This study investigated variations in the response to three short stories among adolescents, English teachers, and college students in English education. Adults' responses were correlated with variables such as teaching experience and graduate work. The study also sought to determine if there would be differences in response between high and low socioeconomic students and if context influences response. "Response" was defined according to the categories developed by Alan C. Purves in "Elements of Writing about a Literary Work: A Study of Response to Literature." Some of the findings were: (1) there were no differences in the response patterns of English teachers and college students; (2) major differences exist between the responses of adults and adolescents; (3) a higher proportion of low socioeconomic students selected the "perception" topic for all three stories while more high socioeconomic students chose the "interpretation" and "evaluation" categories. Results suggest that further study be made into the nature of literary responses, the discrepancies between teachers' stated preferences and actual responses to literature, and the influence of context and socioeconomic background. (Author/DI)