Wichita Falls ISD / Overview



Questions for Angela’s AshesAs usual, answer thoroughly, completely and in complete sentences. Use your own paper.1. On the first page of Angela's Ashes, McCourt says, "worse than the ordinary miserable childhood is the Irish childhood, and worse yet is the miserable Irish Catholic childhood." In what ways was his childhood miserable? How did being Irish and being Catholic contribute to his misery?2. What techniques does McCourt use to create a distinct voice? How would you describe his voice in Angela's Ashes?3. Discuss McCourt's experiences in school. Are you surprised to learn he became a teacher? How do you think his experiences influenced him?4. In what ways is Angela's Ashes uplifting despite the sad situations in the story? How does McCourt produce hope through his writing?5. In Angela's Ashes, how do the children absorb their mother's attitude towards their father?6. How do the limitations imposed by class effect Aunt Aggie and Uncle Pa?7. In Angela's Ashes, Frank McCourt undergoes "exile", as he travels away from his home country, Ireland. Despite the challenges, what are the benefits of his "exile"?8. Irish songs and lyrics are prominently featured in Angela's Ashes. How does music affect Frank's experiences?9. Did you ever think you were reading a novel while you read this autobiography? Whatgives the book a novelistic quality?10. Consider the following quotation from the opening of the book: “When I look back on mychildhood I wonder how I survived at all. It was, of course, a miserable childhood: thehappy childhood is hardly worth your while.” (Pg. 11) Discuss McCourt’s meaning.11. Describe the overarching tone of this memoir. Is it bitter and resentful, or is it forgiving?Did you find the tone surprising? Why or why not?12. Mr. McCourt’s abandonment of his family happens abruptly. One year, Dad comes homefrom England for Christmas, and, after that visit, he never makes an appearance inMcCourt’s narrative. Although Frank is conscious of his father’s absence, he never speaksof Dad's disappearance as abandonment. What explanation can you give for this?13. Most of the book–a memoir–is written in the present tense. Why would McCourt choosethe present tense for a book rooted in his memory?14. What sense is there that Mr. Timoney, locked away in the City Home, is one of the mostsane and rational people in the book? Why?15. Discuss the importance of community and the charity of strangers in this book. How doesthe kindness of strangers compare with the McCourts’ treatment by their relatives?16. Describe McCourt’s narrative voice. What techniques and devices does he use to capturehis point of view from his youth?17. Mr. and Mrs. McCourt can be very inadequate parents. How do their children use the bondsof brotherhood to compensate for their parents’ inadequacies?18. Despite the squalor and deprivation of their lives in Limerick, the McCourt boys manage totranscend poverty. How do they maintain their sense of joy?19. Why does Dad experience so much prejudice for being from the North of Ireland?20. Discuss the importance of wit and humor in Angela’s Ashes. How do humor and McCourt’suse of comic relief affect the overall tone of the memoir?21. How do you view Mam, as a strong character, a weak character, or with elements of bothtypes? How do you think McCourt views his mother? Why?22. Discuss the tension between poverty and cigarettes in the book. Do you sympathize withthe adults’ claim that cigarettes are the poor person’s only comfort?23. How does McCourt use irony to capture his childhood point of view?24. Frank sees so much death in his young life, from the deaths of his three siblings on, that hebecomes desensitized to it. Why does Patricia Madigan’s death affect him so much? How isthis change a sign of Frank’s maturing?25. Pride shows its dual nature in McCourt’s writing. Explain pride’s positive and negativeeffects in Frank's life. ................
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