More Nectar

Today we read chap. 11-13 and worked on some questions/paragraph response in the notebook. The questions can be found pasted below (a word copy is on Edline). You should be through page 77, and have complete responses in your notebook by tomorrow (even if you were absent for choir).

Part I
Answer the following questions in your notebook on a page entitled, “Nectar, Chap. 1-13.” Answer the questions thoroughly, providing detail from the text.

1. What were your thoughts at the end of this section? Would you have made the same decision that Rukmani and Nathan made? Why or why not?

2. What does Rukmani see decorating the entrance to her new home when she first arrives with Nathan? In what condition are the decorations? What might the condition represent or symbolize?

3. How does Rukmani feel when she is told that her baby is female? Why does she feel this way? What does her reaction suggest about the status of Indian women at the time?

4. Who is Kennington? Why does Rukmani keep her visits to him secret?

5. Contrast Rukmani’s response to the coming of the tannery with that of the other women in the village. Who do you think is right? Why?

6. Why do Arjun and Thambi go to work in Ceylon? What does their decision say about them? How do Rukmani’s feelings contrast with those of her sons?

7. The story is told from Rukmani’s point of view. How does this viewpoint affect your feelings toward Rukmani and her family? How might your feelings change if the story were told from Kunthi’s point of view? Kennington’s?

8. How might Rukmani answer this question:
What do you value the most in life? Friends? Family? Personal possessions? Something else?

Part II
In a paragraph, respond to the following:

The conflicts that a character experiences are often determined by the time and place in which he or she lives. Select a character from Nectar in a Sieve—Rukmani, Nathan, Ira, or another character—and in a paragraph explain the connection between the setting of the novel and the character’s conflict. Would he or she be likely to suffer the same conflicts if the story were set in a different time and place? Why or why not?

Part III
Now, create—in your notebook—a 2-column chart like the one below. Fill in each row with the type of conflict and description/examples of how the conflict has appeared in the text.

Type of Conflict Description, Examples

1. Against society Rukmani is unable to marry a rich man because she does
not have a large dowry.
2.

3.

4.


**Also, don't forget to blog tonight--see a previous post for a link to a NY Times article as well as information on providing an MLA citation.