Mr. Martin was the head of the filing department. His position makes for a bit of irony when, after hatching his scheme to murder Mrs. Barrows, he worries that if someone sees him enter her apartment he would have to file away his plan in the inactive file. Had Mr. Martin been head of the mail room, he would probably have put his plan in the dead letter box.
A Thurber Carnival
This story was published in 'The New Yorker' magazine on November 14, 1942
In "The Catbird Seat" by James Thurber, F stands for Mrs. Fitweiler and S stands for Mr. Martin. Mrs. Fitweiler is Martin's boss and represents the new efficiency expert threatening his job, while Mr. Martin is the protagonist who plans to get rid of her by acting suspiciously.
The three types of ironies in "The Catbird Seat" are dramatic irony, situational irony, and verbal irony. Dramatic irony occurs when the audience knows something that the characters do not. Situational irony involves a contrast between what is expected to happen and what actually happens. Verbal irony is when a character says one thing but means another.
The obstacle character in "The Catbird Seat" by James Thurber is Mrs. Barrows. She is a new and disruptive force at the F&S company who threatens the orderly and calm life of the protagonist, Mr. Martin. Her intrusive and abrasive manner challenges Mr. Martin's patience and prompts him to take drastic action to remove her.
The Catbird Seat is a short story written by James Thurber. While there are several things that happen in the course of the story, the main event is when Mr. Martin visits Miss Barrows apartment with the intent to kill her but instead decides to hatch a plan to get her fired .
Mr. Martin is a perfect gentleman, has no vices and quietly does his job most efficiently. Mrs. Barrows, on the other hand, is overbearing, rude and inconsiderate. James Thurber is perhaps one of the best authors to capture the true nature of the human character. This is what makes him such a delightful read.
The central theme in "The Catbird Seat" by James Thurber is the idea of revenge and justice. The story explores how the character Mr. Martin meticulously plans and executes his revenge on a colleague who he believes is disrupting his workplace. Through Mr. Martin's calculated actions, the story raises questions about morality and the lengths one may go to assert control in a situation.
Schrafft's was a real place on Fifth Avenue in NY. What else is there to say?
Mrs. Barrows smokes Luckies. A bit of (situational) irony there, because she got lucky that Mr. Martin got cold feet while he was searching for a weapon to use on her as she made their drinks.
In the story "The Catbird Seat" by James Thurber, the antagonist is Mrs. Barrows, a new and disruptive employee at the F&S company who threatens Mr. Martin's comfortable routine and challenges his position within the company. She becomes a target of Mr. Martin's elaborately planned retaliation.
It means that whoever is "sitting in the catbird seat" holds a position of power or prominence.