Literature and Language July Book Club Questions

The Literature and Language Book Club will meet from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m. Saturday, July 18 in Room 3N-6 at Harold Washington Library Center to discuss The Heart Is A Lonely Hunter by Carson McCullers.

Here are some discussion questions from The Big Read to consider as you read:

  1. Carson McCullers took her novel's title from a poem by William Sharp. How does this title relate to the novel's five main characters? Why might McCullers have changed it from her original title, “The Mute”?
  2. Isolation and loneliness are key themes in the novel. How are they different? What are some of the ways the characters seek to alleviate their feelings of isolation and loneliness?
  3. The narrator describes the main characters as both ordinary and heroic. Do you agree?
  4. What fuels John Singer's devotion to his companion, Spiros Antonapoulos? How does Singer feel after Antonapoulos is sent to the asylum?