Synopses & Reviews
Originally published in 1977,
White Rat contains twelve provocative tales that explore the emotional and mental terrain of a diverse cast of characters, from the innocent to the insane.
In each, Jones displays her unflinching ability to dive into the most treacherous of psyches and circumstances: the title story examines the identity and relationship conundrums of a black man who can pass for white, earning him the name “White Rat” as an infant; “The Women” follows a girl whose mother brings a line of female lovers to live in their home; “Jevata” details eighteen-year-old Freddys relationship with the fifty-year-old title character; “The Coke Factory” tracks the thoughts of a mentally handicapped adolescent abandoned by his mother; and “Asylum” focuses on a woman having a nervous breakdown, trying to protect her dignity and her private parts as she enters an institution.
In uncompromising prose, and dialect that veers from northern, educated tongues to down-home southern colloquialisms, Jones illuminates lives that society ignores, moving them to center stage.
About the Author
GAYL JONES is the critically acclaimed author of several novels and books of poetry, including Corregidora, Evas Man, The Healing, Mosquito, and Song for Anninho.
Reading Group Guide
Originally published in 1977,
White Rat contains twelve provocative tales that explore the emotional and mental terrain of a diverse cast of characters, from the innocent to the insane.
In each, Jones displays her unflinching ability to dive into the most treacherous of psyches and circumstances: the title story examines the identity and relationship conundrums of a black man who can pass for white, earning him the name “White Rat” as an infant; “The Women” follows a girl whose mother brings a line of female lovers to live in their home; “Jevata” details eighteen-year-old Freddy’s relationship with the fifty-year-old title character; “The Coke Factory” tracks the thoughts of a mentally handicapped adolescent abandoned by his mother; and “Asylum” focuses on a woman having a nervous breakdown, trying to protect her dignity and her private parts as she enters an institution.
In uncompromising prose, and dialect that veers from northern, educated tongues to down-home southern colloquialisms, Jones illuminates lives that society ignores, moving them to center stage.
1. Jones often makes parallels between loneliness, alienation, and mental stability. How are these themes emphasized in “Your Poems Have Very Little Color in Them,” “Asylum,” and “Version 2”?
2. What devices does she employ to underscore the relationship between social and mental wellness throughout the collection?
3. How does Jones’s use of language inform the reader about the social, economic, historical, and emotional status of her characters?
4. Children appear in several of the short stories, most prominently in “The Women.” Why do you think Jones chose to tell this story through Winnie Flynn’s voice? Do you find Winnie’s “voice” plausible? Why? Why not? How does Winnie’s mother’s sexuality inform Winnie’s awareness of self? On the whole, discuss how children throughout the stories play a role in etching the identity and stability of the main characters.
5. In the stories “White Rat,” “Jevata,” “The Return: A Fantasy,” and “The Women,” Jones constructs families that are far from mainstream. How are these families defined? What makes them unique? What aspects of them do we see reflected in today’s households?
6. White Rat’s stories were written in the 1970s. Does this time period impact the stories? If so, how? Does knowing when they were written impact your perspective on their content? Why or why not?
7. How does the author use race (sometimes never mentioning a character’s racial background) and sexuality to draw out her plots? In which stories do you think this was most effective? Why?
1. Jones often makes parallels between loneliness, alienation, and mental stability. How are these themes emphasized in “Your Poems Have Very Little Color in Them,” “Asylum,” and “Version 2”?
2. What devices does she employ to underscore the relationship between social and mental wellness throughout the collection?
3. How does Joness use of language inform the reader about the social, economic, historical, and emotional status of her characters?
4. Children appear in several of the short stories, most prominently in “The Women.” Why do you think Jones chose to tell this story through Winnie Flynns voice? Do you find Winnies “voice” plausible? Why? Why not? How does Winnies mothers sexuality inform Winnies awareness of self? On the whole, discuss how children throughout the stories play a role in etching the identity and stability of the main characters.
5. In the stories “White Rat,” “Jevata,” “The Return: A Fantasy,” and “The Women,” Jones constructs families that are far from mainstream. How are these families defined? What makes them unique? What aspects of them do we see reflected in todays households?
6. White Rats stories were written in the 1970s. Does this time period impact the stories? If so, how? Does knowing when they were written impact your perspective on their content? Why or why not?
7. How does the author use race (sometimes never mentioning a characters racial background) and sexuality to draw out her plots? In which stories do you think this was most effective? Why?