Anton Chekhov’s short story “The Lady with the Pet Dog” is about two unhappily married people finding one another while on vacation in Yalta. Gurov, an older man who has had many extramarital affairs meets the young Anna Sergeyevna and the two begin an affair. After a note from her husband takes Anna away from Yalta, Gurov hopes to forget her. However, upon returning to Moscow, he can’t seem to keep Anna out of his mind. Metaphors are employed throughout the story to offer insight into the characters, with Gurov’s use of figurative language highlighting the emotions he associates with their affair and how he comes to love Anna.

Skills: analysis, drawing inferences from text, close reading, identifying the relationship between words

About This Document

The Owl Eyes Analyzing Metaphor activity gives students an opportunity to practice examining and analyzing metaphors. Students will engage with specific selections of the text and work collaboratively to identify the vehicle, tenor, and implications of each metaphor. The main components include the following:

• A brief introduction to the text
• A detailed handout on metaphor types
• A step-by-step guide to activity procedure
• A detailed answer key for teachers

In completing this worksheet, students will learn to classify and analyze different kinds of metaphors in order to develop close reading skills and draw deeper inferences from the text.