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Dangerous Game
William Harris Although unconvinced at first, William eventually admits
to himself that Poldy might be the ghost of his dead wife,
returning to punish him for her murder. William reveals
he murdered Julie after twelve years of marriage because
he had become insanely jealous of her friendships.
There is a clear parallel between the twelve years of his
marriage, which started out in happiness and ended in
murder, and the twelve years of his games with Poldy,
which started out as fun but have changed so that William
fears for his life.
His fears are well founded. By the end of the story,
William is dead, leaving behind a manuscript which
describes the games and contains his confession of
About the author murder. Was William mad – driven to hallucinations by
William Harris is the main character and also the fictional his guilt? Or was he really haunted by the ghost of his
author of the book. murdered wife? The reader can decide.

The author, L.G. Alexander, was a well-known teacher, Chapter 1: William Harris, aged 48, explains to the reader
writer and author of New Concept English (1967) and that after his wife died twelve years ago, the poltergeist
Direct English. he calls Poldy started visiting him at night. William says
the ghost is always in his bedroom, but he can only feel
Louis George Alexander was born in London in 1932 and
Poldy’s presence at night, after he unplugs his beside lamp.
educated at the University of London. He taught English in
Germany and Greece, and was a member of the Council William’s wife Julie was outgoing and liked to be around
of Europe Committee on Modern Language Teaching, people, whereas William was the opposite.
co-authoring materials that later became the basis for However, when she became ill and died, William
a variety of communicative language courses and form withdrew within himself and within his house, doing
the Common European Framework of Reference for nothing but writing. He lost most of his friends, except
Languages. Louis, who is also a writer. He plays chess with Louis once
He started writing English language teaching materials in a week.
the 1960s and in the 1980s consulted on English teaching Chapter 2: During the next few nights, William
programmes for China on behalf of UNESCO. experiments with pulling out the lamp plug and putting it
Alexander lived with his wife, Julia, in London, where he back in. He finds that the first time each night he unplugs
died in 2002. the lamp, Poldy makes himself felt. After he plugs the
lamp back in, Poldy is gone for the rest of the night.
Summary The two play games where Poldy knocks and, shakes the
William Harris is a successful writer of detective stories. bed or throws items in the room. William laughs at these
He was very happy until his wife, Julie, died twelve years games.
ago. After that, William only had one friend, Louis, who
Chapter 3: One evening when William is playing chess
came to his home to play chess once a week. William is,
with Louis, William is distracted, thinking about his games
in his own opinion, not a very interesting person, but he
with Poldy, which he thinks are beginning to become bad.
has an incredible secret. Every night he plays games with
He starts to tell Louis about Poldy, but Poldy warns him
a ghost – a poltergeist – who he has named Poldy. The
not to by knocking from the room above. Louis doesn’t
games continue for twelve years.
hear the knocks, but William understands, and pretends
At first, the games are fun and Poldy is playful. But as time Poldy is the name of a strange character in one of his new
goes on, the games become less enjoyable and in the end detective novels.
they are terrifying.

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Dangerous Game
Chapter 4: After five years, things begin to go wrong William gets angry and knocks the dress to the floor. He
with the game. At first, Poldy simply didn’t follow the thinks he has murdered Julie a second time. Then the
rules. Then, on the night of a full moon, Poldy started photo cries and an invisible hand tears up the picture.
using clothes in the wardrobe to play games. The arm of William becomes scared but finds he is trapped in the
William’s coat grabbed the plug from his fingers, yanking bedroom. Finally, he is able to plug the lamp back in and
the lamp onto the floor. Then, a ‘person’ behind the when the light comes on he sees the room is in perfect
curtain wouldn’t let William close the drapes. He lay in order. Was it his imagination? He switches off the light
bed, listening to his heart pound wildly and a cat outside and a shadow comes across his face – the shadow of
crying like a baby all night. death.
Chapter 5: William explains to Poldy the difference Chapter 9: The next day William writes about what has
between a ‘good game’ and a ‘bad game’ by how he feels happened since Julie’s death. He knows the poltergeist is
– he is never afraid during a ‘good game’ and during a going to kill him, and so wants to leave behind a record of
‘bad game’ – which has no rules – he feels afraid. William the truth. He hopes Louis will find the story after he dies
wonders if Poldy wants to punish him, and who Poldy and will publish it.
is. Is he Julie? No, William decides. William says he can’t Chapter 10: Louis finds William’s story after William dies.
get away from Poldy by selling his house and moving. He Louis finds Williams body in his wrecked bedroom, with
loves his house and the many memories there. his pillow over his face. On the pillow was an impression
Poldy touches William for the first time by running his of a hand.
fingers through his hair. Then he hits William in the face, No one can explain why William died. Louis says that
pushing him and even biting him. William wasn’t well in his mind. He doesn’t think William
Now William feels his bedroom is an evil place. killed Julie, but he doesn’t really know whether the things
He can’t write anymore and sleeps and eats very little. William wrote about happened. The conclusion is up to
Louis worries about him. the reader.
Chapter 6: Poldy starts a ‘good game’, shaking the bed Background and themes
and playing ‘find me’. William finds Poldy in his bed, so it’s
his turn. William hides under the bed. Poldy looks through Ghost stories: Stories of the unexplained and the
his clothing and then knocks the wardrobe onto the floor. supernatural are popular around the world.
Finally, he finds William under the bed. Poldy lifts the bed Crime and punishment: The story turns into a tale of
to the ceiling and then drops it – though it doesn’t hit crime and punishment in the mould of the novel of
William. Eventually, Poldy throws William onto his bed that name by Dostoevsky. Like Rashkolnikov, the main
and laughs an evil laugh. He takes Julie’s dress and her narrator of the Russian story, William has committed
photo from the wall and laughs at William. a terrible crime and escaped punishment by society.
Chapter 7: William reveals to the reader – and to himself But the knowledge of the crime lives and festers inside
– that he was jealous of Julie and the attention other the criminal and eventually drives him mad. Also like
men gave her during her life. He decided if he killed her, Dostoevsky’s protagonist, William’s world shrinks after
she would be his for ever. One night, he put his pillow the murder to his house and his one friend, and then
over her face and held it until she was dead. The doctor further to his bedroom, which the ghost actually locks at
thought she died of her weak heart, so William didn’t get one point to prevent him leaving. He describes the way
caught. the ghost moves things around his room and breaks things
as if they really happened, but then in the morning, we
Chapter 8: William now realises that the poltergeist is are told, things are back to normal and nothing is broken.
Julie. She was playful and fun for the first few years, but in Thus we are allowed to believe that the whole haunting
recent years she had become jealous and evil – just like he is imagined, until the final scene when Louis finds William
did in their marriage. dead amongst the wreckage of his bedroom, killed, it
Julie’s poltergeist – using the dress and the photo – dances seems, in the same manner as his own victim twelve years
round the room, surrounded by young, laughing men. before.

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Dangerous Game
Jealousy: Love can turn to jealousy for a wide range Chapters 5–6
of reasons, and can ultimately destroy a once caring Before reading
relationship. 7 Write: Write the following combinations of letters
and blanks on the board – they are outlines of words
Relationships: Loving unions can be fragile, and even turn that can be found in Chapters 3 and 4. In small
to hatred. groups, ask students to find the words in the story
Morality: We may escape the condemnation and and fill in the missing letters. One person should
write the words on a piece of paper. When they
retribution of society for an evil act, but we cannot escape have finished, some of the groups can stand at the
our own conscience. front of the class and read the lists of words to their
classmates.
Discussion activities a m_v_  b _h_r_ct_r  c  b_ _rd
d  _ _rdr_b_  e _ma_in_t_on  f  _ _t_il
Before reading g _u_ish  h  s_ _ke_  i  t_ _ _r_ _w
1 Discuss: Talk about the cover. Tell students to look
at the picture on the cover and the title. What is the After reading
name of this game in English? Is chess a ‘dangerous 8 Write: In groups or as a class, have students write in
game’? Could it be? How? what way a ‘good’ game is different from a ‘bad’
2 Group work: Have students look at the pictures in game.
the book and decide what kind of story this is – it is 9 Discuss: Ask students to work in groups to consider
clearly a ghost story. Then put students into small the following questions:
groups to play a game. Each person has to choose a Why does Poldy start to play bad games?
one of the pictures in the book and then describe it b Who is Poldy?
to the others in the group. They must work out Elicit reasons and decide as a class which is the best.
which picture is being described. 10 Discuss: In pairs, have students discuss why William
doesn’t sell his house and go away. What do they
Chapters 1–2 think?
After reading 11 Discuss: In pairs or as a class, discuss why William
3 Discuss: Ask the class to think of other stories that now thinks Poldy is Julie.
feature ghosts and poltergeists. Put two headings on
the board: Ghosts and Poltergeists. Elicit examples Chapters 7–8
from books and films. Can students name examples After reading
from their own culture? For example: 12 Discuss: Talk about the title of Chapter 7 The Truth.
Ghosts Poltergeists What is the truth, do you think?
13 Artwork: Draw how Julie looks when she appears to
Hamlet Poltergeist William.
(the film series)
The Phantom of the Peeves (in the Harry Chapters 9–10
Opera Potter books) After reading
The Legend of Sleepy The Borley Rectory 14 Discuss: Put students into groups. In Chapter 9,
Hollow (in England) William says ‘The game is like my life with Julie.’
Ask each group to:
4 Pairwork: Ask students to have a conversation a Make a list of the ways in which William’s
between William and Julie before she dies. Give them statement is true.
these instructions: b Explain why the game is like his life with Julie.
Student A: You are Julie. You want to go to a party with 15 Discuss: Dangerous Game is a ghost story. But can
William. Ask William to get ready. students rewrite the ending to give it a logical
Student B: You are William. You do not want to go to explanation for everything that happened? Put
the party. Tell Julie why. students into groups to try to think of a logical
5 Group work: Ask students to think up another game explanation. Elicit the ideas and see if any of them
to play with Poldy. Have them write the rules. Elicit stand up to analysis.
the games from each group and have the class decide
which game is best.
Chapters 3–4
After reading
6 Discuss: At the end of Chapter 2, William says,
‘But something went wrong, very wrong.’ What went
wrong?
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