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Pigs in Heaven

Barbara Kingsolver

Suggested Essay Topics

Writing help Suggested Essay Topics

There is an ongoing tension in the novel between community values and individualism. Jax seems to think that no compromise is possible. Does the novel suggest that reconciling these two ways of life is possible?

What role does the magazine advertisement of Sugar play in the novel? What is the symbolic meaning of the town named Heaven?

Annawake oftentimes gives historical accounts of atrocities practiced against her people. What does this historical remembrance/analysis add to the story?

Think about the names in the novel, especially those given to the Cherokee characters: Annawake Fourkiller, Cash Stillwater, Boma Mellowbug, Turtle, even Lucky Buster. Names in this book draw attention to certain character traits. What are they, and what actions reflect their significance? How do names help to produce a character?

Would you consider the end of the novel happy or sad? How is the ending consistent with the novel's moral scheme?

How do the Cherokee consider bloodline or racial purity? How does one become a Cherokee?