Author John Irving, writer of
A Prayer for Owen Meany, has an interesting take on first sentences of novels. In his introduction to the aforementioned novel, Irving writes that "the primary function of a first sentence is to make you keep reading." Does the first sentence of this novel accomplish that? If so, what is it about the sentence that makes you want to keep reading?
What is the cosmogony theory of Isaac Lutia? With the advent of the internet, finding out about these allusions is extremely easy, so don't let them pass you by when you have time to look them up. They could lead you down paths you never thought would have existed. So who is this guy and what is so important about his theory?
What is the connection between religion and zoology? Why choose this double major?
indolence...definition?
What is the purpose of the three-toed sloth? The narrator sure spends a lot of time on it...
In speaking of the sloth, the narrator states that he felt like he "was in the presence of an upside-down yogi deep in meditation or a hermit deep in prayer." Others say sloths smile. Why does the narrator not want to project human traits on the animal but chooses to project spiritual traits on it?
What is a "memento mori painting"? How is it significant?
Who is Richard Parker?
Why is the waiter's comment concerning the narrator ("fresh off the boat" so disturbing to the narrator?
Why is Chapter 2 written in italics? To whom is it referring?
