28 Nov Monologue about War Movies

From Chernobyl Part II – Select ONE of the questions below or write on any other aspect of this week’s reading that interests you. Minimum 100 words with word count at bottom.

1. Look closely at the following two sections: “Monologue about War Movies” (109-118) and “Monologue about a New Nation” (119-126), which are approximately in the middle of part 2. What do the speakers discover when “descend[ing] into the depth of themselves.” What questions do they pose?

2. Move forward in the text to examine the “Monologue about Lies and Truths” (133-143). The speaker argues that “Chernobyl presents itself first of all as a problem of self-understanding” (133). Find examples in the monologue that illustrate this problem.

3. Look at the shorter sections in this part of the book, particularly its opening and closing section. What themes emerge, and to what degree do these shorter sections extend or question the concern with self as it emerges in part 2 of the book?

From Chernobyl part III – “Amazed by Sadness” Discuss this week’s reading. Start with ONE of the questions below minimum 100 words include word count at the end.

1. Alexievich developed a specific process for gathering and shaping her material. She selects about one-hundred voices from the many people she has interviewed, and of these ten or twenty become “pillars,” whom she will interview many times (Masha Gessen, “The Memory Keeper” The New Yorker). Who are the pillars in Voices from Chernobyl? What are the major thematic threads in their stories?

2. Look closely at the shorter sections, which, many readers have argued, present a chorus of voices. What is the tone of those voices, and what themes emerge? Although these voices might at first seem disjointed, can you detect a method or logic in the way Alexievich has arranged them?

3. Look at the titles of the parts and sections of the book. What do these reveal about the themes and the structure of the book?

4. Alexievich juxtaposes the voices of men and women, the old and the young, scientists and laypersons, humans and animals. Look for examples of such juxtapositions in the book. You might begin by looking closely at how the voices of the women compare to those of the men. What are the women concerned with? What do the men emphasize or ignore?

5. In an interview with The Nation, Alexievich was asked, “How does one write a history of sentiments without being sentimental?” In her answer, the author differentiates between emotion and sentimentality. “For me,” she states, “emotion is a path toward self-knowledge, not just an occasion to cry.” Find at least one story in the book that illustrates this point.