READING GROUP GUIDE
A Prayer for the DyingA Novel
by Stewart O’Nan
ISBN-10: 0-312-42891-X
ISBN-13: 978-0-312-42891-4
About this Guide
The following author biography and list of questions about A Prayer for the Dying are intended as resources to aid individual readers and book groups who would like to learn more about the author and this book. We hope that this guide will provide you a starting place for discussion, and suggest a variety of perspectives from which you might approach A Prayer for the Dying.
About the Book
Set in Friendship, Wisconsin, just after the Civil War, A Prayer for the Dying tells of a horrible epidemic that is suddenly and gruesomely killing the town's residents and setting off a terrifying paranoia. Jacob Hansen, Friendship's sheriff, undertaker, and pastor, is soon overwhelmed by the fear and anguish around him, and his sanity begins to fray. Dark, poetic, and chilling, A Prayer for the Dying examines the effect of madness and violence on the morality of a once-decent man.
About the Author
Stewart O’Nan’s novels include Last Night at the Lobster, The Night Country, and A Prayer for the Dying. He is also the author of the nonfiction books The Circus Fire and, with Stephen King, the bestselling Faithful. Granta named him one of the Twenty Best Young American Novelists. He lives in Connecticut.
Discussion Questions
1. The book is narrated in the second person, addressing the main character, Jacob, as “you.” Who is speaking? Why do you think the author chose this mode to tell the story?
2. When Jacob is called to take care of Clytie, he has a very hard time pulling the trigger. Look at the passage (p. 49) in which he has to convince himself to kill her. Why does he agonize when he knows it’s the right thing? What does it mean that he’s “still clinging to some dream of innocence, blamelessness”? Does he continue to cling to that dream later in the story?
3. Why does Jacob elect to bleed and treat the bodies of some victims, even after Doc has told him not to, and even though he knows he’s putting himself in danger? Why is precision and diligence so important to him even when everyone around him is worried only about survival?
4. What role does religious faith play in the story? How does it influence Jacob, Chase, and other citizens of Friendship? Is their faith rewarded?
5. Jacob is a veteran of the Civil War. How does his experience there affect the way he behaves in the crisis in Friendship? How did the war change him?
6. How would you describe the relationship between Jacob and Doc? How do their different ideas about the world lead to different strategies for handling the outbreak in Friendship?
7. How does Jacob’s relationship with Marta affect his behavior in the outbreak? How do his priorities as a father and husband conflict with his responsibility to the town?
8. How do you interpret the book’s ending? What is Jacob choosing when he returns to Friendship? What do you imagine happening to him next?
9. Is Jacob sane at the end of the book? How does the author demonstrate the changes in his mind as conditions worsen?
10. “You’ve stopped believing in evil,” the narrator says of Jacob early in the story (p. 6). “Is that a sin?” Is there evil in this story? Does Jacob come to see it by the end?
11. How do the book’s two epigraphs relate to each other? Why do you think the author chose them?
12. Jacob is committed throughout the book to saving Friendship, and willing to sacrifice himself if necessary. Is he naïve? Does his commitment to principle do more harm than good in the end? Begin working on second person short stories.
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ReplyDelete5. Jacob's experiences in war help him keep his composure which is important as the figure head of Friendship. The war allows him to keep his trauma in his head.
ReplyDelete6. Both Doc and Jacob have a lot of responsibilities. They believe in the same thing, but they go about it differently. Jacob wants to examine the bodies for a hidden meaning while Doc believes that is too dangerous.
7. Jacob wants to protect his family just as much as the town, but because he is the leader he must focus on the town. He already does everything for the town, but he wants to focus energy on his wife and daughter. This causes him to act irregular and this clouds his mind.
8. The book is a good closing to this story which is a horror novel. The constant presence of death leads the reader to understand why everyone died. He returns to gather his stuff and say a prayer for the dead. I believe he will continue to live his life with his mind ruined.
9. After dealing with everything that has happened it is only reasonable for Jacob to be a little damaged towards the end. He still has his beliefs, but he seems to try and forget the horrors of Friendship.
10. Yes there is evil in the story and the whole story is about how evil never flinches and how it will continue to destroy any goodness. He realizes this towards the end when he asks "is this the devil's work."
Delete11. Both of the epigraphs have something to do with plague and the horrors of it. The author chose these epigraphs because the story of the town Friendship represents whether the plague will destroy them or if they can persevere with just their faith.
12. Jacob is naive because he believes that he can help his family and the citizens of Friendship. I believe that he did everything he could to help Friendship so his commitment to principle didn't work out in the end, but he did try to help them as much as he could.
5. Having fought in the war, Jacob has a unique perspective on life and death compared to the rest of the Friendship population. It also helps him in a leadership position.
ReplyDelete6. Doc and Jacob have different outlooks on death. While Jacob wants to examine the bodies and go through proper process for burials and the like, Doc believes that it's far too dangerous and discourages Jacob from doing so.
7. Jacob struggles over prioritizing his family over the town. He loves Marta, but also wants to do his duty as essentially the town's leader.
8. Honestly, I'd like to think that Jacob got sick and died at the end. He chooses to return because of his attachment to the town and its people.
9. Jacob's faith in God is strengthened at the end compared to the beginning, since he now understands exactly how powerful He is.
10. Yes, evil is present in the book. The evil could be interpreted as the devil's will or the very existence of disease. In recognizing God's will, I think that Jacob understands this.
11. They both deal with the plague in Friendship. I think the author did this because Friendship represents the goodness in the world and the plague is the evil that destroys it.
12. He's naive for sure. He doesn't recognize that there's nothing he can do about the situation until after it's over. He wants so desperately to help everyone that he blinds himself to the reality of the situation.