1.

"No Advantages": Visiting the graveyard of Ettrick Church, Munro finds the
tombstone of her great-great-great-great grandfather, and is struck with a feeling that
"Past and present lumped together here made a reality that was commonplace and yet
disturbing beyond anything I had imagined" [p. 7].
a.

What is disturbing about this merging of past and present?

When we visit a location that is central to our ancestors, yet we have lived as far
away as possible from it for all of our lives, we yearn for a sense of
"commonplace" with it, however are faced with a reality vastly different from
"anything [we] had imagined". These feelings can disturb us as even though we
may feel a spiritual connection with our ancestors, and feel a righteous belonging
to it, its unfamiliarity directly conflicts with this feeling leaving us hanging in a
disturbing limbo.

"The View from Castle Rock":

a.

Agnes is a willful, sexually alert woman, trapped in her fate as a

woman and mother [p. 72]. She is married to Andrew Laidlaw although she had
been involved with his brother James [p. 67], who has already gone out to Nova
Scotia. Andrew, we are told, "was the one that she needed in her circumstances" [p.
55]. What might her circumstances have been? In what ways does Agnes seem
to embody the desires and frustrations of women in her time, and possibly in
our time? Why does the old James mention "the curse of Eve" with regard to
Agnes [pp. 44-45]? Discuss Munros prose in the paragraphs describing
Agnes childbirth [pp. 46-47]. What is most effective, moving, or realistic
about this scene?
She embodies the desires and frustrations of women in her time as she, like most
women, wants a man who would not leave her side, especially after the birth of her
child. This is evident as she felt that Andrew was "an honest lad and the one that
she needed in her circumstances, and that it would never occur to him to run off
and leave her". The statement made by old James, "the curse of Eve" relates to the
pain that old James believes will have to endure when giving birth in the near
future. On pages, 46-47, the inclusion of lines such as "the waves slap her down"
and "she sinks deeper and deeper" indicate a sense of suffering. Furthermore, as
"she shouts at them to take themselves off" her, as they are "grinding her and
pretend[ing] they don't even know it" suggest the horrible circumstances of men
forcefully imposing themselves upon her.

Though Walter refuses Netties fathers offer of work and in doing so refuses to
commit himself to Nettie, in later life "he will find that she is a source of
happiness, available to him till the day he dies." He imagines her "acquiring a tall
and maidenly body, their life together. Such foolish thoughts as a man may have in
secret" [p. 78]. Why does Walter pass up this offer? James Laidlaw has wanted
all his life to go to America with his family [p. 62]; why, once he is on the ship,
does he lose interest? Why does he become, on the ship, so profoundly and
comically a man of Ettrick? What do his letters home [pp. 82-84] tell us about
him?
Walter passes up this offer because he does not want to work in the city, "he means
to work with family until they are set up with some sort of house." Before

travelling to America, James created such great expectations of the American

landscape. Because of this he loses interest in America and longs for the fond
memories of Ettrick. This is ironic because for so long he wanted to escape Ettrick
"the place full of nonsense and bad habits and even (the) sheep's wool is so coarse
that no one will buy it." He gains a sense of nostaliga towards the Ettrick people
and culture and as a result changes his identity to conform with Ettrick values.
a.

1.

Munro writes, "I am surely one of the liars the old man talks about, in what I
have written about the voyage. Except for Walters journal, and the letters, the
story is full of my invention" [p. 84]. Discuss the ways in which factual evidence
[pp. 84-87] and imaginative embellishment work together in this story, as well
as the effect of this mingling.

"Fathers": Bunt Newcombe is so brutal with his wife and children that his
daughter Dahlia speaks constantly of her desire to kill him. The narrator says that now
such a family "might be looked on with concern and compassion. These people need
help." But in that time and place, such misfortunes were taken at face value: "It was
simple destiny and there was nothing to be done about it" [p. 175]. The narrator,
however, is also sometimes beaten by her father: "I felt as if it must be my very self that
they were after, and in a way I think it was. The self-important disputatious part of
myself that had to be beaten out of me" [p. 195].
a.

What does this story tell us about the expectations of the world in
which Munro grew up, and about how she managed to survive it with what
she would need to become a writer?
Throughout the story, Munro explains in detail her relationships with Dahila, a
young and bright woman, whose disturbed and violent past affects her relationship
with her family, distancing her from her father, who she begins to hate. While
Munro's experiences with the popular, sporty Dahila prove to be feelings of
admiration and happiness that this girl wants to associate with her, Munro contrasts
these feelings with that of Frances, a young girl who Miriam and her friends
distance themselves from, due to the fun associated with it. It is only after Munro
has grown older, where she reminisces about her youthful experiences as well, and
her progression into becoming a mature adult. It is through Munroe's vivid and
descriptive recollections, where we she how she developed a strong connection
between her past and her future.

"Lying Under the Apple Tree": Since the story is told long after the events narrated, an
older woman is narrating the experience of her younger self.
a.

What effect does this have on the readers understanding of the

girls sexuality? Would the girl have had the words to express what she was
feeling at the time? Does the girls desire come through more clearly in the
words of an older woman? Think about Munros perspectives, throughout the
collection, on sexuality and desire as experienced by women.
Munro's past recollections of self-possessed lovers, paints her as a woman who
does not commit to long term, meaningful relationships, yet rather short
experiences with men. It is evident through Munroe's past experiences, she feels
desired to be the centre of attention and of love, feeling frustrated with her
boyfriend, when he calls his employer 'honey'. Munroe reinforces stereotypes of

females inside the story, expressing her feelings about that sex riding a bicycle.
Perhaps it was Russell's apparent afair with Miram which spirals Munroe into a
series of short, non-meaningful realtionships with other men.
1 What are the signs that the Craik family is slightly lower down on the social

scaleor at least on the scale of social strivingthan the narrators own

family? What does she mean in saying, "I was deceiving this family and my
own, I was at this table under false pretenses" [p. 218]? How surprising is the
storys ending, in which the narrator discovers that Russell is Miriam
McAlpins lover?
Munroe expresses how this family, whose own father is outside in a 'Salvation
Army' uniform is presented as middle-lower class family, who do not have the
small luxiries of life, living life without common items such as 'bread plates'.
Munroe expresses how her lovers family does not understand the relationship
between Russell and Munroe, prompting Munroe to express that she is 'deceiving
the family and her own'. Miriam is shocked at Russell's relationship with Miriam,
prompting her to likely commence her string of short, meaningless relationships.