Question

Read the following extract from William Sleater’s short story, ‘The Elevator’ and answer the questions that follow:

Martin felt nervous when he got back to the building after school. But why should he be afraid of an old lady? He felt ashamed of himself. He pressed the button and stepped into the elevator, hoping that it would not stop, but it stopped on the third floor. Martin watched the door slide open...

1. Who entered the elevator when the door slid open? Describe this person.     [3]
2. Why was Martin afraid of using this elevator?     [3]
3. What led to Martin’s fall down the stairs?
   What did it result in?     [3]
4. How does the story end?
   Bring out the element of horror in the ending.     [3]
5. What was Martin’s father’s opinion of him?
   What does this reveal to us about his father’s character?     [4]

Answer 1

1. A big, fat woman in an old green coat got into the lift. The small lift looked like it was full of her. She didn’t have much of a chin and her lips were big and full. Martin’s face looked like her tiny, sharp blue eyes were boring into it.
2. Martin was afraid of lifts in general because he thought they would fall. He might have had claustrophobia, an abnormal fear of small spaces. This lift was very small, dark, and the walls were dirty. It moved slowly every time it left a floor. All of these things made him not want to use the lift.
3. Martin ran down the stairs because he was scared of the woman waiting for the lift. He fell down the dark stairs and broke his leg. He had to walk with sticks for many days after being taken to the hospital. He thought the boy was stupid and scared, so his father was mad and upset with him.
4. “Elevator” is a story with no clear ending. Martin tried to keep his distance from the woman, but she always saw him in the lift. One day, he was left in the elevator by himself. He had pushed for the ninth floor, but the lift stopped at 10. It looked like the fat lady was ready for him. The woman quickly got in before he could leave. The elevator began to move after the door shut. She laughed and hit the stop button to greet him. It’s scary to read this because anything could have happened.
5. Martin’s father gives up easily with his son and always thinks of him as a wuss and a dumb boy. He doesn’t seem to care about Martin’s worries and fears. Because they see their boys as an extension of themselves, dads always want them to be brave and strong. As a result, he is upset, but he wants to make his son strong by not caring about him and even making fun of him. He seems to be more functional than emotional; he doesn’t seem to care about the boy’s feelings or know what’s going on in his head.