Discussion Questions for February 18

Discussion Questions: “Historical Fiction” and Number the Stars

Small Group Work/Class Discussion

1.     What are some of the reasons for creating historical fiction? What are some of the problems inherent in this genre?

2.     Hintz and Tribunella explain that “the real historical novel does not just treat history as an incidental backdrop for events or interactions that could just as well take place in the present. Instead, historical fiction makes the period of its setting a defining and integral feature of the work” (236).

a.     What are some examples of works that “could just as well take place in the present” (books, films, shows, etc.)?

b.     What are some examples of works that make the period an “integral feature of the work”?

c.     To what extent is Number the Stars a “real historical novel”?

3.     Lois Lowry is American, though she has some Norwegian ancestry. She is not Jewish. She says in the afterword to Number the Stars that Annemarie is based on her friend, who really did grow up in Denmark during WWII. In light of the issues of authority and authenticity brought up in Chapter 10, to what extent do you think Lowry had the “right” to write this book? Are there any problematic aspects of the text so far in terms of the representations of ethnicity and/or nationality?

4.     How is Kirsti different from Annemarie and Ellen? Specifically, think in terms of the historical models of childhood described in Chapter 1 of Hintz and Tribunella. Why might Lowry have chosen to include Kirsti in the text?

5.     Hintz and Tribunella explain that historical children’s fiction frequently intersects with trauma theory (239). What kinds of trauma are being worked through in this text? Consider both cultural and personal (i.e. familial) forms of trauma. Is Annemarie portrayed as more “extremely vulnerable” or “especially resilient and adaptable” (239)? Ellen? Kirsti?

6.     Hintz and Tribunella state that nationalism is a large part of historical fiction. In what ways is this text nationalistic?

7.     Hintz and Tribunella ask, “Does historical fiction have a responsibility to remain completely faithful to the historical record? […] What makes certain inaccuracies acceptable and others not?” (250). Discuss these questions.

8.     Hintz and Tribunella also raise the point that Lowry’s depiction of Nazis “might create the false sense that only simple, brutish people can participate in acts of atrocity” (250). To what extent do you agree with this criticism?

9.     Do you sense any examples of presentism in this text?

10.                        Hintz and Tribunella observe that “Perceiving the historical event [such as the Holocaust] through the eyes of […] one relatable character might help make an incomprehensible event easier to understand” (247). Has a text ever influenced you in this way (again, consider books, films, etc.)?

Specific Questions about Number the Stars

1.     How does the war change the Johansen family? The Rosens? Peter?

2.     What is the significance of food in the text?

3.     In what way does the urban setting play a role in the text? The rural one?

4.     A great deal of the national and familial trauma that sets the stage for the book has taken place in the past and is revealed through stories and memory. Why might Lowry have chosen to take this approach?

5.     Describe the threat of the Nazis as it is portrayed in the book. How frightening are they? Do you find this level of fear appropriate for intermediate readers?

6.     Annemarie ruminates on courage on page 26. What messages about courage does this passage contain?

7.     Do you sense any didacticism in the text so far? If so, where?