1. Talk about Marina's relationship with her boss, Mr. Fox. Would you call what they share love? Do they have a future? Why does he want Marina to go to the Amazon? What propels her to agree?
2. What drew Marina to her old mentor, Annik Swenson? Compare and contrast the two women. How does Annick see Marina? Barbara Bovender, one of Annik's caretakers/gatekeepers tells Marina, 'She's such a force of nature. . . . a woman completely fearless, someone who sees the world without limitations.' Is this a fair assessment of Annik? How would you describe her? How has the elderly doctor's past shaped the person she is and the choices she has made?"
3. Would you be able to live in the jungle as the researchers and natives do? Is there an appeal to going back to nature; from being removed from the western constraints of time and our modern technological society?"
4. Marina travels into hell, into her own Conradian 'heart of darkness.' What keeps her in the jungle longer than she'd ever thought she'd stay? How does this journey transform her and her view of herself and the world? Will she ever return'and does she need to?
5. What is the significance of the novel's title, State of Wonder?
2. What drew Marina to her old mentor, Annik Swenson? Compare and contrast the two women. How does Annick see Marina? Barbara Bovender, one of Annik's caretakers/gatekeepers tells Marina, 'She's such a force of nature. . . . a woman completely fearless, someone who sees the world without limitations.' Is this a fair assessment of Annik? How would you describe her? How has the elderly doctor's past shaped the person she is and the choices she has made?"
3. Would you be able to live in the jungle as the researchers and natives do? Is there an appeal to going back to nature; from being removed from the western constraints of time and our modern technological society?"
4. Marina travels into hell, into her own Conradian 'heart of darkness.' What keeps her in the jungle longer than she'd ever thought she'd stay? How does this journey transform her and her view of herself and the world? Will she ever return'and does she need to?
5. What is the significance of the novel's title, State of Wonder?