AML 3041

Flowering Judas: Katherine Anne Porter

Laura as the protagonist is caught up in a “dangerous action, yet somehow detached from it, watching herself as well as her world” (Whitley, Michelson, 2012). Discuss this interpretation.

Porter’s uses dream sequences as a technique in her storytelling. How do these function in this story?

Porter’s story has been compared to other realist authors like Henry James. Discuss the aspects of realism in this story.

Discuss the theme of this story (hint: obsession and mixed emotions of the main character, Dexter).

Discuss the story in the context of a hero’s quest as some have deemed it. What is the quest here? Did the hero achieve it? What were the results?

Dexter is shown as being an “outsider”. What is he outside of and why do you think Fitzgerald chose to portray him as such?

The story is also one of “growing up”. How does the character change as he grows older? Do his values change?

Setting: Faulkner creates the imaginary county of Yoknapatawpha and the Snopes family in Mississippi during the post Civil War years (late 1800’s).

The theme: Coming of age for Sarty Snopes and the social system of the South that has “all but doomed [the family] to a life of wage slavery” as seen in the rage of the patriarch, Abner Snopes (Whitley, Michelson 2012).

Discuss why Faulkner used a young boy, Sartie Snopes, as the lead character in the story (i.e. the Protagonist).

What is revealed as the “epiphany”?

Theme: Can be seen as loss, regret, and the frailty of human life.

Hemingway was considered a “minimalist” and one who did not believe in showing “emotional displays” in his characters. Contrast his writing style with that of William Faulkner.

How does Hemingway use symbolism as a way to convey emotion of the characters? Examples like:

Thorn bush, vultures, hyena, mountains, airplane, etc.

What other techniques does he use? (Ex. Dialogue, Flashbacks, etc.)

Theme: Crisis brought on by desperation.

Discuss also the theme of racial disparity in the Deep South during this time period (1930’s).

Why does the gun represent “manhood” to Dave Saunders (the protagonist)?

Who or what is the antagonist here?

Compare Faulkner’s characters with those of Wright.

What are the similarities between Dave Saunders and Abner Snopes?

What are the similarities in the two stories? Compare the climax of each and how violence in both stories is used to focus on a deep underlying issue…what is the issue in both?

Theme: Small town life in the South (early 1940’s)

Technique: Discuss how dialogue is used as a technique to illuminate character.

What other facets of small town life does Welty showcase?

How is humor used in this story?

Some critics have pointed out that there is also a theme of violence as an undercurrent in the story? How do you see it? Can you contrast this story with either Faulkner or Wright?

Theme: Love finds its own path or forbidden love.

Salzman is trying to find a good woman for Leo (a rabbinical student) and to keep Leo away from his own daughter, Stella. Why is he trying to keep Leo from Stella? How does Salzman view Stella? Contrast his view of Stella with that of Leo’s view.

The story is seen as a parable (explore this term and how this story functions as such). Compare it to one of the others as a parable.

A parable is one of the oldest forms of storytelling in the Western tradition and “illustrates a moral or religious idea”.

Explore this story from the perspective of the author’s (an African American) as he attempts to go inside the mind of a Southern white racist.

Why does Baldwin present Jesse as a product of his upbringing? Compare this story with that of Faulkner’s Barn Burning and the character of Abner Snopes. What do the characters have in common? What are their differences?

Baldwin published this story in the 1960’s in the midst of the civil rights struggles. Compare it to Faulkner’s earlier work or Richard Wright’s story. What are common themes?

Explore the theme of “irony” as used as a technique in this story.

Explore Hulga’s view of love and the man she chooses to idealize.

Compare the techniques of both Hemingway and O’Connor in how love is portrayed in the respective stories from our text.

What is the epiphany in this story?

Contrast the climax in this “love story” with that of The Magic Barrel or Winter Dreams.