Sadie McLure (Plath): opinionated, serious, thoughtful, prickly
Noah Cotton (Keats): observer, quiet, intuitive-thinker, courageous
Vincent: Anhedonic, undaunted, strong-willed, merciful, loyal
Anthony Elder (Bug Man): dangerous, determined, cocky, vindictive
Charles and Benjamin Armstrong: ruthless, power-hungry, deranged, unforgiving
1. The first time Nijinsky and Noah met, Nijinsky asked him “which is more important: freedom or happiness?” Explain why Nijinsky asked Noah this question.
2. Imagine that you are given a chance to become a Twitcher. Would you risk your sanity to help to fight a war in the human brain to save the world from becoming the Armstrong twins’ version of a utopia? Why or why not?
3. The Armstrong twins spent their entire life hiding because of their appearance. Predict what the brothers would do if they were able to separate from each other. Explain your reasoning.
From Chapter 4, page 41:
Nijinsky: “Tell me something, Noah. Which is more important: freedom or happiness?”
What was this, a game? But Nijinsky wasn’t smiling.
“You can’t be happy unless you’re free,” Noah said.
This key passage helps with understanding the novel by kind of saying that most people don’t