The White Cat

William Wymark JacobsProject Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

3.0

Word count: 23K words
Chapters: 3

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.The White Cat by W. W. JacobsAuthor: Jacobs, W. W. (William Wymark), 1863-1943,Language: English, Class: PR: Language and Literatures: English literature, Release Date: Feb 1, 2004

Editor's review

"The White Cat" is a short work by W. W. Jacobs, released as a public-domain eBook by Project Gutenberg. Jacobs excelled at the small calculations of ordinary people and surprise endings, and this piece is likewise well suited to observing how he advances plot through spare dialogue and creates a turn at the close. The value of the electronic edition lies mainly in being free and readable in the original text; it works as a light sample of the English short story rather than a scholarly edition. Reading contexts might be a commute, a break in English study, or an entry point into Edwardian short fiction. Since it is in the original English and not long, readers can finish it in one sitting and then revisit key dialogue, noting the gap between the narrator's tone and the characters' reactions. Those expecting a complex long-form structure or Chinese support should choose another edition.

Who it's for

A good fit for

General readers who want to finish an English short story quickly
Those interested in Jacobs-style twist endings
Learners using short stories for close reading or classroom discussion
Readers collecting public-domain short fiction eBooks

Not a good fit for

Beginners who need a Chinese translation or introduction
Readers who prefer full-length novels
Readers unfamiliar with old-fashioned English dialogue

Reading tips

Read through once for plot, then revisit the dialogue for foreshadowing
After finishing, write down the key point of the ending twist in two or three sentences
Mark unfamiliar words first and look them up after finishing the whole piece
Read the characters' dialogue aloud to feel Jacobs's colloquial rhythm

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

Is this work suitable for English beginners?

Not really for complete beginners. The book is in the original English; though short, it contains old-fashioned colloquial speech and period background, so basic English reading ability is recommended first.

Does the eBook include notes or an introduction?

According to the information, this is a public-domain electronic text from Project Gutenberg, usually providing only the original text without a Chinese introduction or detailed notes; readers may need their own dictionary.

How can I appreciate Jacobs's humor and twist?

Pay attention to self-praise and later reactions in the characters' dialogue, and after finishing, revisit how the ending reinterprets what came before; this makes his dry comic structure easier to grasp.

Comments

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About the author

William Wymark Jacobs Author · British · 1863–1943

William Wymark Jacobs (1863–1943) was a British short-story writer, born in London in 1863 and died there in 1943. In his early years he lived around the Thames docks and was familiar with the lives of sailors and dockworkers, which led him to write a great many humorous sea stories, often in a light and witty tone. His best-known work, The Monkey's Paw, is a classic horror short story included in The Lady of the Barge (1902); noted for its tight suspense and sudden twists, it is still widely anthologized in horror collections. The library holds 109 of his works, including The Lady of the Barge and Others, Ship's Company, A Tiger's Skin, Captains All, and Night Watches; his common category is inspirational growth. Public information is limited and details of his life are largely unavailable, yet his fiction is distinctive in subject, blending humor with horror, and has had a lasting influence on later short-story writing.