10. Comfort of Strangers

Post by Monday, Nov. 11.

1. For Tuesday's class, read The Comfort of Strangers in its entirety.

2. Post a blog entry about a travel theme in the novel. You might take a look at one of the articles on the About the Reading page. (BTW, if any of the links don't work for you, go to NYUHome > Research tab > under "Databases: Title index" select "L" and go to the "Literature Resource Center," and type in Comfort of Strangers.)  Some suggested topics: (1) Some critics read the story against a background in the psychoanalytic literature on sado-masochism—you could follow that lead.  (2) The novel has several connections to Death in Venice you might explore.  (3) How is Venice represented in the novel and how does it contribute to developing the book's themes?  (4) After you finish the book, go back to the beginning and re-read a few chapters: what do you notice now that you may have missed before?  (5) Focus on a key passage or two that relate directly to travel and tourism, and connect them to the rest of the novel.  (6) Consider the significance of the epigraph from Adrienne Rich; this article may be helpful. (7) Check out the interview with McEwan in the pdf below.

3. As usual, include an image with your blog post, and post a comment on someone else's blog.