Bring on the tough stuff - there’s not just one right answer.
- According to Ames, what is the meaning of love?
- Why does Ames stress out over whether to talk to his wife about Jack Boughton?
- What do you think most motivates Jack?
- Why, given all the people in Gilead, did Lila propose to Ames?
- Why is Ames so attached to Gilead?
- Why does Lila endeavor to become better educated?
- Where did Ames's father and grandfather get their very different ideas about the justice of war?
- How does the epistolary (letter) form serve the plot and themes of the novel? Would the novel have been better or worse if it had been written in third person?
- If you were Ames's son, how would you feel upon reading this letter?