Reading - English Honors II Flashcards
Study for the lightest class ever (57 cards)
Who is Winston Smith?
Winston is the protagonist, a member of the Outer Party who secretly despises the Party and dreams of rebellion.
What is Julia’s role in the story?
Julia is Winston’s lover who also resents the Party, though her rebellion is more personal and less ideological.
Who is O’Brien?
O’Brien is a member of the Inner Party who deceives Winston and Julia, ultimately betraying them.
What does Big Brother represent?
Big Brother symbolizes the Party’s total control, surveillance, and propaganda.
Who are George and Lennie?
George is a small, intelligent man, and Lennie is his large, mentally disabled companion. They dream of owning a farm together.
What role does Curley play?
Curley is the aggressive, insecure son of the ranch owner, often picking fights with larger men like Lennie.
Why is Candy important?
Candy, an old ranch hand, represents the loneliness of aging and joins George and Lennie’s dream of a better life.
What is Slim’s role?
Slim is a skilled mule driver and a respected figure on the ranch, acting as a confidant for George.
What is Oedipus’s tragic flaw?
His hubris (excessive pride) and determination to uncover the truth lead to his downfall.
Oedipus
Why is the prophecy central to the plot?
The prophecy that Oedipus will kill his father and marry his mother sets the tragedy in motion.
Oedipus
What happens at the climax of the play?
Oedipus discovers his true parentage and realizes he has fulfilled the prophecy.
What is Alexander Hamilton’s primary goal?
Hamilton seeks to leave a legacy by establishing the financial foundation of the United States.
What role does Aaron Burr play?
Burr is both Hamilton’s rival and narrator, ultimately killing him in a duel.
What themes are explored in Hamilton?
Legacy, ambition, and the immigrant experience are central themes.
Why does Medea seek revenge?
Medea seeks revenge after her husband, Jason, abandons her for another woman.
What is Medea’s ultimate act of vengeance?
She kills her own children to punish Jason.
How does Medea escape at the end?
Medea escapes in a chariot provided by the sun god Helios.
The Family of Little Feet
What is the central theme?
The story explores the transition from childhood to adolescence, focusing on the girls’ discovery of their sexuality.
The Family of Little Feet
What role do the shoes play?
The shoes symbolize maturity, femininity, and societal perceptions of beauty.
The Yellow Wallpaper
What causes the narrator’s descent into madness?
Her enforced rest cure and lack of mental stimulation exacerbate her mental illness.
What does the yellow wallpaper symbolize?
The wallpaper represents the narrator’s entrapment and the repression of women.
What is the significance of the bell cricket and grasshopper?
They symbolize the difference between common experiences (grasshoppers) and unique, special ones (bell crickets).
The Grasshopper and the Bell cricket
What is the story’s main theme?
The story explores innocence, youth, and the subtle beauty of human connections.
There Will Come Soft Rains
What is the setting of the story?
A futuristic, automated house continues to function after a nuclear apocalypse.
