Short, Cheap, Nearly Great Books SE Denver: September 2012

Sunday, September 16, 2012

Are we are all implicated in the lives of others?

Join us to discuss Puppy by Richard Ford at 7:30 PM, Tuesday, Sept 18 in the Community Room - Whole Foods - Tamarac. Find it on page 68 of The Best American Short Stories - 2002. Or read it online at Puppy in the NewYorker

Question for discussion:
Do uncomfortable, conflicted spirits … inevitably get resolved … by good will and dedication?

Basic Guidelines for Shared Inquiry

Read the selection carefully before participating in the discussion. This ensures that all participants are equally prepared to talk about the ideas in the work.
Most of us need to read short stories more than once.
Support your ideas with evidence from the text. This keeps the discussion focused on understanding the selection and enables the group to weigh textual support for different answers.
Discuss the ideas in the selection and try to understand them fully before exploring issues that go beyond the selection. Reflecting on the ideas in the text and the evidence to support them makes the exploration of related issues more productive.
Listen to other participants and respond to them directly. Directing your comments and questions to other group members, not always to the leader, will make the discussion livelier and more dynamic.
Expect the leader to only ask questions. Effective leaders help participants develop their own ideas, with everyone gaining a new understanding in the process. Participants should look to the leader for questions, not answers.