Lecture VIII LECTOR L DEIGHTON CHRISOSTOMIDES GUEST LECTURER

Lecture VIII LECTOR L. DEIGHTON CHRISOSTOMIDES GUEST LECTURER UNA MIHAJLOVIC

In Shape What do you think of when you hear the phrase “staying in shape”? What types of things is it important to do to stay in shape? Is just exercising enough? What is a sport that you enjoy watching? Do you generally watch sports alone or with friends? Who is your favorite athlete? Who is the most famous athlete from your country? How well do they represent your country? Have you ever been to a live sporting event? If yes, what why and which is your favorite? If no, why not and would you like to?

Sports and cultural differences Have you ever heard of a haka? Can you explain what it is? How would you describe the reactions of the American players? Why do you think they reacted like that? Does it surprise you considering New Zealand the United States are both English-speaking countries? What sports are popular in your home country? How about sports that are popular in other countries but not yours?

Marathons What do you know about marathons? Would you ever run in a marathon? What type of training do marathon runners need to do? How hard do you think running a marathon would be? Do you know the origin of the word “marathon”?

A Nose for a Story P 22 -23 Which of the human senses is “A Nose for a Story” about? What is Desiree Malpen’s first reaction to Bombay in the story? Do you think that what she complains about is a well known fact? What does the fact she was unaware of it say about her as a character? What does the taxi driver think to himself about Desiree? What type of publication is “the National Diary”? What types of stories do they write and what are they interested in? What does the company Desiree works for tell you about her? What does Desiree think of Nyree Singh’s house? Why do you think she was surprised? Considering Desiree had gone to India to write a story about Nyree, what does the fact she had never read any of her books tell you?

A Nose for a Story pages 24 -25 How did Nyree Singh die? What was controversial about the circumstances of her death? “… When Desiree Malpen smelled a story there would be a story. ”. What does this quote tell you about her character? How honest a journalist do you believe her to be? Who is Gopal Singh? How does he feel about Nyree? What is his opinion of her? What problems existed between Gopal and Nyree? What was their relationship like? How close were they? What is Gopal’s opinion of the journalists and other people now so interested in her life? Knowing what you know about the rest of the story, what is the relevance?

A Nose for a Story pages 26 -27 What did Nyree always do despite her fame and fortune? What does this tell you about her as a character? Why was Desiree staying at the “excelsior” hotel? What is she looking for there? Why does Desiree keep a glass of white wine with her but not drink it? What does she always carry with her in case someone says something interesting? Who is Raj Patel and why is Desiree interviewing him? How much does she know about Indian cinema? What is she hoping to find out about? How does Desiree use her looks to her advantage? Does she know she is attractive? How does she dress?

A Nose for a story P 28 -31 Is Desiree interested in Raj’s film? What information is she looking for? How does Desiree feel about Raj not telling her what she wants to know? What does Raj tell her when he returns from his phone call? Do you think what Raj tells Desiree is true? What is the relevance to the rest of the story? Knowing what you do about the rest of the story, with whom was he speaking? Who is Cyril Whitelaw? How many times has he read “Indian Summer”, what do you think the difference between him and Desiree is? What does Cyril hope to find? Why is he in Bombay? What does he hope to be considered an expert in?

A Nose for a Story P 31 -34 What do you think about Desiree’s use of flattery/ flirtation? How does she describe Patel’s films? Did she choose to watch them herself? Who decides what happens to Nyree’s unpublished works? What does Desiree decide to do and why does she decide to do it? What disagreement did Gopal and Nyree have about who should film her books? What has changed now? What do we find out about the diary mentioned by Raj earlier? Why did he tell Desiree about it? What impression did Gopal get about Desiree without even meeting her? How do you think that he got this impression?

A Nose for a Story P 35 -37 “… old Gopal, or whatever his name was…”. What does Desiree’s dismissive attitude tell you about her? How far is Desiree willing to go to get what she wants? Does she seem like a rational character to you? What does Gopal’s house have in the garden? What is its relevance to the rest of the story? How does the first meeting between Cyril and Gopal go? What does Cyril tell Gopal? How does Gopal feel about Cyril’s book proposal? What does Desiree assume about Whitelaw? Do you think she was right? What does she try and do to him? What does she tell Gopal she is looking for? Is it the truth?

A Nose for a Story P 38 -end What is supposedly in the box Gopal is carrying? What does he do with the box and why is it surprising? What circumstances meant that the box had to be retrieved that day? Where and when does Gopal tell them to meet him if they get it? What does Whitelaw say about his inability to retrieve the box? Does the box contain anything useful or interesting to him? What did Desiree do to retrieve the box? When Gopal opened it what was actually inside? How do you think that Desiree felt about that? Did she get what she deserved?

A Nose for a Story overview What do you think the moral of the story is? What do you think of Desiree Malpen as a character? Describe her personality and actions. Do you think that she gets what she deserves at the end of the story? How about Cyril Whitelaw? What do you think of his personality and actions? What motivates him and what do you think about how he ends up at the end of the story? Why do you think Raj and Gopal conspire to humiliate Desiree? Do you think that their actions are justified based on what you know about Desiree as a character? Describe some of the differences between Cyril and Desiree. How do you think these differences impact the story?

HOMEWORK Read Arlo’s war for the class on 22/11/2017