Discuss the time and place depicted in Lila. What beliefs does Doll instill in Lila about nurturing a child?ġ2. How does this affect the storyline and the imagery?ġ1. While Gilead and Home emphasize the relationships between fathers and their children (particularly their sons), Lila accentuates the perspective of women. Louis? Was she wounded or empowered by that chapter of her life?ġ0. How is Lila’s sense of self affected by her days in St. Does the age difference between Lila and Ames create an imbalance in their marriage?ĩ. Which of the novel’s Bible quotations resonated most strongly with you? How were you taught to approach a sacred text?Ĩ. What lies at the heart of Lila and Ames’s decision to marry? What needs and longings do they share? How does their relationship reflect the broader needs and longings of humanity?ħ. What is the significance of Doll’s knife-both literally (as a weapon) and as a metaphor? Can someone from Ames’s world of gentleness have the capacity to understand what the knife means to Lila?Ħ. What is your response to this debate? How does Lila’s practical wisdom compare to the philosophical wisdom of Ames and Boughton?ĥ. As she copies difficult passages from the Bible, Lila continually returns to questions about human suffering and misfortune. What does Ames’s church want from Lila?Ĥ. Doane had told Lila, 'Churches just want your money,' yet she needed refuge. Lila recalls the day she ventured into John Ames’s candlelit church (echoing Ames’s tender recollection of that scene, which was presented in Gilead). How did your perception of Doll shift throughout the novel? What motivates her to rescue Lila? What do the two girls teach each other about loyalty and its limitations?ģ. How do these experiences affect her immersion in the culture of Gilead? As she reaches adulthood,what does Lila believe about the nature of life?Ģ.

The novel’s opening paragraphs vividly capture the deprivations experienced by young Lila.

Lila robinson