Fair Game

Fair Game is the quintessential example of a fantastic story. Throughout the story the reader is torn between the competing ideas of a supernatural occurrence and insanity. When the story begins Douglas is convinced he has seen a huge eye examining him, yet he is the only one who has seen it. Douglas begins to then form a conspiracy theory and is convinced that some power from above is watching him and trying to trap him. At this point the reader begins to questions Douglas’s state of mind. It is plausible to assume he has gone mad because he is the only one to “experience” the circumstances, which he describes. In addition near the end of the story the reader is lead to believe that Douglas is hallucinating “ The café wavered and abruptly winked out. Douglas fought down a scream of terror. Where the café had been there was only an open field “ (10). The fantastic elements are created when at the end of the story a supernatural occurrences seems to occur and Douglas is caught by some otherworldly beings and placed in a frying pan. The reader is not given a clear conclusion to the story, and is left to ponder whether Douglas is imagining that he was caught by aliens or if a supernatural being really did catch him.