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Angela's Ashes

Page history last edited by James Kanach 13 years, 5 months ago

 

Angela's Ashes

 

Map

 

 

Characters

Pa McCourt- Malachy McCourt Senior, known as "Pa", was the father of Frankie, Alphonsus, Michael, Oliver, Eugene, Malachy Jr., and Margaret McCourt. He was the husband of Angela Sheehan, and he was an alcoholic. Throughout the memoir, Malachy Sr.'s drinking problems are mentioned. He was often seen in bars, drinking away the relief money, leaving nothing for the family. There was a time when he tried to stop drinking. During the seven weeks that Margaret was born, Malachy Sr. tried to give up drinking. He loved his daughter very much, perhaps more than his sons. However, when Margaret was taken from the world, Malachy was destroyed. He returned to the bars and drank away. The interesting thing is, Pa McCourt is not really a factor in his children's growth and childhood. He is mentioned a lot, but he presents no role model of any sort for his children. The only time he is ever put in a good light (after Margaret's death) is when he comes to check on Frankie during Frankie's time in the hospital. His children don't respect him, not even taking a single penny from him when he offers it, because they understand that he has abandoned his family.

 

Frankie McCourt-The author of the book who writes about his memories of poverty and sorrow of his family. Born in Brooklyn, he was the oldest of all of his siblings, and was constantly gaining more responsibility throughout the book. Frank was the son of Angela Sheehan and Malachy McCourt (Senior). Frank moved to Limerick and was top of his classes throughout grade school. He was very observant towards the blunders in his society, different personalities and relationships amongst neighbors and family members, and very conscientious of the church (i.e. sinning). Throughout the book, readers' watch as Franks' interests shift from school and family toward women and (at one stage) alcohol. When his father, Malachy, left the house, Frank was responsible for earning money to support the family. Frank McCourt was ambitious and considered his fathers' alcoholism/laziness the enemy. He went to church to confess for his sins constantly throughout the book, but started to lighten up and criticize the Church more as his story progressed. Angela's Ashes is written in Frank's perspective and shows the true suffering of himself and the people he's surrounded by.

 

Angela Sheehan - mother of Frank and his siblings. Angela is a very caring mother, and always puts the need of her children ahead of her own needs. She is not always loving in an obvious way, but definitely tries the best she can at all times. She goes through many struggles, such as the death of three children and having an alcoholic husband, and she is often not in good spirits. She tries never to beg so she doesn't make her children too aware of their struggles, even though they are poor, but there are times when there is no other option. She is a very hard worker and tries her hardest to make the best of bad situations.

 

Margaret: Everyone loved and adored her. She was Frank's beautiful baby sister who was always the center of attension. While Margaret was alive, Malachy (the father) stopped drinking and provided for his family. Her death (at a very young age) flung Angela into depression and caused Malachy to return to his alcoholic state; Frank was forced to "help" take care of his youger brothers.

 

Malachy- Malachy is named after his father. He is Franks younger brother by one year and is the brother who Frank spends the most time with. Malachy gets himself and Frank out of some bad situations by useing his stunning good looks.

 

Oliver- born in Brooklyn. Twin to Eugene. Nickname Ollie. Moves to Limerick and dies at 2 from a fever. Has a strong connection with Eugene. For Ollie and Eugene: sugar water instead of milk, rags for diapers.

 

Eugene- born in Brooklyn. Twin to Oliver. Nickname Genie. Also dies at the age of 2 in Limerick of pneumonia. After Ollie's death, he was very sad, always looking out the window for his twin. :(

Michael- Born in Limerick, Michael is the second youngest brother of Frank. WhenTheresa

Carmody- Frank ran away to Uncle Pa's house, Michael was the first of the family to move in withFrank.

Alphie

 

Uncle Pat- Uncle Pat is Angela's brother, and everyone calls him Ab Sheehan. He was droppped on his head as a child by his father, and grew up mentally unsound. He is, however, gifted with an extraordinary ability to count money. He loves to sing the song "Road to Rasheen", although it isn't the same song twice.

 

Aunt Aggie - Aunt Aggie is Frank's tough and stern aunt on his mother's side. Although she is strict on her family, she truly loves them. Her love shows when she comes through for her family during hard times, such as when she buys brand new clothes for Frank's new job as a telegram boy.

Pa Keating - Pa works at a blacksmith, and as a result constantly has a layer or two of black soot over him. He looks out for the children and his philosophy of life inspires Frankie; he doesn't 'give a fiddler's fart' about what anyone else thinks about him. He's an experienced drinker and is married to Aunt Aggie.

 

Mrs. Leibowitz - Mrs. Leibowitz was a Jewish woman who lived down the hallway from the McCourt's in New York. She helped Frank take care of his younger brothers after Margaret died when Mrs. McCourt went into a depression state and Mr. McCourt returned to drinking. She fed them and her son befriended Malachy.

 

Minnie MacAdorey

 

Mr. Dimino

 

Paddy Clohessy-Paddy is a school friend of Frank who becomes one of his good friends. When Frank and Paddy get denied lunch from Fintan Slattery they decide to skip school to get food. They go and steal apples and other food from a nearby orchard. Frank gets in trouble for skipping school. Eventually Paddy goes to England to earn a lot of money for his family.

Question Quigley - Brendan Quigley was one of Frank's young classmates. Quigley had a habit of always asking pestering questions, which gave him the nickname "Question Quigley." Truthfully, he was just a curious student misunderstood by the strict and cruel teachers of the early 1900's . Their teaching styles were to be stern with the students, taking away all forms of creativity, and just memorize, memorize, memorize. It is totally understandable that Quigley did not connect with the teaching styles of his time.

 

Bridey Hannon

 

Bill Galvin

 

Mrs. O'Conner

 

Cyril Benson

 

Mr. O'Neil

 

Fintan Slattery- He invited Frank and Paddy over for lunch from school one day, however did not feed them, when he did have enough food to do so.  He just ate his sandwich his mom made for him  right in front of the other two boys and did not even offer them a piece of bread.  Then, he went back to school, while Frank and Paddy skipped the rest of the day, walking the streets and trespassing on other people's prperty looking for food.

 

Mr. Timoney

 

Mickey Spellacy

 

Peter Dooley

 

Mikey Molloy - Mikey is a schoolboy at Leamy's school and is a year older than Frankie.  He is cross-eyed and often has "fits".  These "fits" are probably the symptoms of epilepsy.  Because of his epilepsy, Mikey cannot swallow the Communion wafer, so he is not a proper Catholic.  Therefore, he figures he has nothing to lose and has become the boys' source of Dirty Things in General.

 

Mr. O'Halloran - He taught sixth class and was the principal at Leamy's National School. Rather than reprimanding children for asking questions, he encouraged them. He also encouraged the children to learn as much as they would so they could get out of Ireland when they grew up. He thought that Frank had potential, and suggested that he continue his education at the Christian Brothers' School.

 

Finn the Horse

 

Patricia Madigan - Frank meets Patricia in the hopistal room and they become close friends. She keeps him company and they talkthrough the partition even though the hospital doesn't allow conversing. She doesn't have long to live and dies soons due to the consumption. She helps Frank discover Shakespeare after giving him a book on Enlgish history and he falls in love with Shakespeare's literature

 

Kathleen O'Connell

 

Mr. Coffey and Mr. Kane

 

Guard Dennehy

 

Mr. Hannon

 

Peter Molloy

 

Billy Campbell

 

Laman Griffin- Angela's cousin who Anglea, Frank and the family go to live with when they are evicted from their home. Frank suspects that Laman and Angela are havings relations and he becomes upset. Frank cleans Laman's chamber pot sohe can borrow his bike to go on a trip. When it comes to the day to go on the trip, he forgets to change the chamber pot and Laman does not give him the bike. As a result, Frank leaves for good.

 

Mrs. Purcell

 

Miiss O'Riordan

 

Miss Barry

 

Toby Mackey

 

Theresa Carmody -Theresa Carmody- Frank experiences a short relationship with her, where sexual activity takes place, before she dies

 

Mr. Harrington

 

Mrs. Finucane- During the mid-20th century in many small towns around the world, there was normally someone who made their money off of loaning people money and getting paid interest. Mrs. Finucane was the money loaner in Limerick and Frank began to work for her, helping her to write threatening letters. Despite his mother telling him that whoever was writing the letters should go to hell, he continued anyway in order to collect money for his eventual move to America. Near the end of the novel, Mrs. Finucane dies and Frank steals most of her money and throws away her debt book.

 

Mr. McCaffrey

 

Father Gregory - A Franciscan priest who finds Frank in front of the staue of St.Francis, crying. Father Gregory shows compassion to Frank and listens to his worries. He prays for Frank and tells him that God forgives him and that he has to forgive himself. He tells him that God loves him and that he must love himself for only when he loves God in himself can he love all God's creatures. He blesses Frank and Frank leaves, feeling as if a heavy burden has been lifted off his shoulders.

 

Mr. Sliney

 

Frieda- She has a small where sexual affair with Frank at a party when he arrives in America.

 

Seamus- The big-hearted janitor at the hospital that Frank stays at. They first meet when Frank comes down with typhoid fever. Seamus helps him to communicate with Patricia, a diptheria patient. They later meet again when Frank develops conjunctivitis. While he is recovering, Seamus reads him poetry. He eventually moves his family to England for a better lifestyle.

 

 

Quotes

"There's nothing worse in the world than to owe and be beholden to anyone" page 23

 

Literary Terms

Memoir

Coming of Age

Comic relief

Dialect

Irony

Onomatopoeia

 

Internet Sites

A web site that gives a tour of Frank McCourt's Limmerick .1

 

References

1.http://homepages.iol.ie/%7Eavondoyl/angelas1.htm - Ireland on Line - The Limerick of Angela's Ashes activity takes place, before she dies

 

 

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Study Guide
   

Angela’s Ashes
Study Guide
Student Copy
Chapter 1
Vocabulary
shiftless–lazy; lacking in ambition
loquacious–excessively talkative
pious–devotedly religious
pompous–arrogant, self-important
cacophony–harsh sound
catarrh–chronic inflammation of the nose and air passages
jakes–outhouse, privy
novenas–in the Roman Catholic Church, periods of prayer lasting nine days
speakeasies–during Prohibition, places where alcohol was sold illegally
skivvy–female domestic servant
hangdog–sad, downcast
puce–dark red
1. To what genre does Angela’s Ashes belong?
2. How does the adult Frank McCourt feel when he looks back on his childhood?
3. What nationality is the McCourt family, and what religion do they practice? What would Frank McCourt say you could expect from such a heritage?
4. The Feast of the Circumcision falls on January 1st. What, then, is McCourt saying about the rain in Limerick, and why does he write at length about the rain and the damp?
5. What reason does McCourt give for the piety of Limerick?
6. Describe the introduction McCourt gives his father.
7. Why does Angela Sheehan never meet her father?
8. Why does McCourt write, “My mother’s troubles began the night she was born”? (Pg. 13)
9. When and where do McCourt’s parents meet? Why have they both left Ireland?
10. Why are Angela’s cousins prejudiced against Malachy? What causes their prejudice?
11. After the confrontation with Angela’s relatives, Malachy decides to go to California. What keeps him from getting there?
12. Do Malachy and Angela want to marry?
13. How does alcohol impact their child’s naming and baptism?
14. The MacNamara sisters force Angela and Malachy to marry. What, however, do they say to Angela at Frank’s baptism?
15. In an autobiography, the book is narrated in the first person, but subtle changes do occur in the narrator’s perspective. How does the point of view change on page nineteen?
16. McCourt records the misunderstandings and confusion of a child learning about the world by writing from the perspective of a three-year-old. What does young Frank misunderstand about blood?
17. Mr. McCourt tells Frankie a story that the boy believes to belong to him. What is the subject of the story?
18. Why do the children spend so much time unattended at the playground?
19. How can the boys tell when their mother is happy because their father has found a job at last?
20. What happens after Dad’s three weeks of work?
21. How does Mam cope when Dad does not bring his wages home on the fourth Friday of his job?
22. What does Frankie think when Malachy sings Maisie’s song? Why does he have this reaction?
23. How does Mr. McCourt change when Margaret is born?
24. Frankie and Malachy become the chief caregivers for their twin brothers after Margaret’s birth. How does Frank deal with the twins’ hunger?
25. What does the Italian do when he learns of the theft?
26. What does the grocer mean when he says “the problem, the Irish thing”? (Pg. 32)
27. How does Frankie learn Margaret is sick?
28. After Margaret’s death, the generosity of neighbors Minnie MacAdorey and Mrs.
Leibowitz sustains the children. What happens to their parents?
29. On the night of his father’s return, what does Frankie dream of after swearing to die for Ireland?
30. What is the only development capable of getting Mam out of bed after Margaret’s death?
31. How does Frankie view his brother Malachy?
32. When Angela’s cousins discover the state of her family and the squalor in which they are living, what do they do?
33. What sense is there that McCourt, writing as an adult, mocks the meddlesome cousins of his mother?
34. How does the reader know that, wretched as the McCourts’ lives seem in Brooklyn, they are only going to get worse in Ireland?

Chapter 2
Vocabulary
dole–handout of government funds to the unemployed
dotes–terms of endearment for children
perfidy–treachery
fags–cigarettes
docket–certificate giving the holder the right to buy goods
blaguarding–acting like a vagabond
rashers–thin slices of bacon or ham
1. Where do the McCourts go to when they first arrive in Ireland? What kind of welcome do they receive?
2. The children marvel over many things when they arrive in Ireland. What are some of the things they have never seen before, and what is the reason for this?
3. How does McCourt use onomatopoeia to capture the sensory impressions he had as a child? Give examples of this literary device.
4. Where do Mr. McCourt’s parents tell him to go since they have no room for his family? Why?
5. Whom does Dad tell the children about on the bus to Dublin? What purpose does the story serve?
6. How does Dad’s storytelling contrast with Mam’s attitude?
7. Why does little Malachy think the McCourts are in New York City when they arrive in Dublin?
8. How does Frankie know his mother is cheered a bit on their arrival in Dublin?
9. Whom do Frankie and Mr. McCourt encounter on the street on their way to the IRA office? How does the reader then know that false hope has been raised for help from the IRA?
10. Why does the IRA man Mr. Heggarty refuse to give Mr. McCourt money for the bus fare?
11. Who takes the McCourts in on their first night in Dublin?
12. Where does Mr. McCourt ask to go on the way to meet the train to Limerick? Why?
13. Why do the McCourts go to Limerick next?
14. What seems contradictory about conditions in Limerick? How is the environment at odds
with the condition of the populace?
15. Do Angela’s relatives give her family a warmer reception than Malachy’s family did?
16. Locate Grandma’s comment to Mam about cigarettes on page fifty-six. Explain Grandma’s warning.
17. Where does the man on the bicycle tell Frankie and his father that fleas come from?
18. What happens to Mam several nights after the flea incident?
19. What types of prejudice does the McCourt family encounter when they try to find a means to support themselves?
20. What is it Mam’s habit to do when she is worried?
21. What is the St. Vincent de Paul Society? List some adjectives to describe the Society and its attitude toward the people who come to it for charity.
22. How does the St. Vincent de Paul Society feel about smoking? What does Nora Malloy have to say to this?
23. What is a souper?
24. How does Nora help the McCourts?
25. Why does Frankie not mind when Dad tells the Cuchulain story to his brother Oliver?
26. Why will Mr. McCourt not pick coal up off the road even though his son is sick?
27. What is Mam’s response when Dad says he prayed to St. Jude that she would get coal?
28. What makes Uncle Pa Keating one of the most positive figures in this book?
29. What does the reader learn about Aunt Aggie’s bitterness when the McCourt children go to stay with her after Oliver is taken to the hospital?
30. What does it seem likely Oliver dies of?
31. How does Dad deal with Oliver’s death?
32. Why does the family move from the house on Windmill Street?
33. Where do Malachy and Frank start school?
34. What do the other students ask the boys when they learn the McCourts have come from America? Where do the Irish people in this book seem to be getting their ideas about Americans?
35. The masters at Leamy’s School have some harsh methods. Explain.
36. Why does Eugene spend so much time looking out the window?
37. Of what does Eugene die?
38. Although he is just a young child, why does Frankie get upset with his father on the afternoon before Eugene’s funeral?
39. An amazing fact of this narrative is that humor works its way into the tragedy of McCourt’s childhood at all. Yet, the memoir is frequently interspersed with wit and gratitude for small things. What is the literary term for humor that lightens tragedy? Find an example of this device on page 89, when the family travels to Eugene’s funeral.
40. What is young Frank’s idea of heaven?

Chapter 3
Vocabulary
lorries–trucks
1. The McCourts move once more after Eugene’s death. They are just getting settled in their new house when they get some unpleasant news about it. What is this news?
2. Why had Frankie been so pleased with the new house before learning the unpleasant news?
3. Who is on the McCourts’ one picture? Why is this person significant to Dad?
4. Mam says that what she missed most in America was the River Shannon. How does Dad feel about the river?
5. What is ironic about Dad’s attitude toward work and begging?
6. What happens to the McCourts’ house in the winter rains?
7. The family shows a remarkable ability to cast misfortunes in a positive light. How do they choose to think of their move upstairs for the winter?
8. What can Mam get with the docket for the family’s Christmas dinner?
9. How does Pa Keating help Malachy and Frank on Christmas day?
10. Where does Dad tell his sons their new brother Michael came from?
11. How does Dad relieve the sick baby’s cold?
12. When the St. Vincent de Paul men come to visit, what do they term the upstairs of the McCourts’ house? Why?
13. With what does Dad fix his sons’ shoes?
14. To whom does Frank try to confide his troubles and worries?
15. What literary device does McCourt employ in the paragraph on women’s and men’s roles on page 107? Explain.
16. Where does Dad find his first job in Limerick? How long does he keep the job?
17. How do Malachy and Frank show Dad their unhappiness that he spent the wages of his new job at the pub?

Chapter 4
Vocabulary
ineffable–indescribable
grousing–complaining
venial–pardonable
1. How does McCourt capture the literal-mindedness of children when Frankie learns he must prepare for his First Communion?
2. What is Mikey Molloy’s “affliction”? (Pg. 114) Why does Frankie look up to Mikey?
3. Why does Nora Molloy regularly go to the insane asylum? What sense is there that it is a relief for her to go there?
4. What is The Collection?
5. Does Mr. Benson, the schoolmaster, encourage curiosity among his students? How does he expect his pupils to learn?
6. Ho gets the raisin from Frankie’s bun?
7. What does the master use to teach the boys how to receive Holy Communion?
8. What does the master tell the boys to impress upon them the importance of their First Communion?
9. What makes Frankie start to worry about his First Communion?
10. How is Frankie’s worry relieved?
11. How does Dad comfort Frankie?
12. Although the child Frankie does not seem to recognize it at the time, what does McCourt imply to be the priest’s reaction when Frankie confesses his big sin at his First Confession?
13. What does the priest tell Frankie about books?
14. Why does Frankie almost miss his First Communion?
15. What is ironic about Grandma’s telling Frankie on page 128 that “a little spit won’t kill you”?
16. Why does Grandma take Frankie back to church after his First Communion?
17. How does the priest react to Frankie’s confession?
18. What does their laughter say about the priests?
19. How does Frankie get in the Lyric Cinema since he never makes The Collection rounds?

Chapter 5
Vocabulary
guile–dishonest cunning
gansey–jersey
brawn–loaf or sausage made from parts of the pig, especially the head
saffron–orange-yellow
tripe–stomach tissue of the ox
poll–head
sodality–Roman Catholic devotional association of lay people
footpads–robbers of pedestrians
1. What is both humorous and poignant about Frankie’s description of the adult practice of “not talking to each other”? (Pg. 132-133)
2. How do Mam and her friend Bridey Hannon spend their time together?
3. What does the poem Mam recites say about her life? Why does she laugh all the way
through it?
4. What does Dad do with the money he earns from letter writing?
5. Why is Grandma upset when she meets her new boarder?
6. What gets Frankie in trouble on his first day delivering dinner to Grandma’s boarder?
7. What do Mam and Dad tell their children about smoking? Why is this ironic?
8. What happens to Mam and Dad’s teeth?
9. Why does Malachy have to go to the hospital?
10. What does the doctor at the hospital notice about Frankie?
11. Why does Mam start giving Frankie sixpence every Saturday?
12. How does Frankie feel about Irish dancing?
13. Which dancer does Frankie admire?
14. After four weeks, what does Frank start to do with his dancing money?
15. Why does Frankie have to go to confession on the day he loses his tooth?
16. The McCourts moved back to Ireland when Frankie was four. Why does Mr. McCourt still not have a steady job when Frankie is nine?
17. What is Mam’s response when Bridey tells her she could go to hell for saying God had not been seen in the lanes of Limerick?
18. What is the Arch Confraternity? Why does Question Quigley tell Frankie he has to join?
19. How does the Confraternity pressure people into attending?
20. Dad decides Frankie is old enough to be an altar boy. Why does Mam not want Frankie to be an altar boy?
21. What causes Dad to be disappointed in the Church?
22. What does Mam say is the reason for Frankie’s disappointment?

Chapter 6
Vocabulary
poltroon–coward
legion–numerous
ingle–boy favored by a homosexual
1. From the boys’ question to Mr. O’Neill, what time period can the reader surmise it is when Frankie is in the fourth form? Why?
2. Why does Mr. O’Neill incur the anger of Mr. O’Dea?
3. Why does Fintan Slattery earn the reward of Mr. O’Neill’s apple peel?
4. Describe Fintan Slattery’s reputation among his classmates.
5. Why do Paddy and Frankie become the subjects of teasing from the other boys?
6. Why do Paddy and Frankie go to Fintan’s home a second time even though they are
uncomfortable with the way he watches them?
7. What causes Frankie and Paddy not to return to school after going to Fintan’s house for lunch?
8. Where do Frankie and Paddy find something to eat?
9. Where does Paddy fantasize about going when he grows up? Why does this place seem like
paradise to him?
10. What keeps Frankie from going home after he meets Question Quigley?
11. Paddy’s family is even poorer than the McCourts are, yet what is Paddy’s mother doing when her son and Frankie meet her?
12. How does Frankie bring amusement to the sickly Mr. Clohessy?
13. Do the Clohessys begrudge Frankie his share of their morning breakfast?
14. McCourt writes, “I’m very sorry for the Clohessys and all their troubles but I think they saved me from getting into trouble with my mother.” (Pg. 169) Why do the Clohessys’ troubles save Frankie?

Chapter 7
Vocabulary
oxter–armpit
read–give someone a lecture as a rebuke
snugs–small private rooms in pubs
1. Why do Frank and Malachy humor their drunken father by promising to die for Ireland?
How does their attitude differ now from their attitude during a similar episode earlier in the book? What may have brought on this change?
2. How do the children absorb their mother’s attitude toward their father?
3. What does the story about Mickey Spellacy say about life in Limerick?
4. What does the description of the Protestant girls suggest about a class divide between Protestants and Catholics?
5. Why does Mam not want Frankie to get a job selling papers? What does Grandma say to Mam’s objections?
6. Who takes pity on Frankie in the pub when he is drenched from helping Uncle Pat deliver the papers?
7. What additional job does Frankie acquire on his first night delivering papers?
8. What is the first piece Frankie reads to Mr. Timoney? What is the piece about?
9. How does Mr. Timoney’s enjoyment of A Modest Proposal reflect his beliefs?
10. Why is Declan Collopy angry with Frankie?
11. Why does Frankie like Mr. Timoney?
12. What happens to Mr. Timoney not long after Frankie starts reading to him? Why?
13. How does Mr. Timoney’s commitment affect Frank? What does Frank try to do for his new friend?
14. Why are Frank, Malachy, and Michael told to play upstairs one July day?
15. What causes the baby to choke when Mam and Bridey are discussing names?
16. Why does Frankie stay home from his brother’s baptism? Who else seems absent that day?
17. What happens to the five pounds Grandpa McCourt sends the family for their new baby?
18. Why does Frankie go to confession when he is searching for his father in the pubs?
19. How does Frankie’s confession affect the priest?
20. Describe Frankie’s emotions when he finally finds his father.
21. How does Frankie act upon these feelings?

Chapter 8
Vocabulary
plenary Indulgences–pardons from earthly punishment for sin
1. Why does Peter Dooley collect money by allowing other boys to look at his sisters while they bathe?
2. Why do the boys get caught watching Peter’s sisters?
3. Mam does not want Frankie to go to confession over the incident at the Dooley house. Why?
4. What causes Frankie to miss his Confirmation Collection?
5. What gross misdiagnosis does the first doctor make?
6. What does Dr. Troy do when he examines Frankie? Why?
7. What is Extreme Unction, and what does it mean that Frankie receives it?
8. When does Frankie know he will get better?
9. Why does Dad’s visit to the hospital bring Frankie great happiness?
10. Which two people befriend Frankie in the hospital?
11. What convinces Frankie that Dad is working while his son is in the hospital?
12. What book does Patricia loan to Frankie?
13. What does Frankie find thrilling about the history book? Find the quotation describing his delight.
14. From the other room, Patricia reads “The Highwayman” to Frankie. Why does he not get to hear the final lines of the poem?
15. Frankie observes, “Nurses and nuns never think you know what they’re talking about. If you’re ten going on eleven you’re supposed to be simple like my uncle Pat Sheehan who was dropped on his head.” (Pg. 198) What is it that Frankie understands?
16. Why does Frankie’s new ward frighten him at night?
17. What unexpected challenge faces Frankie before he can leave the hospital?
18. How does Frankie get to hear the end of the highwayman poem?
19. How does the girl in the blue dress enrich Frankie’s time in the hospital?
20. After how long does Frankie finally get to go home? What day is it?
21. What makes Frankie unhappy when he arrives at home?
22. Why was staying in the hospital luxurious to Frankie?
23. What embarrassed Frankie about his return to school?
24. What does Frankie do that gets him into the sixth class? What does he attribute this
development to?
25. In Frankie’s composition, why does he say it is fortunate Jesus was not born in Limerick?
26. How does Mr. O’Halloran differ from the other schoolmasters?
27. What does Mr. O’Halloran teach them that surprises Frankie?
28. Why does Mr. O’Halloran organize a raffle?
29. Why does Frankie feel torn between his father and his mother?
30. What does Frankie mean when he compares Dad to the Holy Trinity? What literary device does McCourt use in this comparison?
31. What causes the McCourt home to be infested with rats and flies?
32. Who is the latest welcome addition to the McCourt household?
33. Where does Frankie eat his Christmas dinner?
34. How does Finn’s death demonstrate the compassion of the impoverished people in the McCourt’s lane?
35. What happens to the stable at the end of this chapter?

Chapter 9
Vocabulary
gods–upper balcony in the theater
serviettes–napkins
1. Why is Mam willing to face eternal damnation?
2. What happens in England to improve the fortunes of many people in the lanes of Limerick?
3. How does McCourt imply that Mam’s declaration affects Dad’s decision to go to England?
4. Why does Dad ridicule the families whose lot improves during the war?
5. What changes Dad’s mind about going to England?
6. What do many of the men on Dad’s train do with the money the English agents gave them for food?
7. How do Mam and Dad seem to feel when they say goodbye to each other?
8. What keeps Mam smoking by the fire all day on a Saturday two weeks after Dad left for England?
9. On what does Grandma blame Frankie’s trouble with his eyes?
10. Why is going to the Dispensary for medical treatment a humiliating experience for the poor families of Limerick?
11. What diagnosis does Dr. Troy give for Frankie’s eyes?
12. Which two old friends does Frank meet in the hospital?
13. What does Frankie find amusing about the doctor’s advice upon his release from the hospital?
14. What news of Dad does Mr. Downes bring from England?
15. What drastic step does Mam consider when she hears the news about Dad? What does she do instead?
16. How does Mr. Kane shame Mam when she goes to ask for public assistance?

Chapter 10
1. How do the boys know something is wrong with Mam?
2. Why does Frankie steal food and lemonade?
3. When does Mam’s illness begin to scare the children?
4. How do the boys decide to get fuel for the fire?
5. Who discovers the truant boys and their sick mother?
6. What is Mam’s illness?
7. Whom do the McCourt children stay with while their mother is in the hospital?
8. Where does Aunt Aggie send Frankie, Malachy, and Michael the morning after they arrive at her house?
9. Why are the boys glad when they get to go to school?
10. What does Aunt Aggie make Frankie write?
11. How does Uncle Pa flaunt Aunt Aggie’s stinginess?
12. Who comes to take the children away from Aunt Aggie’s?
13. How long does Dad stay?
14. What surprise does the family receive two weeks after Dad’s return to England?
15. What effect does the lack of any subsequent money order have on Mam?
16. What does Frankie see that upsets him when he is out caring for Alphie?

Chapter 11
Vocabulary
togged out–dressed finely
float–small vehicle used to make deliveries
1. What does Frank use to create hearts for his soccer team?
2. What makes Frank think his birth to be a miracle? Why?
3. How does Mikey Molloy respond to Frank’s suggestion that his birth was a miracle?
4. What revelation does Peter Molloy have in the pub?
5. What convinces Frankie that he cannot really be doomed as Mikey said he was?
6. What development causes eleven-year-old Frankie to feel like a man?
7. Why does Mr. Hannon need help with his job?
8. How does Bridey react to Mam’s suggestion that she get a job to help her father? What is ironic about her response? How is Mam’s comment on Bridey’s situation ironic, as well?
9. What upsets Mam and threatens to keep Frankie from continuing his new job after the first day? Why does Mam allow him to continue?
10. How does Frank impress the boys at school?
11. Frank takes great pride in having a job and in his ability to work. Why is this?
12. Frank’s eyes get so bad he has to leave his job. What makes him tear up when he goes to see Mrs. Hannon, who is so grateful for the help he gave her husband?

Chapter 12
Vocabulary
quiffs–locks of hair
arrears–unpaid, overdue debt
1. What claim about himself does Dad make in his letter home to his family?
2. How does Dad prove his claim false?
3. What does Dad bring his family for Christmas?
4. How soon does Dad leave again?
5. How do Frank and Malachy hide the holes in their stockings if Mam cannot mend them?
6. How do clothes serve as a strong reminder of class divisions for Frankie?
7. How do Mam and Michael show compassion for those even less fortunate than they are?
8. What puts a stop to their generosity?
9. Who does Frankie compare to mashed potatoes? Why?
10. Why do the McCourts get evicted from their home?
11. The author’s tone expresses the way the author feels about his subject. What do you think is the tone of the passage leading up to the McCourts’ eviction? Why do you think the author uses this tone?
12. Where does Grandma arrange for Mam and her boys to go?
13. What indignity must Mam accept in order to stay in her new home rent-free?
14. What job does Laman Griffin assign Frankie?
15. At the end of the chapter, what does the reader learn happens to Grandma? What happens to Malachy?

Chapter 13
Vocabulary
boding–predicting
pithy–meaningful and concise
adroit–clever
foisted–forced to accept
1. Why does Frankie agree to empty Laman Griffin’s chamber pot?
2. What description does McCourt use to show Mam is unhappy with the way Laman treats her son?
3. What makes Frankie so interested in Butler’s Lives of the Saints?
4. How does the librarian interpret Frankie’s absorption in the saints’ lives?
5. Why does schoolmaster O’Halloran want to meet with Frankie’s mother?
6. How does Frank feel about Mr. O’Halloran’s recommendation?
7. How do the Christian Brothers treat Frank and Mam when they go to ask if Frank can attend their secondary school? What does Mam say to Frankie after they leave the Christian Brothers?
8. Despite his mother’s feelings of anger and despair, how does Frankie feel about the end of his schooling?
9. Where does Frank plan to work after school ends?
10. What comment does Mr. O’Halloran make on Ireland’s class system? What admonishment does he give boys?
11. Where does Frankie consider being a missionary? How does his doctor discourage him from this idea?
12. What does Frank suspect is going on between his mother and Laman Griffin?
13. What do the priests tell the boys about their budding sexuality? Does Frank accept this doctrine?
14. Why does Frank get in a fight with Laman Griffin?
15. How does Mam disappoint Frankie after Laman beats him up?
16. What does Frank do after everyone in the house is asleep?

Chapter 14
Vocabulary
boreen–narrow country lane
carbolic–relating to an acidic compound that is used as a disinfectant
cassock–robe worn by Roman Catholic clergyman
1. What makes Frankie consider returning to Laman Griffin’s house?
2. Frankie has a great desire to work and takes pride in the fact that he can earn money to provide for his family. What feelings motivate Frankie to be a provider, something he cannot have learned from his father?
3. What food item symbolizes the ultimate in luxury for the poor in Limerick?
4. Frank understands that language can be an indicator of social class. Give an example of an observation Frank makes which shows that he sees a class divide between himself and the speaker.
5. The Abbot does not want to share his food with Frankie. How does Frankie feed himself
before he starts his job?
6. How does reading the Lives of the Saints make Frank feel about God and sainthood?
7. What does Frank suddenly understand while reading the Lin Yütang book?
8. How does the Lin Yütang book get Frankie in trouble?
9. The day before he turns fourteen, what does Frankie do to help make himself presentable for his new job?                                                                                         10. What does Frank wear while his clothes are drying on the line?
11. Why does Frank get discovered in his unusual attire?
12. The dress incident comes across as a very humorous episode, despite the embarrassment Frank suffered. How does McCourt’s use of humor in his memoir affect the tone of the book?

Chapter 15
Vocabulary
transom–horizontal crossbar over a door
1. What does Aunt Aggie do that surprises Frank on his fourteenth birthday?
2. Is Frank a temporary or permanent telegram boy? What is the difference between the two positions?
3. Why does Frankie have to walk on his first telegram delivery route?
4. Which old acquaintance does Frank deliver one of his first telegrams to? What change does he see in this person? Why?
5. How does Frank spend his first week’s wages? What does Frank resolve to do with his wages in the future?
6. Regarding tipping, what comment does Frank make about rich people, nuns, and priests?
How do the poor people of Limerick compare to the rich when it comes to tipping?
7. How does Frankie risk losing his job when he takes telegrams to Limerick’s misfortunate?
8. What change prevents Frankie from continuing in his plans to save for fare to America?
9. What does their willingness to sit on the damp floor say about the McCourt boys?
10. Where does Frankie prefer to make deliveries?
11. Why does Frankie get the Carmody family telegram?
12. What do the other telegram boys say happens to sick people when they know they do not have long to live?
13. Why does Frankie enter the Carmody house?
14. What makes the other telegram boys’ claim about sick people seem true?
15. How does Frank reveal that he is developing feelings for Theresa?
16. What does Frank do when he learns Theresa has gone to the sanatorium?
17. Why is it important to Frank that Theresa get well?
18. Why is Frank so concerned about Theresa Carmody’s soul when she dies? Why does he have such guilt?

Chapter 16
Vocabulary
litigious–prone to bring a lawsuit against
barrister–lawyer
assiduity–diligence
guidon–small flag
1. Why does Frank try to baptize the deceased Mrs. Harrington as a Catholic with sherry?
2. Why does Frankie lose his job with the post office?
3. How does Frankie get his job back?
4. How does Frankie get undeserved credit for striking a blow for Ireland?
5. Why is Frankie unable to go to confession?
6. What job does Frank take so he can make money to save fare for America? What is his new employer’s business?
7. How does Frank increase the income from the writing job?
8. Why does Frank feel no remorse for taking money from Mrs. Finucane when she sleeps?
9. How is Frank able to overcome any remorse he might feel about sending threatening letters to friends of his family?
10. What causes Frankie not to take the postman exam?
11. Who is Frankie’s newest employer, and what do they do?
12. Why does Mr. McCaffrey tell Frankie not to read The Irish Times?
13. Why do the women at the post office resent the fact that Frankie did not take the postman exam?

Chapter 17
1. Where does Frank go when he leaves the post office? Why?
2. What is the subject of conversation in the pub?
3. Why does Frankie ring the Jesuits’ doorbell after having too many pints? How does the monk who answers the door react?
4. What does Mam say when Frankie comes home drunk? How does Frankie respond to her?
5. What does Frank do that he regrets when he is sober?
6. At whom does Frank rage on his sixteenth birthday?
7. How does the Franciscan priest comfort Frank?
8. What does Frank tell St. Francis while the priest listens?
9. How does the priest relieve Frank’s mind about Theresa Carmody?
10. What are Eamon and Peter surprised to learn about Frankie? Why?
11. Why does Gerry Halvey’s anger over seeing Frank with his girlfriend Rose seem absurd?
12. Why does Frank find Mr. McCaffrey so upset when he returns to the office?
13. What is on page sixteen? Why does Eamon want the pages?
14. What kind of demand do the boys have for page sixteen? Who wants to read it?
15. Mam has a job now, too. What does she do?
16. What does Mam’s charge, Mr. Sliney, want to tell Frank? Why is this good advice in Limerick?
17. Why is Frankie interested in the Protestant newspaper?
18. Why is Malachy fired from his job at a rich, Catholic boys’ boarding school?

Chapter 18
1. How old is Frank now?
2. What does Frank do with some of the money Mrs. Finucane sends to churches to have Masses said for her soul?
3. How does Frank get the rest of the money he needs to go to America?
4. Why does he feel like Robin Hood when Mrs. Finucane dies?
5. How will Frankie travel to America? How soon will he leave?
6. How does Mam react to Frank’s news that he is going to America? For what does she hope?
7. How does Frank feel about leaving Limerick?
8. What natural phenomenon marks Frank’s going-away party?
9. Why do feelings of guilt burden Frank as he sets sail from Ireland?
10. Who befriends Frank on the ship to America?
11. When Frank sees New York from the ship, he observes, “…the sun turns everything to gold.” (Pg. 359) How is this imagery symbolic? How does Frank think of America?
12. Frank says he stopped going to confession after the Franciscan priest told him Theresa Carmody was not in hell. Almost as soon as Frank arrives in America, he has sex with an American woman. What do you think McCourt is trying to say by closing his book this way? How might the episode be symbolic, as the description of New York was?

Chapter 19
1. What does this one word chapter mean? Why do you suppose McCourt ends the memoir this way?

 

Terms
   
Angela’s Ashes
Terms and Definitions
Autobiography - the relating of a person’s life by that person. Example: The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin.                               
Coming of Age - a novel or other work of literature in which the main character or characters grow, mature, or understand the world in adult terms. Examples: The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn; The Cay
Comic relief - the intrusion of humor interrupting or immediately following a scene of great excitement. Example: The drunken porter knocks at the door immediately after the killing of King Duncan in Macbeth.
Dialect - a particular kind of speech used by members of one specific group because of its geographical location or class. Example: Jim, in Huckleberry Finn says, “Shet de do.’’
[“Shut the door”.]
Irony - a perception of inconsistency, sometimes humorous, in which the significance and understanding of a statement or event is changed by its context. Example: The firehouse
burned down.
 Dramatic Irony - the audience or reader knows more about a character’s situation than the character does and knows that the character’s understanding is incorrect. Example: In Medea, Creon asks, “What atrocities could she commit in one day?” The reader, however, knows Medea will destroy her family and Creon’s by day’s end.
• Structural Irony – the use of a naïve hero, whose incorrect perceptions differ from the reader’s correct ones. Example: Huck Finn.
• Verbal Irony - a discrepancy between what is said and what is really meant; sarcasm. Example: A large man whose nickname is “Tiny.”
Memoir - an account of one portion of a person’s life, as told by that person; similar to an autobiography, but covering a smaller time period. Example: Nixon’s Six Crises.
Metaphor - a comparison of two things that are basically dissimilar in which one is described in
terms of the other. Example: The moon, a haunting lantern, shone through the clouds.
Narrator - the one who tells the story. The narrator must not be confused with “author,” the one who writes the story. If the narrator is a character in the book, the proper term is “firstperson
narration.” Example: Moby Dick is narrated by Ishmael, a crewmember. If the narrator is not a character in the book, the correct term is “third-person narration.”
Example: Sense and Sensibility.
Onomatopoeia - a word whose sound (the way it is pronounced) imitates its meaning. Examples:
“roar,” “murmur,” “tintinnabulation.”
Point of View - the position or vantage point, determined by the author, from which the story seems to come to the reader. The two most common points of view are First-person and
Third-person. Examples: First-person point of view occurs in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn; the reader receives all information through Huck’s eyes. An example
of third-person point of view is Dickens’ Hard Times, in which the narrator is not a character in the book.
Simile - a comparison between two different things using either like or as. Examples: I am as hungry as a horse. The huge trees broke like twigs during the hurricane.
Symbol - an object, person, or place that has a meaning in itself and that also stands for something larger than itself, usually an idea or concept; some concrete thing which
represents an abstraction. Example: The sea could be symbolic for “the unknown.” Since the sea is something that is physical and can be seen by the reader, and also has elements
that cannot be understood, it can be used symbolically to stand for the abstraction of “mystery,” “obscurity,” or “the unknown.”
Tone - the atmosphere in a literary work or the attitude the author puts in a literary work. Examples: The gloom and representation of decay is the main tone of Poe’s The Fall of
the House of Usher; the tone of Catch-22 is one of sarcasm and absurdity.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Theresa Carmody- Frank experiences a short relationship with her, where sexual activity takes place, before she dies

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