Background of the author
Class Discussion Questions:
1. The narrator tells us that Charlie "believed in character. He wanted to jump back a whole generation and trust in character again as the eternally valuable element. Everything else wore out" (678). What is "character," as the term is used in this passage? How does one trust in character, in this sense?
2. Find some other quotes in the story that address this idea of character (677, 678, 679, 680-81, 682, 683, 684, 687, 689).
3. What does the word "dissipate" mean to Charlie? Look for this moment in the story and mark it! It points to a key idea in the Modernist approach to telling stories.
4. How does Marion define "character"? How does her definition affect the outcome of Charlie's attempt to regain custody of his daughter?
