Read the following excerpt from a play adapted from Five Weeks in a Balloon.
It is morning, outside Dr. Samuel Ferguson’s modest home in London. Richard Kennedy exits a cab, runs up the steps, and pounds on the door. Samuel opens it.
SAMUEL [Enthusiastic but not surprised]: Well hello, Richard! What are you doing here?
RICHARD [Shaken]: What do you think? I’m here to stop you from committing the most outrageous foolishness of your life!
SAMUEL [Furrowing his brow]: Foolishness?
RICHARD [Holding out and waving a copy of the Daily Telegraph, open to the article about Samuel and his plan to cross Africa in a balloon]: Is it true what the paper says? What on earth can you be thinking?
SAMUEL [Smiling]: Is that what all this fuss is about? Come inside, my dear friend, and take a seat.
[The two men step inside and enter Samuel’s front room. Samuel gestures toward the couch.]
RICHARD: [Angrily.] No, I will not sit down! Are you honestly going to attempt this ill-fated journey?
SAMUEL: [Calmly] Absolutely. All my preparations are coming along most smoothly.
Compare and contrast how the differing structures of the story and the play contribute to the communication of meaning. Use details from both texts to support your response.
