I am woman....hear me roar.....
9 years ago
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
Choices
Dashti had a choice to go into the tower with Lady Saren. Why did she make that choice? Would you?
One book
If you were going to be locked in a tower for seven years and could take just one book, what would it be?
My Lord the Cat
How did you feel when Dashti sang to My Lord to get him to be loyal to Lady Saren instead?
Dashti
At the beginning of the book, Dashti describes herself simply as "a mucker and a lady's maid", but by the end of the story she has become so much more. When Lady Saren orders her to stay, Dashti muses to herself, "Strangely, her words held no sway over me. Maybe it's wrong, but I don't think I have to do what she says just because I'm a mucker and she's an honored lady" (p. 274). What do you think has brought about these changes in her? What words would you use to describe Dashti?
Lady Saren
Did your feelings about Lady Saren change over the course of the book? Did you like her more or less after they escaped the tower? After they started working in the kitchen? When Saren orders Dashti to stay with her? What do you think brought about her changes?
Dashti and Saren
Describe teh two young women in this story, Lady Saren and Dashti. In what ways are they different from one another? How does each cope with the deprivations of the tower? Why is it left to Dashti to communicate with the visitors who come to the tower?
Dashti's voice
Do you like the way in which this story is told: with Dashti narrating through her journal? How would you describe Dashti's voice- boastful, self effacing, bright, uncertain, strong..?
Does her voice change throughout the story?
Does her voice change throughout the story?
Background
How did Dashti's background prepare her to endure the isolation of the tower and the hardships of the Mongolian landscape?
Relationships
Dashti had to weigh her growing feelings for Kahn Tegus vs. her loyalty to Saren. How did you feel about the budding relationship between Dashti and Tegus?
Healing songs
How would you describe Dashti's healing songs- are they poetry, folk lore, magic? What is their purpose: why does Dashti use them , and why would Hale include them as part of the story?
Breath of the soul
"Things worn closest to the skin, to the heart, carry the scent of a person, and of course, scent is the breath of the soul." What might Dashti mean by the last 5 words?
Changing it up
Hale based this book on a Brothers Grimm folk tale, "Maid Maleen", in which the imprisoned lady is the heroine, not her servant. Why might Shannon Hale have changed the heroine in her reworking of the original?
Overview
Does the book deliver in terms of engaging you all the way through? Are characters compelling, is the plot suspenseful, and are you satisfied with how the story ends?
Monday, June 21, 2010
Main character
Which characters are most prominent to you? Who do you feel 'owns' the story? Or do you feel there is no one main character?
No men?
What are the features of Cranford that make it essentially a woman's town?Do the women of Cranford actually dislike men?
Elegant Economy
How do the opening paragraphs give a tone to the book? What does the phrase "elegant economy" mean?
Tuesday, May 11, 2010
His parents
"My father was like a broom, sweeping me out into the world, while my mother was the dustpan, constantly gathering up the shattered pieces and putting me back together again". How do Erik's parents play complementary roles in his early life?
Fitting in
Erik says, "Being included was more important than the fear of getting hurt". How is this statement true for all middle school students, not only blind ones?
perceptions
How do others' perceptions of Erik's blindness limit him? How do our false perceptions of other people limit our ability to truly see them? What kinds of false perceptions can affect all people, not merely the blind? When have you overcome a negative or limiting stereotype?
Leadership
What is leadership? Erik says, "perhaps leadership was not so much a matter of raw talent, as raw courage". What does he mean by this statement? Do you think he is correct? Whom do you see as true leaders? Are leaders born or can leadership be learned and developed?
It sure is cold.. but at least it's windy
How does Chris's attitude of "positive pessimism" help the climbers deal with a harsh environment? Can you think of areas of your life that you could use it?
Failure
Jeff tells Erik, "When you try big things.. you gotta expect to fail sometimes." Is Jeff right? Can failure, ironically, be a crucial ingredient of success?
Life
Discuss Erik's belief that "life is never meant to be easy; exciting, challenging maybe, rewarding from time to time, but never easy." Is this true for the sighted as well as the blind?
True Summit
"A summit isn't just a place on a mountain. A summit exists in our hearts and minds. It is a tiny scrap of a dream made real, indisputable proof that our lives have meaning. A summit is a symbol that with our force of will and the power of our legs, our backs, and our two hands, we can transform our lives into whatever we choose them to be, whatever our hands our strong enough to create."
Do you believe this? Do you have summits in your heart and mind?
teamwork
" A mountain was such a huge and awesome force compared to the minuscule life of a human, to have a chance of standing on top, we combined our strengths and talents to become a more powerful force than we ever could have been as individuals."
In what ways do the members of Erik's team contribute to each other's success?
Parameters
Erik ends by admitting that part of his pleasure comes from "taking other people's very narrow parameters of what's possible and what's not, and shattering them into a million pieces."
Has reading Erik's life story changed your understanding of the "parameters of what's possible"?
Ellen's will
"He's going to a normal school, with normal children, and even if I have to go to school with him, he's going to learn."
"He's blind. He's not stupid, and he can do better work than this."
"He doesn't need self-esteem... He needs to know how to spell."
How does Ellen Baker Weihenmayer's fierce will influence her son's development?
Carrying our share
"I would carry my share. I would contribute as any team member. I would not be carried up the mountain and spiked on top like a football. If I were to reach the summit, I would reach it with dignity."
When has carrying your share given you a feeling of dignity? Do you agree with him?
Things we can and can't do
"The things I could not do, I would let go; but the things I could do, I would learn to do well."
Have you let yourself do this in your own life? Do you hold on to things you can't do because you want to be able to do everything? Are you able to let go?
Fear
"All my life, fear had paralyzed me."
"The greatest fear is in the reaching."
"A delicate strand of hope balanced by fear, each keeping the other in its place."
What do you fear?
When is reaching frightening?
In what ways do human beings use hope to balance their fears?
What did you learn about fear from reading this book?
Saturday, April 24, 2010
The first narration
The first section moves between the past and present with little more than a change in typeface to signify time shifts. How did you learn to find your way through Benjy's chapter? What is Faulkner saying about time and memory by having Benjy introduce the Compson family story?
Reliable?
Although Benjy is mentally challenged, he is able to recall many conversations and significant moments from his family's past. Discuss some of the events Benjy is remembering. Do you think he is a reliable narrator?
Benjy's name
When Benjy was 5 years old his name was changed from Maury. For what reason was his name changed? What do you think this says about the Compson family values?
MacBeth
The title of the book is taken from the despairing speech in William Shakespeare's MacBeth: "Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow/ Creeps in this petty pace from day to day,/ To the last syllable of recorded time/ And all our yesterdays have lighted fools/ The way to dusty death. Out, out, brief candle!/ Life's but a walking shadow, a poor player/ That struts and frets his hour upon the stage/ And then is heard no more. It is a tale/ Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,/ Signifying nothing." At this point in the play, MacBeth has just learned that his wife has killed herself and their plans for seizing the throne will not work out. How are Benjy and Quentin represented in the MacBeth quote? Who do you think is "the idiot"?
Clocks
Why does Quentin refuse to look at watches and clocks? How is time an important theme in the novel so far?
Quentin
Ultimately, why do you feel Quentin commits suicide? Why does Faulkner choose to have Quentin narrate his own section, even though he has been dead for nearly 18 years?
Emphasis on Caddy's life
Benjy, Quentin and Jason each put more emphasis on Caddy's life than can be considered healthy. How does each do this? What happens because of it?
Jasons prevention
Why did Jason prevent Caddy from seeing her own daughter, Miss Quentin? How would you describe Jason's mode of thinking and reasoning?
Mrs. Compson
Mrs. Compson says approvingly that Jason is more Bascomb (her family) than Compson (her husband's). Is this really such a compliment? How do you perceive Mrs. Compson's relationship with her children?
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