Ending of Huck Finn

Analyze Huck and Tom's behavior at the end of Huck Finn. Is it immature, ignorant, cruel? Something else?

Bovary discussion questions

Below, ask three discussion questions about Madame Bovary; briefly answer at least one question (one of yours or someone else's). 

Madame Bovary & The Great Gatsby

Compare the following quote spoken by Daidy in F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby with the passage from Madame Bovary we discussed in class. How are Daisy and Emma's sentiments about their children similar and/or different?
"Listen, Nick; let me tell you what I said when she was born ... It'll show you how I've gotten to feel about - things. Well, she was less than an hour old and Tom was God knows where. I woke up out of the ether with an utterly abandoned feeling, and asked the nurse right away if it was a boy or a girl. She told me it was a girl, and so I turned my head away and wept. 'All right,' I said, 'I'm glad it's a girl. And I hope she'll be a fool - that's the best thing a girl can be in this world, a beautiful little fool'" (Fitzgerald, 16-17).

Madame Bovary: Setting

In a one-page response, examine the significance of where the story takes place, especially given the shift in setting between Part I and Part II. How does the setting reflect or influence Emma's life, attitude, or emotion? What might the setting symbolize? Share your response on the class blog.

Acting in Hamlet

Think about the role of acting: Hamlet acting mad in an attempt to trick Claudius; player re-enacting the king's death to get at the truth; meanwhile, we have actors performing this entire play on stage. Explore the irony of how acting - pretending to be something you're not - can uncover truths.

Act II

Find lines in Act II that reveal Hamlet's psychological state. They may be lines spoken by Hamlet, or by others. Consider how the character's perspective might shape the way s/he sees Hamlet's (or his own) psychological state. What meaning do you make of his psychological state?

Bilingualism in Things Fall Apart

Why does Achebe choose to write his novel in English but still include words or phrases of Igbo? What purpose might this serve and/or what effect does it have on you as a reader? Why does he sometimes define the word in the text and sometimes require readers to look in the glossary in the back of the book to see the translation? How does this inclusion of multiple languages compare to the Russian and English used in Vaclav & Lena or Spanish and English in "How to Tame a Wild Tongue?"