Create a list of ten interpretive questions to post about the story—useful for the next group’s group discussion. These must be interpretive (not have one right answer but allow for several possibilities—to enhance a discussion)
- What is the parent’s motivation to have Miranda get an abortion since it is quite evident that they have the financial ability to help support Miranda and her would be child?
- Throughout the story, Miranda is a confused character. She thinks she loves Michaelis and at one point debates whether to marry him. However, she cheats on him with Brian towards the end of the story. In your opinion, does Miranda truly love Michaelis? If not, why does she sleep with him and get pregnant?
- Drug usage can be found throughout the novel. Is there a symbolic meaning behind it or is it just there to numb the pain and fear that Miranda feels?
- Consider the moments of grace for Miranda. Do you think that they are Thomistic or Augustinian?
- Trace the moments before and after Miranda had the abortion. How do you think she changed after she had it? Do you think she turned out better, worse, or the same immediately after the abortion?
- On page 14, Dubus inserts a small bit on how Miranda went to Diane’s house on Thanksgiving. Diane is not a major character and really nothing much is known about her. Why does Dubus put this here since it doesn’t advance the narrative and seems sort of foreign to the rest of the story? Is there something more symbolic or deeper to it?
- Miranda can be viewed as a very complicated and dynamic character. At some instances, the reader can only be left wondered why she does certain things. In your opinion, why does Miranda sleep with Brian at the end of the story?
- In your opinion, who do you think contributed most to Miranda’s downfall throughout the novel? Was it her parents who bribed her to take a trip to
- At the end of the story Miranda leaves Michaelis after cheating on him. Would you consider this a moment of grace for Miranda as it enables her to start a new life with a clean slate or do you think that Miranda ends up worse at the end? Compare and contrast Miranda at the end of this story with characters from Dubus’s other short stories.
- When Dubus was writing this story, what do you think his intentions were as to a possible message? Was his message to stay abstinent as a teen or was it to show the effects after an abortion or was it something completely different.
1 comment:
Several grammatical and stylistic miscues detract from the overall quality.
You should strive to eliminate the linking verbs in your writing. In question one, the construction should be changed to "what motivates". In question ten, it should be changed to "Dubus intends" or "Dubus intended".
Question three contains a logical fallacy. The drug use may be symbolic of Miranda's escape. Its symbolism does not necessarily preclude Miranda's escapism.
Question nine should end with a period, since you are issuing a command rather than asking a question.
Finally, question five contains many flaws. Instability is spelled incorrectly. There should be a comma after the word “worse”. Besides these technical offenses, providing a hint runs contrary to the spirit of an interpretive question, which should be totally open-ended.
Post a Comment