Read two novels:
“A Good Man is Hard to Find”
Describe the setting (time and place) and analyze the setting in detail using questions at the end of our slideshow.
Help us understand the grandmother:
What does “being good” and “being a lady” mean to the grandmother?
According to the grandmother, who is a “good man.” Why might “good men” (as defined by the grandmother) be hard to find during the time the story takes place?
Why do you think the grandmother shows kindness to the misfit in the end?
How would you describe the grandmother’s character? A master manipulator or senile? Deeply or superficially religious?
How would you describe the Misfit?
Why does the misfit shoot the grandmother? How can we make sense of the ending?
Who is the true outsider: the grandmother or the misfit?
Persepolis
The narrator describes a setting that is changing before her very eyes, due to the Islamic Revolution. Describe and analyze this setting and the change. What effect do the images have in telling this part of the story?
The story is told from the perspective of a young girl. How would this story be different if it were told from a 3rd person narrator or from one of the other characters?
How would the story be different if it weren’t a graphic novel? Do you think you’d like it more or less?
What symbols do you “visually” see? What themes and conflicts do those symbols point to?
The rest of the story follows Marjane into adulthood. What are your predictions? How do you think she will grow and develop?