Genre
Children's Literature
Setting and Context
One morning at the pet shop.
Narrator and Point of View
The narrator of the story is Kay's brother. The story is told in the first-person point of view.
Tone and Mood
The tone of the story is ambivalent and exciting. The mood, on the other hand, is empathetic and fulfilling.
Protagonist and Antagonist
The protagonists of the story are Kay and her brother. The antagonists are their parents.
Major Conflict
The biggest problem in the story was choosing which pet they wanted to adopt. Their parents told them to go to the pet store and pick up one pet but when they arrived they just couldn't decide which one they wanted; they wanted to take all the animals home!
Climax
The peak of the story took place when the two siblings finally made up their mind and decided which animal they wanted as a pet.
Foreshadowing
In the beginning of the story, the narrator stated that they were allowed to bring home only one pet. This is reiterated by Kay's brother throughout the story; it can be seen in the following lines: "We have to pick ONE pet and pick it out soon." and "If we do not choose, we will end up with NONE."
Understatement
N/A
Allusions
The whole story is an allusion to the previous work of Dr. Seuss: One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish.
Imagery
The author uses illustrations to show the different kinds of animals the siblings encountered at the pet store.
Paradox
N/A
Parallelism
"She gave it a pat and she said..."
"The cat or the dog?"
"The dog of the rabbit?"
"The fish or the cat?"
Metonymy and Synecdoche
mind - referring to Kay and her brother
Personification
'I saw something with wings. I said, "Look at him! We can pick one that sings!"' - In this line, the author is describing the bird using an action which only humans can do.
"I saw a fine dog who shook hands." - In this line, the author is stating that the dog shook hands with Kay's brother. This is an example of personification because dogs cannot shake hands like humans can.
