A Death in the Family worksheet
Rufus
p. 15, ¶2 "After a little..." : This is the central question of the book.
p. 24, ¶1 Why is he ashamed? If the central question is "Who am I?" how does Rufus answer it here?
p. 26-28 What does the walk back home show about his relationship with his father? How does it help him answer the question? How does it help him feel better about his shortcomings?
p. 60, ¶7 How does Rufus see God?
p. 80, dream sequence: Why is the first line of this important?
p. 82, ¶1 Why is the dark gentle at first?
p. 83, ¶5 What is the first hint that the dark isn't entirely gentle?
p. 84-85 Why does it turn evil? Describe darkness' characteristics. How does it threaten? Why does it hurt so much knowing your father and mother are laughing at you?
p. 85, ¶17 What does it mean to be torn into two creatures?
p. 87, ¶1 - p. 88: How does the father "purify" the room?
p. 96-97 What is Rufus' vision of heaven?
p. 107, ¶6 How does Rufus see darkness now?
p. 207, line 7: Discuss loneliness/community here
p. 231, ¶11 When Uncle Ted says Rufus has to learn common sense, to learn what to believe and what not to believe, how is he touching on a major theme of this book? How is this story connected to the previous one involving the great, great grandmother?
p. 247, ¶2 How does Rufus see God? look at the end of the chapter. Why is it important for Rufus to make this distinction? How might it affect the way he sees himself?
p. 265, last line: Why does this line have power?
p. 289, ¶4: How does Rufus see death?
p. 295, ¶4: Why has the appearance of the father changed? What is the effect of saying "The piano...was shut"?
p. 297, top of page: Here it is -- the beginning of the critical juncture.
p. 314, top of page: Look at this focus on dark.
Jay
p. 35, ¶6 Why is Jay disappointed?
p. 48, ¶2 Look for words signifying darkness.
p. 49, ¶1 What is his relationship with darkness?
p. 92, ¶1 Look at these songs. How does he face his death?
p. 93, ¶2 "He felt..." & ¶s 2&3: Why does Jay grow lonely?
p. 94, ¶1 What eases the pain for Jay?
Mary
p. 57-58 How does she relate to God? Does it bring her closer to or driver her farther away from her husband?
p. 201, top of the page: How is Jay's death affecting Mary?
p. 281, top of the page: This is pretty complex: Define Mary's religious spirit, including both the positive and negative aspects here. Now look at p. 287, ¶1. What can you add to this now?
p. 292, ¶4 & 6: What new dimension has been added to her sense of God?
Ralph
What is Ralph's darkness? How does he face it? Does he ever see the truth about himself? What does this truth mean?
Andrew
p. 116, ¶1 What is Andrew's position about God? Agnostic or atheist?
p. 144, ¶6 Again, what do we learn about Andrew's religious feelings?
p. 146, ¶11 There's a failure to communicate here. Does it preclude the possibility of love?
p. 198, top half of page: How does Andrew deal with the darkness?
p. 314-315: Andrew gains a sense of the divine here. But that experience is lessened by the priest. This is key. What is Andrew doing regarding faith & identity? What is he doing with this new-found sense of the divine? What should Rufus do with this knowledge? Now look on 317: What has this knowledge done to Rufus? Now look on 318: Is Rufus right in his conclusion that Andrew both loves and hates his sister and aunt? What deep insight does this give him into human nature? What does he do with this insight (especially regarding Andrew)?
Hannah
p. 127, ¶1 What does Hannah know from experience about life that she realizes Mary is now learning?
p. 129, ¶3 What does Hannah mean by denying God's presence?
¶s 7, 8, 9: Describe Hannah's sense of the dual nature of God/Supernatural
p. 130 "...it was this silly, strenuous..." Why does this help Mary?
p. 131, ¶1 The darkness is inside Mary and she stands up in it. What does this mean?
p. 199, ¶9 How has the death changed Hannah's faith?
Joel
p. 136, ¶16 What is Joel's attitude towards the darkness in life? Is he an agnotic or an atheist?
p. 127, top of page What is Joel's attitude toward his daughter's faith?
p. 147, ¶11 How has Joel suffered?
p. 148, ¶13 How true is Joel's advice? What does it speak about isolation and community?
p. 149, ¶2 How does suffering help us to be more alive?
p. 150, last line: what is the symbolic action? (a toughie)
p. 166 ¶2 How is this another way of finding identity?
p. 167, last line: Is this a statement of an agnostic or an atheist? compare to following line on 168.
Catherine (grandmother)
p. 138, ¶6-8: How is Catherine isolated? Is her husband able to communicate with her despite this isolation?
p. 170, ¶5 Catherine's main kind of language is cliche. How is this a form of non-communication? How is this whole passage an instance of non-communication?
Catherine (Rufus' sister)
p. 243, bottom of page: What is Catherine's view of God?
p. 310, ¶4 Why does she need community here?
p. 312, ¶7 Why does this change?
Father Jackson & Walter Starr
p. 273, ¶20: Look at this description. Good guy or bad guy?
p. 277, ¶4 & p. 278, ¶1: What negative qualities of religion are represented in Fr. Jackson?
p. 284-285: Define the basic differences between Walter and Fr. Jackson.
p. 294, ¶4 How does the truth of Fr. Jackson's speech go beyond even his understanding?