In the Lives of Puppets

What answers do various characters offer to the question of What it Means to Be Human? Consider humanity’s negative and positive attributes in your response. Based on evidence from the novel, how would the author answer this question?

Nurse Ratched and Rambo are two of the novel’s most significant supporting characters. Compare and contrast their personalities and character arcs. How do they each play an important role in the novel by advancing the plot, developing a theme, or contributing to Victor’s character development?

How is Hap’s character defined by the struggle for free will and intentional action? What obstacles threaten his agency, and how does he overcome them? How do this theme and Hap’s transformation connect to the story’s genre?

How does Victor and Hap’s relationship develop the theme of The Complexity of Love? How does their love change them both and impact the novel’s overall meaning?

Which characters see Victor as a symbol of hope and why do they view him this way? How is this both helpful and limiting for the protagonist, and why does he ultimately reject his status as a symbol?

Butterflies appear at key moments throughout the novel. Why are these insects a fitting symbol for free will? How does this motif contribute to the story’s plot and character development?

The forest is both a beautiful, life-sustaining place and a lonely, isolating one. How does this setting affect the novel’s structure, mood, and exploration of love? Why does Victor decide to return to the forest at the end of the novel?

Hearts serve as a motif throughout the novel developing the theme of The Complexity of Love. How do the artificial hearts contribute to the novel’s plot, mood, and character development? How do the hearts that Victor builds change as he and his relationships develop over the course of the novel?