I think that “The lady and the tiger” might be historical fiction because the “arena” in the story kind of relates to the Colosseum in Rome and buildings like this in like, Greece and other similar civilizations.
Some things that this arena in the story has in common with the Colosseum is that they both have doors, and seats for spectators. Things that they don’t have in common include, battling beasts and other people, and an elevator where tigers and lions are transported to a doorway where they can enter the arena.
Also at the end of the book, the author gave us a choice to choose if you think that the tiger came out the door that the man chose or the girl? I personally think that it’s the tiger because in the book it said that she thought “Would it not be better for him to die at once, and go to wait for her in the blessed regions of semi-barbaric futurity?” and I thought that she couldn’t bear to see her lover marry another woman, it also said that “Her decision had been indicated in an instant, but it had been made after days and nights of anguished deliberation. She had known she would be asked, she had decided what she would answer, and, without the slightest hesitation, she had moved her hand to the right.”
In the book it also said that the girl that was inside one of the doors was a person that she hated. So I came to two conclusions : 1. She doesn’t want the person she loved to marry a person she hated. 2. She probably thought that killing him maybe was the best solution to this problem because even if he did choose the right door, he would probably live the rest of his days with a bad reputation.
Therefore, I think that the princess chose the tiger.