Richard Flanagan
(1961 - Present)
1.
“Nothing endures…Not
empires, not memories…we will die, and who will understand any of this?” Throughout this novel the running motif is the power
of time to sweep away all men, all incidents, and all memories into
insignificance. Yet, more than fifty years since its conclusion, books continue
to be written about the Second World War. Why? What relevance does a book like
TNRTTDN offer its readers? What did you discover from it?
2.
This is a book
that is both powerful and painful to read. What aspect of this novel had the
most impact on you?
3.
Discuss the hypocrisy
and double standards of the war crimes trials, where those on the lower rungs
of military hierarchy were held responsible for following orders they received
from their superiors. Did these trials ever serve justice? Do you feel justice
was possible for these crimes?
4.
Darky Gardiner,
Tiny Middleton, Rooster McNiece, Rabbit Hendricks, Bonox Baker, Jimmy Bigelow
etc. – discuss the strategies they, and other prisoners, adopted to survive the
inhuman conditions of the POW labor camps.
5.
War crimes,
Colonialism, Slavery, Genocide, Racism, Discrimination, Suffering - how do we
forgive these historical wrongs? Should we make an effort to keep alive memories
of injustice and conflict; or strive to put them behind us as deterrents to
good will in the future? Is it possible to find a balance?
6.
The Burma
Railway began construction on 15 September 1942 and was completed ahead of
schedule on 17 October 1942. The Death Railway, as it has been called, was both
an engineering miracle and a tragedy bordering on human holocaust. Discuss.
7.
How can a civilization condone depraved
cruelty and indifference to fellow human beings and still claim to call itself
a civilization? How much can be explained away by ‘cultural differences’ and
the ‘madness of war’? What defies explanation or justification?
8.
How successful is
the author in melding Dorrigo’s personal story with the wider narrative of the
POW experience?
9.
“A happy man has
no past, while an unhappy man has nothing else.” Dorrigo Evans; despite being admired, respected, and
loved, lives a joyless existence for the greater part of his life. What were his
obstacles to happiness and peace of mind?
10. ‘Amy, amante, amour’ – What does Amy Mulvaney mean to Dorrigo Evans? What
was unique about their relationship that he’s unable to find with his wife, or
the countless other women in his life? Is Amy his one true love? Does she
represent for the romantic, poetry-loving Dorrigo an idealized version of what
love should be, rather than what it actually is? If Amy is the love of his
life, why does he let slip the many opportunities to commit to her? Dorrigo
Evans - a hero in every other way; is he a coward when it comes to matters of
the heart?
11. This book is in
a way, an ode to the masculine mystique – honoring traditional ideals of
manhood that elevate character, but at the same time also limit individuality.
Dorrigo Evans is a prime example of this. Discuss.
12. Dorrigo Evans was called ‘the Big Fella’ by his men.
How does Dorrigo earn his men’s trust and respect even under the grueling
conditions in which they lived? Discuss his leadership.
13. Flanagan writes this about books: that they have “an aura that both radiated outwards and
took him inwards to another world that said to him he was not alone.” The
depiction of tragedy and suffering in art is not meant to be either gratuitous
or for shock value – the aim is catharsis. Great literature achieves more than
catharsis; it leaves us with a deeper understanding of the human condition. Does
this book accomplish that?
No comments:
Post a Comment