1. Why does Lovecraft give so much detail in explaining why Carter is unhappy before getting the plot moving?

2. People, many of them young adults, who attended the World Fantasy Conventions of 1981 and 1982 voted "The Silver Key" into the Fantasy Hall of Fame, along with twenty-one other short stories. Yet, some critics think the story is boring and more like an essay than a work of fiction. Do you think "The Silver Key" is a great story, worthy of being called one of the twenty-two best fantasy short stories ever written? Why or why not? Is there truth in what critics who do not like the story have said?

3. Why does Lovecraft shift the point of view in the story's last paragraph so that the narrator directly addresses his audience?

4. Why would Lovecraft choose a key for Carter to use to recover his past?

5. What...