Bliss

1) Mention some characteristics of Berthas personality.

2) What is Berthas relationship with Harry?
3) Who is Miss Fulton? In what sense is she related to Harry and Bertha?
4) What is Bertha waiting for when she's standing beside Miss Fulton?
5) What are Berthas feelings towards Pearl Fulton?
6) How have her feelings changed by the end of the story?
7) Are Harrys feelings towards Pearl Fulton early in the story the same as at the
end of the party?
8) In what sense is the title connected to the story?
9) What is bliss for the protagonist?
10) In which other stories do characters have strong feelings as Bertha does in
Bliss?
11) What is the message the author is trying to convey by telling the story?
12) What are the main topics and ideas represented in this story?
13) Why is the pear tree repeatedly mentioned in the story? What does it symbolize?
14) "There is no way you can express it without being `drunk and disorderly.' How
idiotic civilization is! Why be given a body if you have to keep it shut up in a
case like a rare, rare fiddle?." Who (or what class) is being referred to by `drunk
and disorderly'? (Take into account Berthas social class)
15) These lines make reference to the inability to express feelings. How is this
reflected on Berthas relationship with Harry and with her baby? What does it
show about womens role in society at that time?
The Garden Party

1) What events and actions take place in the story? How are they related?
2) From what point of view is the story narrated?
3) Laura is a very difficult character. Explain this and characterize Laura.
4) Point out the allusions to Lauras moral growth.
5) How are social differences marked in the story?
6) What do you think Laura's mother is about to recommend her daughter not to do
when she's going the funeral?
7) Why do you think Laura and Laurie reacted differently to the same situation?
8) What does "the lane" mean in the story?
9) Forgive my hat. What is the meaning conveyed here?
10) What does Laura's hat means in the story?
11) Symbols. What do the following items represent in the story?
a. Karaka Trees, Desert Island, Marquee
b. The Lilies
c. Lauras Hat
d. The Hill
e. The Road Down the Hill
f. The Wide Road
g. The Garden
12) How is irony used in the story?
13) What do you think life is according to Laura at the end of the story?
14) What elements show us the contrast between life and death?
15) Which stories name a dead person? How these dead persons affect the characters
on the story?
16) What are the central themes in the story?