Posted: March 7th, 2014
Year of Wonders
Respond to one of the research Study Questions except the first one (about the author). Use the opportunity to learn something about the period in which the novel is set.
4.   Research one of the following and explore its connections and parallels to Year of Wonders: Samuel Pepys’ Diary, Albert Camus’ novel The Plague, Daniel Defoe’s novel Journal of The Plague Year, Gabriel Garcia Marquez’ novel Love in the Time of Cholera, Thomas Mann’ Death in Venice, the movie “Contagion.â€Â (And, just FYI for later consideration this term: Cormac McCarthy’s The Road, about the aftermath of a disaster, and Max Brooks’ World War Z, about another kind of plague.) [R]
10.   What’s going on in the world outside the plague village at the time of the story? How does the novel reference or use contemporary history, including intellectual history? At a minimum, you should know something about Puritanism and the Reformation, the Restoration, the prevailing class system, and the Enlightenment. [R] To get started, you can look at a timeline for 17th century England online—just Google “17th century timeline England†and several will pop up. Use it to identify specific movements, events, and key players that are reflected in the novel.
11.   Pose research questions about other aspects of the novel, to help you contextualize and unpack specific passages. Then do appropriate research. Some potential avenues: 17th century views of witchcraft, St. Augustine, Oliver Cromwell, Newton, empiricism, humors theory of health. [R]
15.   Do some research on the plague. How was it understood in the 17th century? What do we know now that changes the picture? What aspects of the novel reflect socially-constructed understandings of the plague and its victims? [R]
19.   The high-born Bradfords come off as almost caricatures of arrogant, entitled nobility. (Not nearly as accessible as our friends on Downton Abbey!) Based on what we learn about them, what is being critiqued about their class? Does the novel’s positioning of Elinor Mompellion (also high-born) seem strategic? Explain what is happening to the social order at this time, and why the plague has only hastened the disruption. What moments of unexpected sympathy are granted them, and what do you think these reveal about Brooks’ historical lens or her narrative purposes? [R]
26.   Oran has powerful literary and cultural associations you should be aware of. Do some research on the place and culture where Anna ends her journey. How does this knowledge add to your understanding of the novel? What can you now see in the novel that was invisible to you before? Do you now see any signposts to or foreshadowings of the unexpected ending? [R]
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