The Open Window
by Saki

The Open Window: Foil 1 key example

Foil
Explanation and Analysis—Vera vs. Mr. Nuttel:

In “The Open Window,” Vera serves as a foil for Mr. Nuttel. From the first lines of the story, Saki establishes Vera as a confident and clever girl with a knack for choreographing social situations. The reader does not need Vera to get the sense that Mr. Nuttel is a neurotic, insecure, and ineffectual man, as the third-person narrator provides access into his anxious musing. Nonetheless, by presenting the reader with this pair of contrasting characters when the story begins, Saki immediately emphasizes Mr. Nuttel’s helplessness. The opening lines of the story, in which the reader is given Vera's direct speech paired with Mr. Nuttel's indirect ruminations on the situation, establish this well:

‘My aunt will be down presently, Mr. Nuttel,’ said a very self-possessed young lady of fifteen; ‘in the meantime you must try and put up with me.’

Framton Nuttel endeavoured to say the correct something which should duly flatter the niece of the moment without unduly discounting the aunt that was to come.