Classroom Discussion Questions

The following discussion questions for River of Earth were prepared by Sue Churchill, an English teacher at Woodford County High School in Central Kentucky. She and her students are seen discussing the novel in the special hour-long bookclub@ket program, James Still’s Legacy.

Page numbers refer to the 1978 edition of River of Earth published by University Press of Kentucky.

Titles are mine, not Mr. Still’s! They are intended to help focus discussion. Some questions are simply to check for understanding of the events and their implications. The questions in bold are more important because they require us to consider the themes of the novel.

This book is famous in part for its re-creation of Appalachian dialect. Pay attention to how the characters speak as you read. Keep a list of distinctive or unusual sayings or phrases! We’ll discuss these as we go and at the end of the novel.

SECTION I: Home and Family (pages 3-43)

1. What is the conflict set up in the first chapter?
2. Who are the main characters in the family, and what are their approximate ages?
3. Why does Uncle Samp hit the narrator?
4. What happens to Harl and Tibb?
5. What is Mother’s victory at the end of Chapter 1?
6. How and why was the main character’s birthday, his special day with his father, so very bitter?
7. Compare and contrast Uncle Jolly (Mother’s brother) with Father’s relatives in this section (Harl, Tibb, and Uncle Samp).

SECTION II: Farm Life (pages 44-65)

1. What is the main conflict in this section, and who does it involve?
2. What do we learn about the main characters in this section?
3. Who is Taulbee Lovern, and why does Father mention him repeatedly in this section?
4. Why is the narrator wiping away tears as this section ends?
5. On page 18, Father says, “You can’t turn down folks who are starving.” Why does he feel these words sound “foolish and with no weight”?
6. What is Mother’s greatest concern in this section?

SECTION III: Church and School (pages 66-98)

1. What is the big news at the beginning of this section?
2. Why does Mother throw her apron over her head when Father arrives home from his first day at Blackjack?
3. In these chapters, what can you tell about the relationship between Father and Mother (Brack and Alpha)?
4. In the sermon on page 76, we find out where the unusual title of the book comes from. Explain the meaning of the title and sermon in your own words.
5. What is the news in the letter that the family receives? What do we learn about Mother and Father when they receive the letter?
6. Explain the irony of the final scene of this section.
7. Describe Jonce Weathers. What kind of person is he? How do you know?
8. How is Euly involved in Jonce’s fate?

SECTION IV: Lean Neck: Life with Grandma (pages 101-65)

1. Describe Grandma—what kind of person is she? What are her strengths? weaknesses? What do her actions show about her? What is her great desire in this section and throughout the book?
2. How does the narrator change over the period during which he lives with Grandma?
3. How does Uncle Jolly get out of prison?
4. What important things do we learn about the narrator’s family in this section?
5. Considering the famous Appalachian feuds, explain how the Middletons reacted to Boone’s murder and why.
6. Who is “Walking John Gay”? Explain why Still would include him and the story of the pigeons in the novel.
7. Why does the narrator end up “in jail”? Why does Uncle Jolly send his mother a key at the end of this section?

SECTION V: Back Home—Blackjack (pages 169-245)

1. Why is Father opposed to having the funeral?
2. Explain the significance of the egg tree in this section. What does it show about the characters?
3. How has the family’s situation come full circle by this section of the book?
4. By the end of this section, which characters have gained respect?
5. What values seem most important in this novel? Which characters seem to embody these values?
6. What does Mother (Alpha) wish for in the course of the novel? Does she get what she wants?
7. What is the significance of the narrator’s desire to be a horse doctor?
8. What threat is looming near the end of the book?
9. What do we learn about Grandma near the end of the book?
10. Is the ending of the book disturbing? happy? hopeful? sad? Why do you say so? How is the title related to the ending of the book?