O. Henry's The Duel

Questions:

1.What's the Gods' attitude towards the antlike big sprawling city on earth? What amuse them the most about the cities?

2.What is the battle like between the new comer and the city?
3. What are the major differences  between New York and other big cities in Jack's eyes?

4.Four years after Jack and Bill lived in the city, what attitude has each person adopted towards it?
5.How does Jack describe New York? What literary elements can you identify in Jack's description of the city? What does the descrition convey ?

6. When Jack received a letter from his home in the west, how did he react?

7. Who won the duel in the end ?

1.Main Entry: nar·co·tize
Pronunciation: 'när-k&-"tIz
Function: verb
Inflected Form(s): -tized; -tiz·ing
Etymology: International Scientific Vocabulary
Date: 1526
transitive senses
1 a : to treat with or subject to a narcotic b : to put into a state of narcosis
2 : to soothe to unconsciousness or unawareness
intransitive senses : to act as a narcotizing agent

2Main Entry: Phi·lis·tine
Pronunciation: 'fi-l&-"stEn; f&-'lis-t&n, -"tEn; 'fi-l&-st&n
Function: noun
Date: 14th century
1 : a native or inhabitant of ancient Philistia
2 often not capitalized a : a person who is guided by materialism and is usually disdainful of intellectual or artistic values b : one uninformed in a special area of knowledge
- philistine adjective, often capitalized
- phi·lis·tin·ism /-l&-"stE-"ni-z&m; -'lis-t&-, -"tE-, -l&-st&-/ noun, often capitalized

3. Main Entry: De·li·lah
Pronunciation: di-'lI-l&
Function: noun
Etymology: Hebrew DelIlAh
: the mistress and betrayer of Samson in the book of Judges

4.Main Entry: char·treuse
Pronunciation: shär-'trüz, -'trüs
Function: noun
Etymology: Chartreuse
Date: 1884
: a variable color averaging a brilliant yellow green

5.Main Entry: chlo·ral
Pronunciation: 'klOr-&l, 'klor-
Function: noun
Etymology: French, from chlor- + alcool alcohol
Date: 1838
1 : a pungent colorless oily aldehyde CCl3CHO used in making DDT and chloral hydrate
2 : CHLORAL HYDRATE

6.Main Entry: prate
Pronunciation: 'prAt
Function: intransitive verb
Inflected Form(s): prat·ed; prat·ing
Etymology: Middle English, from Middle Dutch; akin to Middle Low German pratten to pout
Date: 15th century
: to talk long and idly : CHATTER
- prate noun
- prat·er noun
- prat·ing·ly /'prA-ti[ng]-lE/ adverb

7.Main Entry: pro·vin·cial·ism
Pronunciation: -sh&-"li-z&m
Function: noun
Date: 1770
1 : a dialectal or local word, phrase, or idiom
2 : the quality or state of being provincial

8.Main Entry: pre·am·ble
Pronunciation: 'prE-"am-b&l, prE-'
Function: noun
Etymology: Middle English, from Middle French preambule, from Medieval Latin preambulum, from Late Latin, neuter of
praeambulus walking in front of, from Latin prae- + ambulare to walk
Date: 14th century
1 : an introductory statement; especially : the introductory part of a constitution or statute that usually states the reasons for and
intent of the law
2 : an introductory fact or circumstance; especially : one indicating what is to follow

9.Main Entry: scad
Function: noun
Etymology: probably alteration of English dialect scald a multitude
Date: 1869
: a large number or quantity -- usually used in plural <scads of money>

10.Main Entry: raths·kel·ler
Pronunciation: 'rät-"ske-l&r, 'rat-, 'rath-
Function: noun
Etymology: obsolete German (now Ratskeller), city-hall basement restaurant, from Rat council + Keller cellar
Date: 1900
: a usually basement tavern or restaurant

11. Main Entry: 1mav·er·ick
Pronunciation: 'mav-rik, 'ma-v&-
Function: noun
Etymology: Samuel A. Maverick died 1870 American pioneer who did not brand his calves
Date: 1867
1 : an unbranded range animal; especially : a motherless calf
2 : an independent individual who does not go along with a group or party
12. Main Entry: al·paca
Pronunciation: al-'pa-k&
Function: noun
Etymology: Spanish, from Aymara allpaqa
Date: 1811
1 : a domesticated mammal (Lama pacos) especially of Peru that is prob. descended from the guanaco
2 a : wool of the alpaca b (1) : a thin cloth made of or containing this wool (2) : a rayon or cotton imitation of this cloth

13. Main Entry: da·go
Pronunciation: 'dA-(")gO
Function: noun
Inflected Form(s): plural dagos or dagoes
Etymology: alteration of earlier diego, from Diego, a common Spanish given name
Date: 1832
usually disparaging : a person of Italian or Spanish birth or descent

14. Main Entry: Osh·kosh
Pronunciation: 'äsh-"käsh
city E Wisconsin on Lake Winnebago population 55,006

15. Main Entry: jug·ger·naut
Pronunciation: 'j&-g&r-"not, -"nät
Function: noun
Etymology: Hindi JagannAth, literally, lord of the world, title of Vishnu
Date: 1841
1 chiefly British : a large heavy truck
2 : a massive inexorable force, campaign, movement, or object that crushes whatever is in its path <an advertising juggernaut>
<a political juggernaut>

16. Main Entry: Mo·loch
Pronunciation: 'mä-l&k, 'mO-"läk
Function: noun
Etymology: Late Latin, from Greek, from Hebrew MOlekh
: a Semitic god to whom children were sacrificed

17. Main Entry: le·vi·a·than
Pronunciation: li-'vI-&-th&n
Function: noun
Etymology: Middle English, from Late Latin, from Hebrew liwyAthAn
1 a often capitalized : a sea monster defeated by Yahweh in various scriptural accounts b : a large sea animal
2 capitalized : the political state; especially : a totalitarian state having a vast bureaucracy
3 : something large or formidable
- leviathan adjective

18.Main Entry: as·sev·er·ate
Pronunciation: &-'se-v&-"rAt
Function: transitive verb
Inflected Form(s): -at·ed; -at·ing
Etymology: Latin asseveratus, past participle of asseverare, from ad- + severus severe
Date: 1791
: to affirm or aver positively or earnestly
- as·sev·er·a·tion /-"se-v&-'rA-sh&n/ noun
- as·sev·er·a·tive /-'se-v&-"rA-tiv/ adjective

19.Main Entry: aver
Pronunciation: &-'v&r
Function: transitive verb
Inflected Form(s): averred; aver·ring
Etymology: Middle English averren, from Middle French averer, from Medieval Latin adverare to confirm as authentic, from
Latin ad- + verus true -- more at VERY
Date: 15th century
1 a : to verify or prove to be true in pleading a cause b : to allege or assert in pleading
2 : to declare positively

20. Main Entry: 1shuck
Pronunciation: 'sh&k
Function: noun
Etymology: origin unknown
Date: circa 1674
1 : SHELL, HUSK: as a : the outer covering of a nut or of Indian corn b : the shell of an oyster or clam
2 : something of little value -- usually used in plural often interjectionally <not worth shucks> <shucks, it was nothing>

21. Main Entry: gulch
Pronunciation: 'g&lch
Function: noun
Etymology: perhaps from English dialect gulch to gulp, from Middle English gulchen
Date: 1832
: a deep or precipitous cleft : RAVINE; especially : one occupied by a torrent

22. Main Entry: ba·salt
Pronunciation: b&-'solt, 'bA-"
Function: noun
Etymology: Latin basaltes, manuscript variant of basanites touchstone, from Greek basanitEs (lithos), from basanos
touchstone, from Egyptian bhnw
Date: 1601
: a dark gray to black dense to fine-grained igneous rock that consists of basic plagioclase, augite, and usually magnetite
- ba·sal·tic /b&-'sol-tik/ adjective

23. Main Entry: 1myr·i·ad
Pronunciation: 'mir-E-&d
Function: noun
Etymology: Greek myriad-, myrias, from myrioi countless, ten thousand
Date: 1555
1 : ten thousand
2 : a great number <a myriad of ideas>

24. Main Entry: par·al·lel·o·gram
Pronunciation: "par-&-'le-l&-"gram
Function: noun
Etymology: Late Latin or Greek; Late Latin parallelogrammum, from Greek parallElogrammon, from neuter of
parallElogrammos bounded by parallel lines, from parallElos + grammE line, from graphein to write -- more at CARVE
Date: 1570
: a quadrilateral with opposite sides parallel and equal

25. Main Entry: man·drag·o·ra
Pronunciation: man-'dra-g&-r&
Function: noun
Etymology: Middle English, from Old English, from Latin mandragoras, from Greek
Date: before 12th century
: MANDRAKE 1

Main Entry: man·drake
Pronunciation: 'man-"drAk
Function: noun
Etymology: Middle English, probably alteration of mandragora
Date: 14th century
1 a : a Mediterranean herb (Mandragora officinarum) of the nightshade family with ovate leaves, yellowish or purple flowers,
and a large forked root traditionally credited with human attributes b : the root of a mandrake formerly used especially to
promote conception, as a cathartic, or as a narcotic and soporific
2 : MAYAPPLE
[mandrake illustration]