1. Contrast the two characters

The female protagonist is a young woman who has just written her first novel. She is very ambitious and is always trying to please her publisher called Mr Dwight. In order to be successful she changes the title of her book in accordance to her publisher`s wishes. She probably belongs to the upper classes which becomes obvious in the way she speaks. She is very self- centered, talking all the time about her problems without listenling to her fianc´e. She is oblivious to his feelings.

Her fiance is a wine-merchant who has been offered a well- paid job by his uncle. He only listens to his fianc´ee and doesn`t mention his own plans and wishes. It becomes obvious that he isn`t sure about marrying her. He is dissatisfied with his situation.

2. Why has she chosen titles like "The Chelsea Set" or "The Azure Blue" for her novels?

The title "The Chelsea Set" chosen by the publisher and accepted by the young novelist reveals her great desire to belong to high society. Chelsea is a rich suburb of London which symbolizes her attitude. However, the titles she chooses herself "The Ever Rolling Stream" and "The Azure Blue" create a more romantic impression showing her idealistic attitude.

What is the function of the eight Japanese gentleman in this story?
The eight Japanese gentleman don`t fit into her picture of an idealistic world. Even though they look very different and behave in a noisy way she doesn`t notice them because she is so self-centered.

Question 2:
The narrator actively takes part in the story. He is sitting next to the young novelist and her fiancé and listens to their conversation. Sometimes during this conversation he reveals his own opinion. One example is the narrator's personal opinion about the title of the novelist's first novel. He tries to give her a piece of advice in order to demonstrate to her that the publisher is only concerned about his own economic success.

Question 5:
The author aims at showing different types or levels of communication problems. One can distinguish between the communication problems existing between the girl and her fiancé and those between her and the listening narrator. The first problem is based on the girl being too self-concerned to manage a productive conversation. There is a communication problem between these two. The other problem is the one between the narrator and the girl. He listens and is willing to give her sound advice and help, which the girl might be happy to get. The narrator can theoretically fulfill this important function (helping the girl with those matters she is totally concerned with) but is not able to do so in reality, as he doesn’t dare speaking with her. Her fianc´e can communicate with her in the sense of speaking with her, but he lacks the skill of really understanding her. By placing these two elements of communication, (speaking/understanding) in separate persons the author creates a paradox. This underlines the main thesis: the modern society is so self-concerned that influences from others are hardly noticed (also shown in the end: the girl, being "an observer", doesn't even notice the Japanese).

Christina