Monday, July 31, 2006
"The Jockey" Notes and Homework Questions
THE JOCKEY BY CARSON MCCULLERS
NOTES
THE JOCKEY
BY CARSON MC CULLERS
TIME PERIOD IS THE DEPRESSION
MAIN CHARACTER IS BITSY BARLOW, A JOCKEY, WHO IS UPSET ABOAUT HIS FRIEND, MCQUIRE(THE KID), WHO WAS HURT ON THE RACE TRACK (BROKE A LEG AND HIP ).
MCQUIRE IS A PARTICULAR FRIEND OF BITSYS, AND NOW HIS LEG IS 2 INCHES SHORTER THAN THE OTHER.
THE OTHER THREE MEN IN THE STORY ARE SYLVESTER, THE TRAINER, SIMMONS, THE BOOKIE, AND A RICH MAN WHO OWNS SELTZER.
THEY RESPOND TO BITSY AND HIS FRIENDS MISFORTUNATE PLIGHT BY SAYING “THAT’S LIFE.”
CARSON MCCULLERS
BORN 1917 AND DIED 1967
HER CONCERNS WERE INDIVIDUALITY, SELFHOOD, FRAGILE HUMAN PERSONALITY
HER STORIES ARE ABOUT PEOPLE TRYING DESPERATELY TO GAIN AND KEEP A HOLD ON AN INDIFFERENT WORLD.
SHE WAS BORN IN COLUMBUS, GEORGIA, AND WAS AN ACCOMPLISHED MUSICIAN.
SHE STUDIED AT THE JUILLIARD SCHOOL OF MUSIC
AT THE AGE OF 29, SHE BECAME PARALYZED ON HER LEFT SIDE, WHICH HAMPERED HER ABILITY TO WORK.
HER WRITING IS CONCERNED WITH LONELINES AND PERSONAL CONFLICT.
• The main character, Bitsy Barlow, is a man interiorly broken from a tragic racing accident that left his best friend and fellow jockey, permanently disabled.
• Bitsy attempts to suppress his rage over his friend’s accident and the lack of sympathy and support from the major players in the facing game.
• Bitsy’s friend has no use to the owners of the horse, and so the owners abandon him.
• Bitsy’s actions are influenced by the constant thought of his friend.
• Everyone only saw his friend as a dollar sign.
• Bitsy drinks to try to deaden his rage towards these people.
• Bitsy must walk away from these people so he can regain control of himself.
• Bitsy feels his anger is justifiable
• Bitsy now has a hole in his life—but this is the only life he knows.
• There is no closure to the matter for Bitsy and he is forced to live with the knowledge that things will never be the same.
• McCullers deals with themes of alienation and loneliness in books and short stories.
HOMEWORK: DUE THE DAY AFTER WE COMPLETE THE STORY.
THE JOCKEY BY Carson McCullers
A. Briefly answer the following questions.
1. Describe the setting.
2. How does the jockey react when he sees the three men sitting at the table diagonally across from him?
3. How is the jockey dressed? What is remarkable about him?
4. Who are the three men, and what are their names?
5. Who or what is Seltzer?
6. What is the jockey’s name?
7. What comment of Simmons’ suggests the jockey’s difficulty in communicating?
8. What happened in Miami six months before the story opens? Describe the incident.
9. In what condition is McGuire now (p. 61)? How would you describe the jockey’s reaction? Discuss.
10. What does Sylvester mean when he says to the jockey, “You got to behave reasonable” (p. 60)?
11. Sylvester provides a clue to the jockey’s appearance. What is it, and what particular concern does Sylvester have?
12. What detail mentioned by the author reminds the reader of the jockey’s isolation (p. 62)? Quote the line.
13. Explain what Bitsy Barlow means when he states bitterly that the three men are all libertines. What has this to do with the lifestyles of these three men?
14. How much does Bitsy Barlow weigh?
15. Describe the setting in detail including both time and place.
16. State the theme or main idea of the story.
17. What does Bitsy Barlow look like and how is his psychological state?
18. How does alcohol affect the men in “The Three-Day Blow” and Bitsy in “The Jockey”?
B. Write a sentence for each of these words. Sentences must reflect the story.
1. libertine
2. garnish
3. jockey
4. bouquet
5. precise
C. Write true or false for each statement.
1. Seltzer was a horse trainer.
2. The setting for the story is a hotel dining room.
3. The author’s tone suggests sympathy for all the characters.
4. Bitsy Barlow has become bitter because he hasn’t been winning.
5. When Sylvester asks the jockey to “behave reasonable,” he is referring to Bitsy Barlow’s need to control his temper.
D. ASSIGNMENT: Explain how Betsy tries to confront his indifferent world. Compare him to the other three characters in the short story.
NOTES
THE JOCKEY
BY CARSON MC CULLERS
TIME PERIOD IS THE DEPRESSION
MAIN CHARACTER IS BITSY BARLOW, A JOCKEY, WHO IS UPSET ABOAUT HIS FRIEND, MCQUIRE(THE KID), WHO WAS HURT ON THE RACE TRACK (BROKE A LEG AND HIP ).
MCQUIRE IS A PARTICULAR FRIEND OF BITSYS, AND NOW HIS LEG IS 2 INCHES SHORTER THAN THE OTHER.
THE OTHER THREE MEN IN THE STORY ARE SYLVESTER, THE TRAINER, SIMMONS, THE BOOKIE, AND A RICH MAN WHO OWNS SELTZER.
THEY RESPOND TO BITSY AND HIS FRIENDS MISFORTUNATE PLIGHT BY SAYING “THAT’S LIFE.”
CARSON MCCULLERS
BORN 1917 AND DIED 1967
HER CONCERNS WERE INDIVIDUALITY, SELFHOOD, FRAGILE HUMAN PERSONALITY
HER STORIES ARE ABOUT PEOPLE TRYING DESPERATELY TO GAIN AND KEEP A HOLD ON AN INDIFFERENT WORLD.
SHE WAS BORN IN COLUMBUS, GEORGIA, AND WAS AN ACCOMPLISHED MUSICIAN.
SHE STUDIED AT THE JUILLIARD SCHOOL OF MUSIC
AT THE AGE OF 29, SHE BECAME PARALYZED ON HER LEFT SIDE, WHICH HAMPERED HER ABILITY TO WORK.
HER WRITING IS CONCERNED WITH LONELINES AND PERSONAL CONFLICT.
• The main character, Bitsy Barlow, is a man interiorly broken from a tragic racing accident that left his best friend and fellow jockey, permanently disabled.
• Bitsy attempts to suppress his rage over his friend’s accident and the lack of sympathy and support from the major players in the facing game.
• Bitsy’s friend has no use to the owners of the horse, and so the owners abandon him.
• Bitsy’s actions are influenced by the constant thought of his friend.
• Everyone only saw his friend as a dollar sign.
• Bitsy drinks to try to deaden his rage towards these people.
• Bitsy must walk away from these people so he can regain control of himself.
• Bitsy feels his anger is justifiable
• Bitsy now has a hole in his life—but this is the only life he knows.
• There is no closure to the matter for Bitsy and he is forced to live with the knowledge that things will never be the same.
• McCullers deals with themes of alienation and loneliness in books and short stories.
HOMEWORK: DUE THE DAY AFTER WE COMPLETE THE STORY.
THE JOCKEY BY Carson McCullers
A. Briefly answer the following questions.
1. Describe the setting.
2. How does the jockey react when he sees the three men sitting at the table diagonally across from him?
3. How is the jockey dressed? What is remarkable about him?
4. Who are the three men, and what are their names?
5. Who or what is Seltzer?
6. What is the jockey’s name?
7. What comment of Simmons’ suggests the jockey’s difficulty in communicating?
8. What happened in Miami six months before the story opens? Describe the incident.
9. In what condition is McGuire now (p. 61)? How would you describe the jockey’s reaction? Discuss.
10. What does Sylvester mean when he says to the jockey, “You got to behave reasonable” (p. 60)?
11. Sylvester provides a clue to the jockey’s appearance. What is it, and what particular concern does Sylvester have?
12. What detail mentioned by the author reminds the reader of the jockey’s isolation (p. 62)? Quote the line.
13. Explain what Bitsy Barlow means when he states bitterly that the three men are all libertines. What has this to do with the lifestyles of these three men?
14. How much does Bitsy Barlow weigh?
15. Describe the setting in detail including both time and place.
16. State the theme or main idea of the story.
17. What does Bitsy Barlow look like and how is his psychological state?
18. How does alcohol affect the men in “The Three-Day Blow” and Bitsy in “The Jockey”?
B. Write a sentence for each of these words. Sentences must reflect the story.
1. libertine
2. garnish
3. jockey
4. bouquet
5. precise
C. Write true or false for each statement.
1. Seltzer was a horse trainer.
2. The setting for the story is a hotel dining room.
3. The author’s tone suggests sympathy for all the characters.
4. Bitsy Barlow has become bitter because he hasn’t been winning.
5. When Sylvester asks the jockey to “behave reasonable,” he is referring to Bitsy Barlow’s need to control his temper.
D. ASSIGNMENT: Explain how Betsy tries to confront his indifferent world. Compare him to the other three characters in the short story.
# posted by Sister Pat / English @ 6:23 AM 
