Unit 4: Study Guide
“A Wagner’s Matinee” by Willa Cather
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Be sure to understand why Aunt Georgiana cries at the concert.
What is the central conflict of the story centered around?
What does the author do to help us sympathize with Aunt Georgina?
Know the two settings of the story.
Why does Clark think twice about taking his aunt to the concert?
What advice does Clark remember his aunt gave him as a young boy?
What is the theme of this story?
“Richard Cory” by Edwin Arlington Robinson
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Who is the speaker in the poem?
What is Richard Cory’s fate?
Why does the author use connotations to royalty in the poem?
What does the line, “we went without the meat and cursed the bread” mean?
“The Lowest Animal” by Mark Twain
1. What does Twain mean when his says that cats have loose morals and that cats are innocent but
man is not?
2. What is the tone of the essay?
3. What does Twain mean when he says man is the only animal that blushes?
4. What is Twains theory of humanity?
5. Know the satirical devices of irony, exaggeration, foreshadowing, and inference.
6. Why does Twain write this essay?
“The Story of the Hour” by Kate Chopin
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Describe what kind of woman Mrs. Mallard is.
What is the author’s attitude toward marriage?
What is Mrs. Mallard’s initial reaction to her husband’s death? How does it change?
Know what literal realism, naturalism, situational irony, and verbal irony are.
What is the historical context of “The Story of an Hour?”
“To Build a Fire” by Jack London
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What should the man have realized about the cold?
What do you know about the man?
When does the man realize he will not survive?
What Naturalistic view of man is most prominent in the story?
What does the dog have that gives him and advantage over the man in their situation?