Monday, September 21, 2009

Montana Study Guide Part II

Study Guide, Part II
Montana, 1948, chapter two, pages 57102
1. As the second chapter begins, we see David Hayden begin to reconstruct
his father's investigation. We are reminded that, in large measure, the story of
what happened that summer in Montana is hearsay and deduction. How
accurate do you suppose are David's conclusions? Do the three deductions
presented on the following pages give us confidence in his ability to ferret out
the truth? Why or why not?
2. Ollie Young Bear
His role in the story is slight. In fact, he virtuallydisappears after this one scene. Why is he in the story? What is thesignificance of the fact that he has a white wife?
3. What's important about the scene in the bowling alley on page 59? What
does it show about David, about his father?
4. What's the significance of the weather in the scene on page 63, when
David and his mother are temporarily banished from the house?
5. On page 65, David's mother delivers a short soliloquy on the geography of
Montana, and the geography of her youth. David interprets this as her way of
saying "she wanted a few moments of purity." He also ads that he is "on the trail
of something that [will] lead him out of childhood." Explain.
6. On page 67, en route to the ranch, David's father makes a tentative
suggestion that the family take a trip to Yellowstone, a national park in
Montana and Wyoming. Is this destination arbitrary? And what do you make
of David's observation that "unfortunately, he did not often keep his promises."
7. On page 69, we get to see David's grandfather for the first time. What sort
of figure is he? Does he resemble anyone else in the story, or anyone else
you have seen in the literature and film of the West?
8. On the same subject, what do you make of the Hayden's house on page
68? What does it say about its occupants?
9. On page 71, the subject of Frank's and Gloria's childlessness comes up
just when David, who is eavesdropping, expects his father to tell Grandpa
Hayden about Frank's improper sexual relationships with Indian girls. What do
you make of this juxtaposition? Why do you think David's father is bringing up
the subject now?
10. On the same page, David thinks: "Tell Grandfather. Tell him, and he'll take
care of everything. He'll grab Uncle Frank by the shoulders and shake him so
hard his bones will clatter like castanets. He'll shake him up and shout in
Frank's face that he'd better straighten up and fly right or there'll be hell to
pay. And because it's grandfather, that will be the end of it." What does this
deep faith in his grandfather show about David? And what do you make of the
violence of this vision? Why his grandfather, and not his father?
11. David's grandfather, on the next page, lets slip that his son Frank has
"always been partial to red meat." He is speaking about Indian women, of
course, but the metaphor he chooses is telling. What does it show about him?
How does he seem to feel about his son's improprieties?
12. The novel then moves to flashback, returning us to a distant memory of
Frank's bachelor party. Again., David relays an overheard conversation. Look
to page 75here, his father delivers a drunken speech about the "Hayden
boys," describing them as a kind of fraternity of lawlessness and macho
bravado. "We are the law!" he says. Then he vomits. Explain the connection
between this scene and the statement on page 21 that David's father is a man
"who tried to turn two ways at once" (21).

13. On page 76 we meet David's grandmother. How is she different from the
other women in the novel, especially David's own mother? What is this meant
to show?
14. On page 77, David confesses his erotic attraction for his Aunt Gloria, and
describes a scene when, bedridden, she tended to him. He even pretends to
be asleep, in order that he may enjoy her closeness to him: "as she bent
down to feel my forehead," David confesses, "I could smell her perfume."
Does this arrangement and erotic attraction in the midst of medical care
remind you of anything else in the novel?
15. Subsequently, David overhears a whispered conversation between his
aunt and his uncle, then the squeaking of their bedsprings. What's going on
here? Does this scene change, if briefly, or sense of Uncle Frank the Indian
molester?
16. On page 7980,
David is given an automatic pistol by his grandfather and told to go shoot coyotes. David says of handguns: "They were something not serious, not for bringing down game but for shooting as an activity in and of itself...." How is this gun different from the guns David's father has given him and trained him to use? Is it significant that it comes from his grandfather?
Does it have a symbolic meaning?
17. What is the double meaning of the two paragraphs on page 80 that begin:
"I shot up the entire box of bullets." (Consider that in the scene immediately
preceding, David has experienced powerful erotic sensations at his aunt's
perfume and disgust as well.)
18. Of the magpie that he shoots, David says on page 81, "I hadn't even
known it but I needed to kill something." What is he struggling with? Why must
his anger manifest itself in violence?
19. Continue your interpretation on page 82, with the paragraph that begins "I
felt the way I did when I woke from an especially disturbing and powerful
dream....." Pay particular attention to the lines: "I realized that these strange,
unthought of connections: sex and death, lust and violence, desire and
degradation are there, there, deep in even a good heart's chambers."
20. One last point to consider. A heart has chambers, as David says. So does
a gun. What's the symbolic connection?
21. On page 82, David sees his father and uncle talking. What's the first
strange thing he notices? What is the significance of this?
22. Why does David pantomime shooting his uncle? What would his motive
be for murder?
23. As the scene closes on page 84, David notes that "My father and Uncle
Frank walked off together, their broad shoulders almost touching." What are
we meant to think has transpired between them?

24. What's wrong or insufficient about David's father's remarks to his wife on
the return drive (page 85)?
25. What is the significance of Marie's strange remark on page 86? ("He's
hard to see when you look for him.") What's hard to see? What's David been
looking for?
26. On page 87, David says that he "knew, knew immediately what had
happened." What does he know? How does he know it?
27. What's the symbolic significance of the open medical bag on the table on
page 87?
28. On page 88, Uncle Frank suggests a couple of explanations for Marie
Little Soldier's sudden death. David also notes that as he spoke "he stood up
so straight he seemed to be at attention." What's the meaning of this body
language? A soldier is one who stands at attention. Whose orders is he
following?
29. On a related note, speaking of soldiers, what do you make of Marie's last
name?
30. On page 89, Uncle Frank says, "Pneumonia is still a serious disease. Very
serious. We mustn't lose sight of that." What is he asking his audience to do?
And is there a connection an echo between these words and Marie's last
words on page 86?
31. On page 93, Len, who has served as a deputy under both David's father
and grandfather, explains what it means "to be a peace officer in Montana."
What does it mean? Does it mean that still, in this story, in the summer of
1948?
32. Why do you suppose the author, Larry Watson, chose to make Len an
alcoholic? What does this say about the kind of life he has led? Is this a by
product of being "a peace officer in Montana"?
33. David also supposes that Len is, or has been, in love with his mother.
Nothing much comes of this in the novel thematter is simply noted here, then
dropped. Why is it in the story? What does it say about Len, his basic qualities
of character, his loyalties and allegiances?
34. Why do you suppose David chooses not to tell Len what he saw on page
94?
35. After David tells his father what he saw, he notices his father's injured
knee. Go to the paragraph on page 100 that begins "My mother turned on the
lamp beside the bed." What is the connection that David notes between his
father's injured leg and "the pain he felt over his brother"?
36. Closing the chapter, on pages 1012,
David has a dream about all the Indians in Bentrock, on top of Circle Hill. He notes, among other details, thatin his dream, they aren't dressed as they are in the movies, but just as they appear in his daily life. How do you interpret this dream, in particular the way they are dressed? examining it for impurities"?



8 comments:

  1. Desia, Gabriela, Erin

    24.)What was so insufficient about the remarks was that there was going to be no punishment for Uncle Frank. Even Gail question “What about what’s already been done? What about that… damage?” So even she knew that just by Uncle Frank saying he was going to stop wasn’t going to be enough.

    25.) Marie said, “He’s hard to see when you look for him.” The significance was that those were Marie’s last words before she died. She was referring to the coyotes.

    26.) David knew that Marie had already died. He knew that because earlier in the day he had seen Uncle Frank leave Marie Little Soldier. David goes on to say, “No one else knew, and I could keep going until I found a place where I could bury that secret forever.” So therefore this shows that David knows something nobody else does.

    27.) The symbolic significance of the open medical bag on the table was that, that was the same thing Uncle Frank had with him when he left the house the first time.

    28.) The meaning of his body language shows that he was trying to get everyone’s attention. Since Uncle Frank was the doctor everyone was expecting him to automatically know or have an explanation of her sudden death.

    29.) I think Marie’s last name, little soldier shows that she was a strong person, because usually in the Native American culture, they give names based on their personality or demeanor

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  2. Desire, Shannon, Cassidy, Angela

    18. He’s taking his rage out on anything that’s alive. He is mad because his grandfather isn’t doing anything about the fact that his uncle is raping girls. So he wants to end something’s life, and is happy when it dies.

    19. He has an epiphany that people, whether they’re good or not, is fine with killing, or hurting people. Everyone has thought about harming someone, and that is okay.

    20. If you pull the trigger you live a resentful life, but if you don’t, then life would be happier and you wouldn’t have the guilt of killing someone.

    21. They were arguing, and since the family doesn’t fight much, it was odd. He thought that his father was confronting Uncle Frank about raping the women.

    22. He knows that if he killed his uncle there wouldn’t be any trouble in the family anymore.

    23. He thought that there might have made an agreement.

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  3. Taylor, Angela B., and Mariah

    1. I believe that David’s conclusions are accurate. Based on the three deductions, I have confidence that David can ferret out the truth because he’s very observant and notices things around him that others normally wouldn’t.

    2. Ollie Young Bear is an Indian college graduate, which is rare. He appears in the story because he might know more about Marie’s accusations against Uncle Frank. The significance of him being married to a white woman is because he has more opportunities than other Indians.

    3. The importance of the bowling alley scene is to show how David wants to be accepted by his father. David learns that his father hangs around Indians so that he won’t seem prejudice towards them; trying to be something he’s not. This also shows that David wants to be grown-up and a part of adult conversations – not hidden from them or ignored.

    4. “We stood in the middle of the yard while a gusty wind that lowered the temperature twenty degrees in less than an hour whipped my mother’s hair in front of her face and wrapped her skirt tight against her legs.” This is a metaphor to show that his mother feels trapped in her home and all she wants to do is help.

    5. David thinks she means she wants a few moments of being away from all the happenings of her life now. Since she can’t physically get away, she escapes by reminiscing about her hometown. “…a temporary escape from the sordid drama that was playing itself out in her own house.” David feels that his mother is finally treating him like more of an adult and not a child and that’s what he’s referring to when he says he is “on the trail of something that [will] lead him out of childhood.”

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  4. Norah, Hannah, Gracie, Carolyn


    12. The connection between the phrase “We are the law” and the scene from Frank’s bachelor party and the statement on pg. 21 that David’s father is a man “who tried to turn two ways at once” is that during Frank’s bachelor party he was going with the Hayden family way but now he has to decide between the ways of the Hayden family and the Mercer County Law.

    13. David’s grandmother is very quiet, and is somewhat frightened of her husband. She doesn’t like to talk when he is around. This shows that her husband doesn’t respect her and he thinks he is better than her because he is a man. This makes her different from the rest of the women in the story because the other women are modern and respected by their husbands, and can voice their minds.

    14. It reminds us of when David is gripping Marie’s shoulders when she is sick and he cannot tell whether the sweat is his or hers.

    15. Frank’s role does not change because it shows that Frank does not have a good sexual relationship with his wife and would basically prefer molesting Indian girls than having sex with his own wife; so, our idea of him has not improved but in fact we have grown even more disgusted with Frank.

    16. All of David’s guns were one-shot guns that need reloading after every shot hence, you want to have good accuracy and make every shot count. With a revolver you get six shots and you don’t have to reload between each shot. This means that the gun is more dangerous and you can afford to be more reckless. The symbolism with this means that Wesley is a lot more careful, thoughtful, and reserved than his father who is basically ruled by his temper.

    17. David shot the gun his testosterone was raging and he needed to get his sexual energy out in some way.

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  5. Ashley, My and Temielle

    30. He tries to say that Marie's death from pneumonia isn't a surprise. And the connection between Marie's last words and Frank's statement "Pneumonia is a serious disease. Very serious. We mustn't lose sight of that." is that the truth is hard to see when you're looking for it.

    31. He says that being a 'peace officer' is "knowing when to look and when to look away.". Yes, at first when Wesley turns a blind eye to Frank's behavior with women.

    32. To make him an unreliable witness, the author chose to make Len an alcholic. He has led a hard life, because many alcholics drink to conceal pain.

    33. Because it gives more information about Len. It says that Len is a good guy, even though he is an alcholic.

    34. Because David was not sure if Len saw it or not, and Len was drinking and David just wanted to get out of there as fast as he could.

    35. David notes that his father has been in pain constantly and that the pain "strangely connected with the anguish he felt over his brother."

    36. The way Indians are dressed in movies are sterotypical and when David has his dream, he thinks of them as he would see them in reality.

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  6. Donyel,Haris,Evan,Samante,Briyanna




    6.What i figured from what David's father said about the trip to yellow stone park is that he tells fibs to make things seem all better so David thinks he has something to look forward to.

    7.To me David's grandfather resembles a crooked sheriff from the west that dresses like a cowboy and everybody fears him. But at the same time he resembles uncle Frank in a way.

    8.I think the hayden house was designed for David's grandfather ecspecially because they reffered to his house as a "dude" ranch. It tells that the grandfather has more control over the house since he decorates.Thats what it it seems like.

    9.I think David's dad is bringing all this up because he feels like he can finally tell someone what Frank has did.He felt if he was going to tell anyone he was going to tell his dad what david did.

    10.I think that David thinks of his grandfather as powerful and someone that can scare somebody straight.He believes no one can scare Frank straight but his Granfather.

    11.David's granfather thinks that what frank does isn't bad and he has an excuse for liking indian women. He makes everything sound okay like theres not something wrong.

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  7. Wow Super Leslie ran very fast past the dogs

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  8. Temielle Floyd-Fruster September 29, 2009
    Ms.Gamzon Montana essay


    11.
    Larry Watson wrote about a lot of prejudice that took place in 1948. The characters were great examples of prejudice did not like certain groups of other people so they did bad things to them. Just like on the book characters struggled with other people race and prejudice. Sometime the people who were being affected could not do much because police and other help options could have been prejudice to.

    In the book I would have to say uncle frank was the most prejudice of all. He was a mad man who liked to rape Indian girls. A lot of people were hurt back then or not much cared about like other groups of people. Many people did not like the Indians, black or much of any body actually.
    So they did vindictive things to others because they did not agree with their race or the way they dressed or their religion.


    Back then the people did not have much of a good relationship with anyone the cops, the neighbors nobody but now days we can do something about the things that are going on.

    If I hadn’t read the book I would of never known the things like that would of took place back in 1948 and how bad the problems were. I never stop to think about those kinds of things but know I think I learned a big lesson.

    I think the author felt he needed to write this story so he can aware us about certain things that happened in those days and that those things can happen now there are still people who don’t like certain kinds of groups of people.

    ReplyDelete

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