1. ANALYSIS OF THE SHORT
STORY:
“THE BOSS”
Lengua Inglesa II
Profesora: Yamina Gava
Ayudantes Alumnos: Ballarini, Danilo
Cabrera, Paula
Gallardo, María Florencia
Landgren, Judith
Torres, Karina
2013

2. THE AUTHOR: DAN JACOBSON
 Born on March 7th
, 1929.
 Johannesburg, South Africa.
 Jewish family.
 Professor in the English Department at
University College London
 Elected Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature
in 2007.
 He has won several prizes over the years.

3. PLOT
EXPOSITION: Mr. Kramer is retiring and his son,
Lionel, is taking over the company.
COMPLICATION: Ms. Posen does not accept Lionel
as her new boss.
CONFLICT: The troubled relationship between Ms.
Posen and Lionel.
RISING ACTION: After having complained
repeatedly to his father, Lionel finds his own way
to deal with the problem by spying on Ms. Posen.
CLIMAX: Lionel finds out Ms. Posen has been
stealing several elements from the office and
confronts her.
FALLING ACTION: Mr. Kramer fires Miss Posen.
RESOLUTION: Mr. Kramer teaches his son a lesson.
CONCLUSION: Lionel realises he has a long way to
learn about being a good boss.

4. SUBJECT MATTER
The challenges and difficulties a young man faces
as he learns how to be the boss.
THEMES
• Conflict between father and son. w.
• Relation in family business.

5. SETTING
 South Africa (the short story does not mention the name of the
town/city where the narrative takes place).
 Butter factory. E.g.: “I know, I know. You talk as if I am a stranger
here. Christ. I grew up in the factory- I have always been here…”
(page 71, line 19).
 The office block. E.g.: “…he went backwards and forwards between
the office block and the factory” (page 72).
 Lily Posen's office. E.g.: “One morning Lionel went into the office
that she shared with another girl…” (page 77, line 10).
 Mr. Kramer's office. E.g.: “Mr. Kramer pressed the bell on his desk,
and when a girl came he asked, ‘how about some tea, Betty? Two
cups, please’. The father was the first to speak after she had left
the office” (page 71).

6. CHARACTERS
 Mr. Kramer:
 Came to South Africa as an immigrant boy. E.g.:
“Because he had come to South Africa as an
immigrant boy and was now entirely through his
own efforts the manager of a large butter factory.”
(page 71, line 12).
 He is a manager of a large butter factory.
Occupational name for a shopkeeper, peddler, or
hawker. He is a very thoughtful and tactful man
since he gives his son a vote of confidence to take his
place as a boss. E.g.: “For his employees he had a
hasty paternal regard; he was easy with them, for he
knew they were dependent on him” (page 72).
 Through narration.

7.  Lionel Kramer:
 Mr. Kramer's son; eighteen years old. Fussy, from time to time,
over inconsequential matters. He does not take to changes easily
and can be quite stubborn. E.g.: “I don’t want to go to the
university… I am not interested in wasting my time and your
money” (page 72, line 4).
 He is not confident enough since he turns to his father when
troubles arise. E.g.: “Lionel had hoped that somehow his father
might do that for him, but now he had no choice in the matter.”
(page 73, last paragraph).
 Through dialogue.
 Through narration.

8.  Lily Posen:
 Jewish; over forty years old. She is always at the service of
others and willing to help. Hard worker. E.g.: “It’s a long time
she is being here, yet she still does a good day’s work, she
doesn’t let up” (page 71, 4th
paragraph), “She had been so long in
the office that she could do any work she was asked to do:
typing, sending out…” (page 74, 2nd
paragraph).
 Frustration, nervous tension, and personal unhappiness
describes her personal life because she is not able to realize
her ambitions and ideals. She does not take Lionel seriously
because she still thinks that Mr. Kramer is the “real” boss.
 Through dialogue.
 Through narration.

9. POINT OF VIEW
Omniscient narrator. E.g.: “Lionel could hardly
believe his ears”.
ATMOSPHERE: (DEFINED BY THE
PRESENCE OF THE BOSS)
• Calm, gentle, pleasant (Mr. Kramer).
• Tense (Lionel).

10. IMPORTANCE OF THE TITLE
 The title “The Boss” conveys a sarcastic effect
since the connotation of the word BOSS is
directly linked with power, respect and control
over subordinates, a certain situation, an issue.
 Lionel was promoted to the position of manager
of the Company, but still he was not the Boss.
Hence, it could be said that it is not change or
rearrangement at the level of hierarchy what
determines who the Boss is, but the relationship
of trust and respect between parties (boss and
employees).

11. LANGUAGE
 Conversational language
 Use of semi - formal register to show the
different relationships between characters
 Use of the simple past tense
TONE
 Simple style of writing
 Sarcastic/ironic
 Straightforward

12. MORALS
Always think before you leap, look at your own
steps before taking it out on others. Know how to
forgive, and not everything that you say is always
correct.
Be sensible when confronting other people.
Sometimes over-confidence can lead to
misjudgement.

13. ACTIVITIES
Get together in small groups and discuss these
questions.
1. Have you ever had an unhealthy relationship at work?
2. What would you do if you were in Mr. Kramer’s shoes?
Would you fire Ms. Posen? Why/why not?
3. What do you think about the father-son relationship
depicted in the story? Is it good for a father to let his son
take such challenge?
4. What piece of advice would you give to Lionel?

14. CLASS DEBATE
"Seeing the slight trim figure of his son, standing
there half-defiant and half-afraid in his brown suit,
the old man's heart moved with pride and pain in his
breast." –The Boss, by Dan Jacobson.
What is the significance of these words in the
context of the short story? Answer this
question by referring to the challenges Lionel
faces as the prospective boss of his father's
company. Back up your answer with concrete
examples from the short story.

15. Complete the crossword puzzle with some of the phrasal
verbs that appear in the story and discover the vertical
word.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
1. To reduce somebody to an inferior social status or to lower
standards of behavior.
2. To gradually change from being a child into being an adult.
3. To admit that you are defeated or that you cannot do something.
4. To continue doing something.
5. To discover that somebody has been doing something dishonest.

16. CROSSWORD - KEY
 1- drag down
 2- grow up
 3- give in
 4- carry on with
 5- find out

17. FOLLOW UP: Complete the chart with at least 5 more words you learned
after reading the story.
WORD CLASSIFICATION DEFINITION EXAMPLE
FROM THE
DICTIONARY
EXAMPLE
FROM THE
STORY
STUDENT’S
EXAMPLES
Tease Verb To laugh at sb
or make jokes
about him/her
in order to
embarrass,
annoy or upset
him/her.
“He teased me
about
mercilessly
about going
Hollywood…”
“Mr. Kramer!
You’re teasing
me.” – Miss
Posen.
Quiver Noun A slight
trembling.
“I felt a quiver
of excitement
run through
me.”
“Embarrassed
but proud,
determined not
to reveal the
quiver within
him, Lionel
turned to go to
the next
room…”