boarding house lesson

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The Boarding House


“The demand that I make of my reader is that he should devote his whole life to reading my works.”


Main Characters


Mrs. Mooney

• Butcher’s Daughter• Separated• Rented Out Rooms• Called “The Madam”• Thrifty• Manipulative


Mr. Mooney

• Drunk• Sheriff’s Man• Violent• Separated


Jack Mooney

• Drinks• Tough• Violent• Loves Sister


Polly Mooney

• Slim, 19, pretty• “perverse Madonna”• Typist / house keeper• Looking for a husband


Mr. Bob Doran

• Employed, Good Salary• 34- 35 year old• Catholic• Stuck Up• Cowardly


Old Mr. Leonard

• Mr. Doran’s Boss• Conservative• Catholic


The PlotMrs. Mooney rents rooms to young men. With her mother’s unspoken encouragement, Polly Mooney and Mr. Doran “sin” together. The Priest, social pressure, and Mrs. Mooney force Mr. Doran to “do the right thing” and “make reparation” to Polly.


Social Cultural History

• Having sexual relations outside the sanctity of marriage forbidden for most of human history.

• Being pregnant outside of marriage a social stigma.

• A divorced woman was a “immoral” or “loose” woman.


America 1960s – 1970s

• American “sexual” revolution• Sex became more socially

acceptable• TV, Movies, Music changed

Coleman’s Classroom www.clmn.netColeman’s Classroom www.clmn.net

That Was Then … This Is Now

I Love Lucy

Gary Unmarried


That Was Then … This Is NowPatsy Kline

I fall to pieces… Avril LavigneHey You! I don’t like your girlfriend…


That Was Then … This Is Now

Casablanca Spider Man


New Idiomatic Vocabulary

Phrase• Keep things to

oneselfand

• Keep ones own counsel

• Under lock and key

• Being had

Means

• Not talk about personal details or events

• Not easily accessible

• Being taken advantage of by someone


New Idiomatic Vocabulary

Phrase• Brazen it out• Count your cards• Sow wild oats

• Settle down

• Make a clean breast of it

Means• Face shamelessly• Assess your

resources• Be excessively

sexually active• Get married, have a

family, be responsible

• Confess completely one’s transgressions


The Plot

Who? What? When?

Where? Why? How?

Main Idea?Society requires a man to

marry a girl he has “ruined.”


Plot Comprehension Questions

Why did Mrs. Mooney leave her husband?

Why do the residents call Mrs. Mooney “The Madam?”

Why did Polly leave her job as a typist?

What did Mrs. Mooney hope would happen to Polly in the boarding house?



What does Mrs. Mooney want from Mr. Doran?

Why don’t Polly and her mom discuss what is going on in the house?

How does Mr. Doran view Polly? Positives and Negatives?

Why does thoughts of Mr. Leonard influence Mr. Doran



How does Jack influence Mr. Doran?

How does Polly influence Mr. Doran?

When does Mr. Doran decide what he will do?

What is his decision?What affects his decision?


THEMES to Consider

• Tone / Humor / Irony• Marriage / Divorce / Sex• Peer Pressure • Bossy Parents• Societal Expectations• Parents’ roles in children’s

lifes• Others?


Literary Terms (1)

ToneAttitude of the writer toward

the story, characters, theme, plot, etc.

Tone may be humorous, sarcastic, ironic, cheerful, pessimistic, angry, unfeeling, compassionate, or satirical.


Literary Terms (2)

HumorCan be shown in many formsincluding exaggerated

situations,snappy lines, sarcasm, parody, irony, colloquialisms, puns and word play, comic

characterizations, And black humor


Sneeze by Maxine Kumin

There’s a sort of a ticklethe size of a nickel,A bit like the prickleOf sweet sour pickle,

it’s a quivery shiverthe shape of a sliver,like eels in a river,

a kind of a wigglethat starts as a jiggleand jogglesits wayto a tease,

which I cannot suppress any longer, I guess, so pardon me, please,while I sneeze.


Literary Terms (3)

OxymoronFigure of speech combining

contradictory wordsExample

“living death”“which made her look like a

little perverse Madonna” lns 43-45


Review Literary Terms (4)

Irony- a comment or situation that the opposite of what is expected occurs


“Ironic” by Alanis Morissette

• has won 12 Juno Awardsand 7 Grammy Awards• has sold over 55 million

albums worldwide • Jagged Little Pill released

1995• “Ironic” biggest hit to date


Song Excerpt

An old man turned ninety-eightHe won the lottery and died the next dayIt's a black fly in your ChardonnayIt's a death row pardon two minutes too lateAnd isn't it ironic... don't you think


A traffic jam when you're already lateA no-smoking sign on your cigarette breakIt's like ten thousand spoons when all you need is a knifeIt's meeting the man of my dreamsAnd then meeting his beautiful wifeAnd isn't it ironic...don't you thinkA little too ironic...and, yeah, I really do think...


It's like rain on your wedding dayIt's a free ride when you've already paidIt's the good advice that you just didn't takeWho would've thought... it figures


Your Thoughts

• Is Mrs. Mooney a good mother?

• Does this couple have a future together?

• Why should people get married?

• Do you feel sorry for any of the characters?


For More Information

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boarding house lesson

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