Welcome FHS students! Please check your FHS gmail! We'll use this blog to talk about our summer readings. Sign into Google with your Fairview Schools login. Speak, Never Fall Down, and The Age of Miracles discussion questions are all on this page. Scroll down to find each novel's questions. Then, click on Comment link following the questions you wish to answer. Click on the page links on the left to access additional information.
Discussion Questions for All Novels
Saturday, June 15, 2013
The Age of Miracles 6: Narrated by Julia's mother
6. How would the book change if it were narrated by Julia’s mother? What if it were narrated by Julia’s
father? Or her grandfather?
If Julia’s Mother narrated the story, we probably would have known much less about the story. This is because her slowing syndrome causes her to not be as involved in the events of the story as Julia because she did not participate as much. We also would not have had as much insight on the dark side of Julia’s father, mainly his lying. The event of the pedestrian’s death would not have affected us if Julia’s mom were the narrator because she believed the pedestrian had lived. It is also possible she did not know about her husband’s affair with Sylvia, so we would have missed another crucial detail about the Father’s development.
However, it may have been interesting if she knew more than she appeared to be about the affair. Her insight then would have been much more emotional and opinioned due to her personal dislike of Sylvia. We might have also known more about the relationship between the parents if it was from the Mom’s point of view. I think the best difference with the mom telling the story would be the ending’s mood. The Age Of Miracles’ ending would have had a more optimistic tone since the mom advised Julia to keep looking towards the future.
The father’s narrative would be a lot different. We would probably see a lot more of his character fleshed out, as well as the reasons for all of his lying. It might have made his character much more three-dimensional and likeable. The parent’s relationship would still be fleshed out, but perhaps from a vastly different point of view. More information about his relationship with Sylvia would be revealed as well as how the Grandfather’s death affected it. The ending might be a mix between Julia’s and the mother’s, due to him trying to support everyone, yet also looking towards a bleak future.
For Julia’s grandfather, I think we would know much less about Julia’s family, since he is not present in many events throughout the story. WE would not even know about the father’s affair. We also would have had a much more biased narrative, as the story implies that he might have been intending to become a “real-timer”. The story would have ended at a much more anticlimactic note, due to him dyeing of a sudden accident. Therefore the readers would never know what happened with Julia’s family.
If Julia’s Mother narrated the story, we probably would have known much less about the story. This is because her slowing syndrome causes her to not be as involved in the events of the story as Julia because she did not participate as much. We also would not have had as much insight on the dark side of Julia’s father, mainly his lying. The event of the pedestrian’s death would not have affected us if Julia’s mom were the narrator because she believed the pedestrian had lived. It is also possible she did not know about her husband’s affair with Sylvia, so we would have missed another crucial detail about the Father’s development.
ReplyDeleteHowever, it may have been interesting if she knew more than she appeared to be about the affair. Her insight then would have been much more emotional and opinioned due to her personal dislike of Sylvia. We might have also known more about the relationship between the parents if it was from the Mom’s point of view. I think the best difference with the mom telling the story would be the ending’s mood. The Age Of Miracles’ ending would have had a more optimistic tone since the mom advised Julia to keep looking towards the future.
The father’s narrative would be a lot different. We would probably see a lot more of his character fleshed out, as well as the reasons for all of his lying. It might have made his character much more three-dimensional and likeable. The parent’s relationship would still be fleshed out, but perhaps from a vastly different point of view. More information about his relationship with Sylvia would be revealed as well as how the Grandfather’s death affected it. The ending might be a mix between Julia’s and the mother’s, due to him trying to support everyone, yet also looking towards a bleak future.
For Julia’s grandfather, I think we would know much less about Julia’s family, since he is not present in many events throughout the story. WE would not even know about the father’s affair. We also would have had a much more biased narrative, as the story implies that he might have been intending to become a “real-timer”. The story would have ended at a much more anticlimactic note, due to him dyeing of a sudden accident. Therefore the readers would never know what happened with Julia’s family.