of all the nerve” is an elliptical sentence. The words left out are: “This is the limit / worst kind (of all impudence I’ve ever seen)”.

12. Maybe some eccentric millionaire is playing games with people, … (para. 72)

●some eccentric millionaire: any strange-acting millionaire; a millionaire who behaves in peculiar ways

●Notice the use of “some” with singular nouns, which indicates that the person, place, etc. is unknown or not specific, e.g.

●I’ve read the story before in some book.

●Some man is outside asking to see you.

13. Are you saying what I think you are (saying)? (para. 79)

Q: What is omitted in the sentence? Why do you think Arthur said this? Is it because he didn’t hear Norma clearly?

Arthur was so shocked when he heard what Norma said that he simply could not believe it.

14. What’s the occasion? (para. 92)

Q: Why did Arthur ask?

Because his wife got up earlier than usual and cooked a big breakfast. He wondered whether it was for a special occasion.

15. His voice was guarded. (para. 98)

He answered her cautiously.

16. … to get so worked up over nothing. (para. 115)

to become so upset for no reason.

This may refer to her argument with her husband, her own conflict over whether to push the button or not, or simply to the “chill of terror” which swept over her just after she pushed the button.

17. … life-insurance policy for $25,000 with double indemnity for… (para. 121)

double indemnity: Under the terms of the life insurance, the insurance company pays twice as much the sum insured when the policy holder dies accidentally.

indemnity: payment for loss of goods, money, life, etc.

18. “No!” She struggled to her feet. (para. 122)

“No!” She rose to her feet with a great effort.

*No!: used for expressing great surprise, doubt or disbelief

19. Something cold pressed at her skull as she removed the button unit from the wastebasket. (para. 123)

She was so stunned that she could feel no pain or anything as she removed the button unit from the wastebasket.

20. It wasn’t her voice shrieking so; it couldn’t be. (para. 128)

She screamed to Mr. Steward over the phone in such a way that even she herself couldn’t recognize her voice. She had never screamed at people like that before.