A Seven Stories Press READING GROUP GUIDE
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS 1. Why do you think Ernaux chooses to title her book “A Woman’s Story”? Who do you think it refers to and why? What would you have chosen to title it? 2. Examine the quote from Hegel prefacing the book. What do you think he means by this? To what extent do you agree or disagree? How does this idea relate to the rest of the book? 3. Ernaux attempts to view her mother’s story in a purely objective context in order “to capture the real woman, the one who existed independently from me....” (12) What techniques does she use stylistically to accomplish this? Do you think she is ultimately able to achieve her goal? Why or why not? 4. After her mother’s funeral, Ernaux writes, “Everything is definitely over.” (8) What is over? What now begins? Similarly, what does Ernaux mean when she writes, “Now everything is one”? (87) 5. Ernaux states, “there is only one immutable order which would convey the truth about my mother (although what this truth involves I am unable to say).” (31) Plot the sequence with which Ernaux relates the events of her mother’s life and death in the book. Why do you think Ernaux ultimately decides on this particular chronology? How does it connect with the larger themes of rebirth and growth? And finally, in your opinion, what is the truth Ernaux wished to convey? 6. Why is Ernaux now able to “feel the power of ordinary sentences, or even clichés”? (10) 7. As Ernaux reveals the story of her mother’s life, her own story is similarly bared. Compare the similarities and differences you discover between the two women in regards to their upbringing, their temperaments, their intellectual disposition, and their aspirations, and their worldviews. Ernaux then predicts for herself a similar end to her mother’s: “...one day...I would be one of the women who sit waiting for their dinner, folding and unfolding their napkin, here or somewhere else.” (87) Why do you think she comes to this conclusion? Do you agree with this scenario? Why or why not? 8. Ernaux is careful to suspend judgment of her mother, of herself, and
of those around her, calling herself “only the archivist.” (15) What is she archiving? What moral and emotional demands does this position then place on the reader? Are there any passages you remember that particularly moved or shocked you? Would a different approach to her mother’s death have ultimately been more powerful? Why or why not? 9. Ernaux writes, “I would recognize that tone of conversation between a mother and her daughter anywhere in the world.” (64) What are the universal signs of a mother-daughter relationship you find throughout the book? And in your own life? 10. What are some of the idealized misconceptions children have of their parents, sometimes well past the age of childhood? What are some of the idealized misconceptions you’ve had of your own parents? How does Ernaux react when these illusions are broken? 11. Ernaux writes, “The last bond between me and the world I come from has been severed.” (90) To what extent is this true? What world is she referring to? What world does she now belong to?
Born in 1940, ANNIE ERNAUX grew up in Normandy. From 1977 to 2000, she was a professor at the Centre National d’Enseignement par Correspondance. In 1984, she won the Prix Renaudot for her book La Place. Eight of her novels have been published in America. Some of her recent works include L’événement (2000), Se perdre (2001), and L’usage de la photo (2005). FOR FURTHER READING Berger, Maureen Mahany. “Writing ‘Au-Dessous de la Litterature’: Annie Ernaux.” Master’s thesis, Miami University, 2004. Day, Loraine. “Fiction, Autobiography and Annie Ernaux’s Evolving Project as a Writer: A Study of Ce qu’ils disent ou rien.” Romance Studies 17:1 (1999), 89-103. Jellenik, Cathy. “A Tripartite Approach to Rewriting in Marguerite Duras, Annie Ernaux and Marie Redonnet.” PhD thesis, University of Colorado at Boulder, 2005. McIlvanney, Siobhán. Annie Ernaux: The Return to Origins. Liverpool: Liverpool University Press, 2001. McIlvanney, Siobhán. “Writing Relations: The Auto/biographical Subject of Annie Ernaux’s La Place and Une femme.” Journal of the Insitute of Romance Studies 7 (1999), 205-215. Taylor, Chloë. “The Confessions of Annie Ernaux: Autobiography, Truth, and Repetition.” Journal of Modern Literature 28:1 (2004), 65-88.