revision- In the Lake of the Woods
Look at the following essay topics and plan out as many as you can, concentrating on which quotes you would use!
IN THE LAKE OF THE WOODS
TEXT RESPONSE TOPICS
PART 1 – Character based questions
1. “He’d tried to pull off a trick that couldn’t be done, which was to remake himself.” Why can’t John Wade ‘remake’ himself?
2. ‘John Wade’s downfall is due to his refusal to acknowledge the truth about himself.’ Discuss
3. ‘The ‘Hypothesis’ and ‘Evidence’ chapters of In the Lake of the Woods shed light on all the rest of the novel.’ Discuss
4. ‘It is not only his role in the Vietnam War that is responsible for John Wade’s problems’. Discuss
5. ‘Our deepest sympathies in this novel lie with Kathy Wade.’ Do you agree?
6. “Can we believe that he was not a monster but a man?” What is your answer to this question about John Wade?
7. In the Lake of the Woods charts John Wade’s descent into madness. Discuss
8. ‘We may not like Wade, but by the end of the novel we certainly sympathise with him.’ Do you agree?
9. “John Wade was terrified of losing her, and always had been.” How does this help you to understand Wade’s relationship with Kathy?
10. Do John Wade’s problems arise merely because he makes bad choices, or because his character is psychologically flawed?
11. John and Kathy Wade truly love each other, or do they? Does the narrative suggest that their relationship is built on anything more than lies and suspicion?
12. ‘The narrator of the novel is limited by all he does not and cannot know.’ Can we, then, describe his as reliable?
13. ‘In the Lake of the Woods traces the inevitable end of a relationship that is built on deceit.’ Discuss.
14. “He was Sorcerer now. He was inside the mirrors.” John’s problems are caused by the fact that he has withdrawn from reality. Do you agree?
15. “Man’s soul remains for me an absolute and impenetrable unknown.” By the end of the novel, we feel that we know John and Kathy Wade, and yet we don’t know them at all. How true is this statement?
16. Many characters in In the Lake of the Woods try to ignore various truths. Why do they do this?
17. O’Brien ensures that we can’t be sure why Kathy Wade disappeared. Discuss.
18. The minor characters in In the Lake of the Woods contribute to the belief that all humans have a dark, secretive side. Do you agree?
PART 2 – Theme based questions
1. ‘In the Lake of the Woods may best be described as a “post modernist” war/mystery novel, a fascinating and frustrating narrative that, like life itself, creates riddles without answers.’ To what extent do you agree?
2. In the Lake of the Woods is about the impossibility of ever knowing the truth. Discuss.
3. ‘In the Lake of the Woods shows that it is often difficult to recognise the difference between what is real and what is not.’ Discuss
4. ‘In the Lake of the Woods shows that the most dangerous secrets are the ones we keep from ourselves.’ Discuss
5. ‘In the Lake of the Woods demonstrates that we can never really understand other people.’ Discuss
6. ‘In the Lake of the Woods demonstrates that men are not only destructive in war; they are also destroyed by war.’ Discuss
7. ‘In the Lake of the Woods shows that the dark side of human beings is always close at hand.’ Discuss
8. ‘The world of politics is one of manipulation and deceit.’ Does In the Lake of the Woods suggest that this is true?
9. ‘To say that In the Lake of the Woods is mainly about the Vietnam War is to miss a great deal of what O’Brien is saying.’ Discuss.
10. ‘In the Lake of the Woods is a complex text, but the complexity has a point. Wade’s life becomes a distillation of the author’s whole view of the world.’ Discuss.
11. ‘Personal morality and a sense of worth is indispensable to human dignity. Without it, we are lost. This is what the novel suggests.’ Discuss.
12. ‘O’Brien uses the Vietnam War and politics as grim metaphors for life. It is a very dark vision.’ Do you agree?
13. ‘The text suggests that what happens in childhood and the formative adult years can explain our failure to accept moral responsibility for our actions.’ Discuss
14. “Nothing ever satisfied him.” The text demonstrates that the human craving for power can parallel a craving for love. Discuss.
15. They “pretended not to know the thing they knew”. In the Lake of the Woods suggests that there is always individual, as well as collective, responsibility for evil. Discuss.
16. ‘ In the Lake of the Woods makes it clear that it is impossible to escape one’s past.’ Discuss.
17. ‘The past is more potent than the present. If the past is not dealt with honestly, there is no hope for the life in the present.’ Discuss.
18. “It’s to bear witness to the mystery of evil.” Is this the purpose of O’Brien’s In the Lake of the Woods?
19. ‘It was the wickedness that soaks into your blood.” What kinds of wickedness does this story show humans are capable of?
20. The war in Vietnam created more casualties that just those who died during the fighting. How does In the Lake of the Woods demonstrate this?
21. This book is about the way two people disappear into themselves and ultimately into the Lake of the Woods. Do you agree?
22. “Give it up. Totally hopeless. Nobody will ever know.” If the novel isn’t about knowing what happened, what is it about?
23. “There are certain mysteries that weave through life itself.” What does the novel have to say about mystery?
24. The clever structure of In the Lake in the Woods allows O’Brien to explore ideas of complexity and importance. Explain how he does this.
25. The novel provides plenty of questions but no answers. Do you agree?
Essay questions
Ideas, characters and themes
1 In the Lake of the Woods traces the inevitable end of a relationship that is
built on deceit. Comment.
2 Kathy Wade was a victim of John Wade’s demonic evil. Comment.
Structures to construct meaning
1 Consider how the structure of the novel: narrative, flashback, hypothesis,
evidence adds to the novel’s meaning and power.
2 O’Brien cleverly merges fact and fiction to covey the novel’s meaning.
Discuss.
Implied/expressed points of view
1 The past is more potent than the present. If the past is not dealt with
honestly there is no hope for life in the present. To what extent is In the Lake
of the Woods is a novel which supports this statement?
2 The war in Vietnam has had more casualties than those who died during the
fighting. How does In the Lake of the Woods demonstrate this?
How readers’ interpretations differ
1 Some readers may find the search for truth in this novel frustrating, but
that’s the point. Do you agree?
2 Although today’s students may have first-hand knowledge of the Vietnam
War, In the Lake of the Woods is able to speak to readers about the
poisonous effects of war on individual lives.
26.
