Misses Packletide's Tiger

Introduction

• Story by: Saki
• Theme: Jealousy among women in high society
• Characters: Mrs. Packletide, Luna Bimber, Miss Mebbin

Plot Summary

Setting and Motivation

• Mrs. Packletide learns about Luna's tiger hunting achievement in Africa and becomes jealous
• She plans to outshine Luna by hunting a tiger in the Himalayas
• Motivation: To gain social prestige, not actual desire to hunt or make India safer

Plan Execution

• Offers 1000 rupees for an easy tiger shooting opportunity
• Villagers arrange an old, infirm tiger known for hunting small domestic animals
• Extensive preparations by villagers: children guard outskirts, goats placed as bait

The Hunt

• Night of the hunt: clear, moonlit night
• Mrs. Packletide and Miss Mebbin sit on constructed platform
• A tethered goat used as bait
• Miss Mebbin expresses concern about tiger's old age
• Mrs. Packletide shoots; tiger appears dead

Aftermath

• Villagers celebrate, praise Mrs. Packletide
• Photographs taken, published in various newspapers
• Mrs. Packletide plans a lunch party to honor Luna but show off her own achievement

Twist and Discovery

• Miss Mebbin (who noticed the goat took the shot) reveals the truth: tiger died of heart failure, shock from gunshot sound
• Despite this, the villagers uphold the fiction for reward

Miss Mebbin's Leverage

• Miss Mebbin hints at revealing the truth
• Mrs. Packletide buys Miss Mebbin’s silence by financing a weekend cottage

Conclusion

• Mrs. Packletide gains short-lived fame but swears off big game hunting
• Heavy incidental expenses and Miss Mebbin’s blackmailing influence
• Story’s themes include vanity, deception, and social rivalry