Bring on the tough stuff - there’s not just one right answer.
- Based on what you know of the narrator (Henry Miller), do you think he would prefer to live in the past, present, or future?
- What's Henry Miller's beef with women? Is this a misogynistic novel?
- What function does male friendship serve in the novel? Do these men really seem to care about each other or do they just want someone to suffer with?
- What is Miller's attitude toward America? How does it relate to Paris? Do they have anything in common?
- Is it fair to dismiss this book as pornography? If you had to argue both sides, what textual evidence would you use?
- What is Miller ultimately saying about civilization in Tropic of Cancer?
- Why do the men in this book spend so much time with prostitutes even though they're so poor?
- How does Miller seem so happy in spite of his low circumstances? What exactly makes him happy? And for that matter, is the ending really happy?