LIT212 Studies in Literature 2

Spring 2016

Comparison Topics for Marquez and Lee

1. Write a detailed analysis and comparison of the two narrators. Which one is your favorite
and why?

2. Compare Atticus and the narrator of Marquezs novel. They are both insiders and outsiders
of their communities. Discuss whether this gives them an advantageous point of view.

3. Compare the two novels relationship with objective, rational narratives like journalism,
medical reports, and legal documents. Describe the contrasts between these and the
subjective, non-rational perspectives. Discuss dreams, gossip, memory, love letters in
Marquez and childs perspective, gossip, and gothic elements in Lee.

4. In his Nobel acceptance speech The Solitude of Latin America Marquez said:
it is this outsized reality A reality not of paper, but one that lives within us and
determines each instant of our countless daily deaths, and that nourishes a source of
insatiable creativity, full of sorrow and beauty What would Marquez think of Harper
Lees novel?

5. Compare the two novels representation of the child vision of the world.
What is the function of the child perspective in Lees novel? What does Clotilde Armenta
mean by the following words? They looked like children to her [Clotilde Armenta]. And
that thought frightened her, because shed always felt that only children are capable of
everything (Marquez, 63)

6. Compare the parent-child relationships in the two novels. Describe the development of
Angelas relationship with her mother and Scouts relationship with her father. At what
points in the novel do these characters begin to acquire an adult vision of the world? How
are parents represented in the novels?

7. What is the function of acts of crime in the two novels? Explain how acts of crime
motivate the narrative, how they affect the characters, and how they influence different
characters interactions with each other.

8. Compare the judges in the novels. What are expectations from them? How are they
represented? What do they contribute to the novels?

9. Compare the representation of characters who commit or attempt murder: Pedro, Pablo,
Bob Ewell, Boo Radley. How do the novels represent murderers?

10. Compare the townspeoples reactions to the legal investigation and the trial in the two
novels. How are their lives affected and changed by the trials? What do the novels say
about the role of law in daily lives of ordinary people?

11. Compare Maria Alejandrina Cervantes with EITHER the Radley family OR the Ewell
family as characters who live outside their societies and cannot be integrated into the social
life as they are. Compare the novels representation of socially marginal characters.
12. Discuss the theme of justice in the two novels. Compare different characters notions
of justice. What are some injustices in the novels and how are these addressed through
fiction? Are the endings satisfactory?

13. Discuss the representation of trauma in the two novels. How are the characters
affected by traumatizing events in their past? Compare the effects of traumatizing violent
events on the narrative style.

14. Discuss the representation of violence in the novels. Which novel is more effective in
representing the experience and effects of violence? What do the novels say about
violence?

15. Compare the two fictional societies by discussing the themes of disconnection and
segregation. What are some examples of disconnection between characters in Marquezs
novel and their reasons? How does Lee comment on racial segregation in American
society?

16. Compare the novels representation of gender differences. How does gender inequality
affect other social issues represented in the novel?

17. Discuss one issue or plot development in each novel in terms of the public-private
divide. How does the public-private divide impact the characters thoughts and actions?
Explain how the characters try to maintain a balance or relationship between their public
and private lives. Which novel is a better text to discuss this concept?

18. Discuss the representation of masculinity and characters relationships with their
masculinity in the novels. What are some objects and actions that represent masculinity for
the characters? What are the similarities and which novel is more effective in discussing
masculinity?

19. Who is your favorite character in both novels and why? Who is your least favorite
character and why? Write a conversation between them.