![]() Why are the Feds so intent on finding Haava? What do they want with her?ġ3. Why might Marra have devised a disjointed structure for his story? What might it suggest about the fractured lives of his characters? What do you, as a reader, think is gained-or lost-using such a structure?ġ2. Think about the structure of the novel, as it moves back and forth through time, and the inclusion of timelines at the head of each chapter. elections transfer power from one president to the next-"It makes me wonder how lost the Cold War." Where else do you find humor.and why do you suppose the author included such moments in an otherwise dark story?ġ1. The book contains a fair amount of humor-the banter between Akhmed and the nurse Deshi, the reference to Barbie Doll's emaciated waistline, Akhmed's confusion over Ronald Reagan and Ronald MacDonald, and his astonishment at how the U.S. ![]() Why is burial at home so important? Is it a tradition peculiar to that culture.or a universal desire?ġ0. Notes with names and addresses are sewn into clothing so families can be notified and thereby claim the body of the loved one. A great deal is made in the novel of the desire for characters to be buried at home. In other words, how are the characters interconnected? What might the author be suggesting by such connectedness-both within the confines of the novel and, perhaps, in the real world outside the scope of the novel? What kind of worldview does Marra seem to project? Do the coincidences feel contrived? Or do you see them as organic, part of the gradual unfolding of the novel?ĩ. ![]() Trace the six-degrees-of-separation between the characters, their actions, and final consequences. SPOILER ALERTS! Follow-up to Question 6: Should Khassan have killed his son-is such an action just or moral? Does learning Ramzan's backstory, change your opinion of him.perhaps justify his later actions?Ĩ. Are there others? What choices do they make and why? How might you have responded in such horrific circumstances? Does morality change depending on the context?ħ. Talk about the characters in A Constellation of vital Phenomena who dramatize the tough moral choices Marra refers to.especially Ramzan and Khassan. While there, he was fascinated by accounts of how ordinary people behaved in extraordinary situations-the kinds of moral choices they had to make. Petersburg during the time of the Chechnyan war. In interviews author Anthony Marra has said he chose to write about Chechnya after spending his junior year in St. Talk about the characters' religious beliefs or lack of beliefs? How does the war affect the faithful.and nonfaithful alike? How would your faith be affected?Ħ. Why is art so significant in this book? What role does art play in Akhmed's and Natasha's lives-and in the lives of others.ĥ. Akhmed draws portraits and posts them throughout the village Haava "rebuilds" the body of her childhood nemesis, Akim, using Akhmed's portrait of him Natasha recreates the view of a cityscape blown away by shelling, and Maali is nearly as invested in Natasha's project as Natasha herself. A emphasis on art runs throughout the novel. What effect does this create on you, the reader?Ĥ. Follow-up to Question 2: The narrator frequently jumps ahead by years, even decades, to inform readers of what happens to various characters-whether they live.or die.or grow senile. She cannot fathom, however, "the dreams crowding skull" or "the mystery the girl would spend her life solving." Do you find that to be true in real life-how deeply can we know another being? Does fiction, perhaps, allow us insights into other beings that we cannot attain in our own lives? Do you feel you know the loved ones closest to you?ģ. ![]() In a beautiful paragraph (end of Chapter 3) Sonja ponders Haava who is lying next to her-Haava possesses 206 bones, 606 muscles, 2.5 million sweat glands, and 100 billion cerebral neurons all this Sonja can know. ![]() One of the book's themes is our inability to know the depths of another being. Do you care about any of them? Whom do you find particularly sympathetic? Do your opinions of any of the characters change over the course of the novel?Ģ. Talk about each of the characters-Akhmed, Haava, Sonja, Natasha, Khassan, and Ramzan. Read-Think-Talk (a guided reading chart)Īlso, consider using these LitLovers talking poinst in discussing A Vital Constellation of Phenomena:ġ.Generic Discussion Questions-Fiction and Nonfiction.How to Discuss a Book (helpful discussion tips).Use our LitLovers Book Club Resources they can help with discussions for any book: ![]()
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