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Please read “The False Gems” (941) and “The Shoes” (984) and answer the questions below.

“The False Gems” (941)

Before you start reading, please define: incongruity, detachment, unaffected, virtuous, imperceptible, lavish (verb), obliged, seclude, procure, paste (not the adhesive, but the adjective), gape, martyr, frolic.

You will have to share dictionaries. Work alone to answer the reading questions.

You needn’t define a word if you are absolutely certain you know what it means.

Look up any other words in the course of your reading that are unfamiliar to you, and please read all definitions found at the bottom of the pages.

Read the definitions to the literary terms below.

Answer questions 1-14

Literary Terms

The term irony is used to refer to situations or statements that turn out to be different than we would expect.

Tone is the author’s, or sometimes the narrator’s, attitude toward his or her subject. It is sometimes used in the same sense as mood, which is the general atmosphere of a story.

Foreshadowing: a technique authors use in the course of a story that hint at things to come; sometimes a character will say something that foreshadows a future event, and sometimes specific plot events predict future events

Please answer in complete sentences, in your own words, except where the question indicates otherwise.

1. List (just list, no complete sentences) three characteristics of Naturalistic writing, which can be found under “Connections” on 941.

2. The young girl described in the third paragraph of the story appears to be all of the following except a. moral b. pure c. ambitious d. charming don’t write on this don’t write on this don’t write on this don’t write on this don’t

e. modest

3. Two things about his wife bother the husband. What are they?

4. What practical problem does Lantin encounter after his wife’s death? a. He can’t find another wife. All the good women are married. b. He can’t pay his bills. When she was alive there was plenty of money. c. His friends won’t have him over for dinner because he is depressing to be around. d. He is about to lose his job because he never feels like going to work.

5. When Lantin is first told that his dead wife’s necklace is worth 15,000 francs, he a. faints b. doesn’t believe the jeweler c. flies into a rage d. goes directly to the casino

6. What does Lantin realize after leaving the second jeweler’s that causes him to feel as if the earth trembles beneath him? a. He wife was a thief b. His wife was actually wealthy. c. His wife was unfaithful to him. d. He is rich.

7. Why does Lantin find it difficult to re-enter the store? a. The necklace is a painful reminder of his dead wife. b. He is ashamed. The jeweler will know his secret. c. He doesn’t want to be rich. Wealth will complicate his life. d. He is afraid the jeweler will have him arrested.

8. Lantin gets 143,000 francs for the jewelry. He is tempted to broadcast to people on the street that he is worth 200,000 francs. How much does he tell his boss that he is worth?

9. What does this inflation of his net worth tell us about Lantin and his future prospects? In other words, how do you think things will turn out for him in the long run? Answer in two or three complete sentences. Explain your answer clearly.

10. In your own words, in a complete sentence or two, describe the change that takes place in Lantin in the 24-hour period between his visit to the first jeweler and his announcement to the aristocratic gentlemen at the Cafe Anglais that he has just inherited 400,000 francs.

11. What is your opinion of Lantin? Do you admire him? Respect him? Pity him? Envy him? How do you think the author wants us to feel about him? Answer in four to eight complete sentences, citing at least two specific examples from the story. don’t write on this don’t write on this don’t write on this don’t write on this don’t

12. Which of the following options below is an example of foreshadowing? a. “People never tired of saying: ‘Happy the man who wins her love! He could not find a better wife!’” b. “She would examine the false gems with a passionate attention as though they were in some way connected with a deep and secret joy. . . .” c. “six years after their marriage M. Lantin discovered that he loved his wife even more than during the first days of their honeymoon.” d. “After a time, M. Lantin begged his wife to get some lady of her acquaintance to accompany her.”

13. Lantin lives on the “Street of Martyrs.” What is the significance (importance) of the street name to the story?

14. Explain in a couple of complete sentences why Lantin’s second marriage is ironic.

“The Shoes” (984)

Before you start reading, please define: inevitable, tenet, emeritus, solemn, swindler, creditor, destiny, indifferent, provisions, luster, dignity, degradation, parcel, mock, listless, hare, tenacity, despair.

You needn’t define a word if you are absolutely certain you know what it means.

Literary Terms

The term irony is used to refer to situations or statements that turn out to be different than we would expect. For example, it is ironic when a fire station burns down. Statements are ironic when what is said differs from what is meant. If your dog chews up your new shoes and you say, “Good boy!” you are being ironic.

Satire is a form of writing that points out the weaknesses of individuals and institutions by mocking them or otherwise portraying them in a humorous light. Satirical writers often used sarcasm.

Tone is the author’s, or sometimes the narrator’s, attitude toward his or her subject. It is sometimes used in the same sense as mood, which is the general atmosphere of a story.

A metaphor is a comparison of two unlike things or concepts for the purpose of making a point. A metaphor differs from a simile in that it does not use the words like or as in the comparison. Metaphors are used extensively by writers of both fiction and non- fiction

Symbolism refers to the use of symbols in stories. A symbol is anything that is used to represent something else. For example, the Statue of Liberty is a symbol of freedom. In don’t write on this don’t write on this don’t write on this don’t write on this don’t this story, as in many stories, the author uses a garden setting to represent innocence, as the Garden of Eden was a place of innocence. A snake in a garden suggests evil or lost innocence. Look for the snake as you read the story.

Personification is a technique where an author imposes human qualities on inanimate objects. For example, “The sun smiled brightly on the crowded beach.” The sun doesn’t really smile. It’s just a big ball of gases.

Please answer all questions in your own words, in complete sentences.

1. In what year did Grazia Deledda receive the Nobel Prize for literature?

2. Briefly, in your own words, in complete sentences, describe the verismo movement.

3. Locate the metaphor in the first column of p. 985. Copy it, using quotation marks.

4. Locate the metaphor in the second column of p. 985. Copy it, using quotation marks.

5. The way it is used in the second column on p. 986, lire most likely means a. shirts b. a unit of currency (money) c. hours d. lunchmeat

6. Elia counts on only two things to help him during and after his journey: a. his wits and persistence b. his philosophic calm and his uncle’s will c. good weather and a sturdy pair of shoes d. his philosophic calm and a sturdy pair of shoes

7. The narrator writes, “Elia’s felt his feet were getting wet. His shoes had given way. This was obviously one of the things that were destined to happen, but all the same he did not accept it with his usual philosophical calm.” The narrator’s tone is a. sympathetic b. impatient c. satirical d. admiring

8. Find one simile from p. 986. Copy it, using quotation marks.

9. Elia’s shoes serve as a symbol of his a. tenacity b. poverty c. journey d. ambition don’t write on this don’t write on this don’t write on this don’t write on this don’t

10. On p. 988, Deledda writes that the shoes Elia steals cast “a shadow on the floor like two great hooks.” This simile serves to a. highlight the fact that the shoes are a temptation for Elia b. emphasize the size of the shoes c. remind us of the lateness of the hour d. reinforce the image of silence at the inn

11. When Elia puts on the stolen shoes, Deledda writes, “It was an odd thing; but his feet burned and throbbed, and seemed to have a violent objection to being inside those shoes.” This statement a. reminds us that Elia is used to going barefoot b. emphasizes the soreness of Elia’s feet due to his long walk the day before c. suggests that Elia feels guilty about stealing the shoes d. proves that the shoes do not fit Elia’s feet

12. “Day was breaking, sad and grey” is an example of a. simile b. personification c. metaphor d. satire

13. Which of the choices below best describes Elia’s wife? a. excitable b. cheerful c. resentful and quarrelsome d. listless

14. Which of the choices below best describes Elia? a. dreamy b. practical c. hard-working and determined d. anxious and prone to worry

15. Elia’s remark that “the only think that really matters is being fond of people and treating them kindly” turns out to be ironic. Why? Explain in a sentence or two, citing one specific example from the story.

16. How does the weather reflect Elia’s state of mind? Please answer in one or two sentences, in your own words. Be very specific. In other words, don’t just say, “When he feels bad, the weather is bad.” Use more precise words than “good” and “bad.”

17. In a paragraph of six to eight complete sentences, discuss the extent to which you think Elia is responsible for his own fate. Justify your answer with at least two examples from the story. don’t write on this don’t write on this don’t write on this don’t write on this don’t