"Repent, Harlequin!" Said the Ticktockman

Examine the Harlequin’s relationship with Pretty Alice. How does the futuristic society in the story envision gender dynamics and familial or romantic relationships?

The story refers to the “gods of the passage of time.” How is the society’s obsession with time like a religion? What does this suggest about the Harlequin?

Robots and machines of various kinds figure prominently in this story. What does the society’s focus on machines say about how it values people? Refer to specific plot, setting, and character details for your response.

Read a piece of dystopian fiction (George Orwell’s novel 1984 and Kurt Vonnegut’s short story “Harrison Bergeron” are good examples). What does this story have in common with your chosen piece? How does it do something different with the dystopian genre?

Analyze the importance of the city setting to the story. What is life here like? How does the city impact the tone, the events, or the meaning of the story?

Is the Harlequin a sympathetic character? Why or why not? Does it matter to the meaning of the story that the audience likes or relates to the Harlequin?

Invent an oppressive society operating on a single value, like the value of time. Describe this society and its authorities, imitating the perspective, style, and diction of the narrator in “‘Repent, Harlequin!’ Said the Ticktockman.”

The story ends ambiguously, with the Ticktockman running three minutes late. What argument can you make for the meaning of the Ticktockman’s change? How does this reframe the Thoreau quote at the beginning?