Seven beats from our edition of Rappaccini's Daughter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, shuffled. Drag them, or use the arrows, until the story runs straight. No account, no streak to lose.
This one is set for Sunday, 20 September 2026, so you are early. Play today's instead.
::The window and the gardenGiovanni arrives in Padua and gazes down on Rappaccini's eerie garden and his daughter Beatrice.Setup
::Falling in loveEnchanted by Beatrice's beauty, Giovanni is also unsettled by signs that she is dangerous.Inciting
::Baglioni's warningProfessor Baglioni cautions that Rappaccini values science over life and that Beatrice is poisonous.Rising
::Into the gardenGiovanni enters the garden, grows close to Beatrice, and begins to take on her poisonous nature.Turn
::Discovering his changeGiovanni realizes he has become deadly to insects and flowers and turns on Beatrice in anger.Crisis
::The antidoteHe offers Beatrice Baglioni's antidote, hoping to cure them both.Climax
::Beatrice's deathThe cure proves fatal because poison is now her nature, and she dies rebuking the men who shaped her fate.Resolution
Solved. That is the shape of the story.
Each beat is labelled with its place in the arc now. The full reading, with themes, symbols and the ending explained, is in the Rappaccini's Daughter edition.