David Guterson is the author of three previous novels and a story
collection,
The Country Ahead of Us,
The
Country Behind. His debut novel, the #1 best-selling
Snow Falling on Cedars, received the PEN/Faulkner
Award and the American Booksellers Association Book of the Year
Award. He is the author of East of the Mountains and Our Lady of
the Forest.
1. Neil describes John William at sixteen as "the rich kid who
hates and loves himself equally. The contrarian who hears his
conscience calling in the same way schizophrenics hear voices, so
that, for him, there''s no not listening" [p. 10]. Have you
encountered people like John William in your own life? In
literature? What makes him a believable character, rather than a
stereotype?
2. Does Neil also represent a familiar type or character? What
makes him interesting or appealing to you? To John William? What
distinctive characteristics (strengths and flaws alike) inform the
way he tells John William''s story? Consider the qualities that
Neil admires in John William in contrast to how he describes
himself.
3. Neil and John William are brought together by their love of
the outdoors and in particular for hiking in unmapped areas. Does
John William spur Neil to take risks he otherwise would avoid? What
aspects of their feelings about risk come to light when they get
lost in the forest [pp. 29-34]? In what ways do their attitudes
about the adventure echo their feelings about their lives in
general?
4. To what extent do John William''s activities at Reed [pp.
70-83] as well as his decision to drop out of college reflect the
cultural and social milieu of the 1970s? Does Cindy''s rejection of
him mark a significant turning point for John William, or does it
simply reinforce his perceptions of the world?
5. How does his upbringing affect John William? Would he have
turned out differently if Ginnie had remained with the family? Does
her decision to leave make her the villain of the story? Are there
aspects of her conduct that evoke your empathy or sympathy? Is Rand
oblivious or indifferent to his son''s problems or is he incapable
of dealing with them? How do Neil''s portraits of them change and
deepen as the novel unfolds? Does he become more accepting of the
Barrys'' flaws, and if so, why?
6. Throughout The Other, there are references
to gnosticism, a philosophical and religious movement that emerged
during the early Christian era. A central theme of its teaching is
that the world is imperfect, but each of us has a divine spark
within that can ultimately free us from the evils of the material
world. Does John William''s obsession with gnosticism enhance your
understanding of his motivations and behavior? What other
references to literature and philosophy in the novel illuminate the
themes Guterson is exploring? Discuss, for example, the references
to Emily Dickinson and Thoreau [p. 86], to Robert Frost [passim],
and to Rudyard Kipling''s "The Miracle of Purun Bhagat" [p.
167].
7. What effect does Neil achieve by alternating accounts of his
own experiences with his reports on John William? How do their
encounters as they grow older illustrate Neil''s contention that
"in a friendship, you don''t so much change terms as observe terms
changing" [p.112]?
8. How do you feel about Neil''s complicity in enabling John
William to escape from the real world? What moral imperatives
underlie his actions? Is he guilty of betraying the fundamental
ethical obligations he has as a member of society?
9. In his course, Nature in Literature, Neil tells his students,
"poetry and nature are occasions for introspection, but not
necessarily for happiness" [p. 28]. Is John William seduced by a
naïve, romantic view of the relationship between man and nature? Is
he prepared for life in the wilderness? What does he learn about
his strengths and limitations as he struggles with nature''s
unpredictable, difficult, and often cruel challenges?
10. Does his flight from civilization bring John William the
spiritual purity he is searching for? Could he have found another
way to express his antipathy to the hypocrisy he sees in the
ordinary world? Do you think that he knowingly set out on a path to
self-destruction?
11. Is the relationship between Neil and John William a healthy
one? What emotional satisfaction does it provide for each of them?
Does Neil''s role in John William''s life influence his behavior as
husband, father, and teacher?
12. Was Neil ultimately right to keep John William''s secret for
so long? How do you think John William''s mother and father would
answer?
13. Neil writes, "In the newspaper reports on the hermit of the
Hoh, an abiding derangement is the heart of the matter. That''s
wrong" [p. 112]. Does Neil''s account of what happens to John
William justify this point of view? Would a more objective observer
draw the same conclusion from the evidence Neil provides?
14. How does The Other compare to other
accounts, either fiction or nonfiction, about people who have
exiled themselves from society? If you have read Into the
Wild (or have seen the movie), what
similarities do you see between John William and Chris McCandless?
Discuss the diverse reasons, either rational or not, a person might
have for abandoning a comfortable life for one filled with risk and
danger. Discuss how Guterson''s decision to tell such a story in
the form of a novel differs from Krakauer''s nonfiction
approach.
15. This is a book chiefly about a friendship between two boys,
yet in many ways the women they love shape the men they become.
What roles do the women in the novel-Neil''s mother, who dies when
he is in high school; John William''s mother, who abandons him when
he is still a child; Neil''s loving and supportive wife; and John
William''s college girlfriend-play in the lives of the two main
characters?
16. How does inheriting John William''s money change things for
Neil-if it does at all? Do you think that it is inheriting the
money that allows Neil to finally devote himself to writing, or is
it the chance to get John William''s story off his chest? Would
John William want a book written about him? Is Neil exploiting his
friend in any way?