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Reading Group Guide
Characters
Who is your favorite character? Why?
Is Francisca a likable person?
Is she the inhuman her neighbors think?
Is Mr. Pinelo the hero?
Is Miguel a caricature?
Can the Falcon be real?
What do you think of Don Miguel the Old?
Society
What is the worst obstacle women faced?
Why prejudice pervades throughout history, under different colors and shapes?
Is it human to exist without enemies?
Can laws prevent the transformation of languages?
Who are the ultimate language arbiters, men and women in the street or academics?
Can women be women’s worst enemy?
Can a good citizen remain oblivious to abuses inflected on other human beings and still be good citizens?
Education
What do you think of universities excluding women?
Do you think education would have taken a different road had women had more of a saying?
How would the university be different?
What do you think of memorization?
Has the university changed much since Francisca’s times? How?
Family Relations
Does loyalty outrank ethics when it comes to family?
How far can a parent go for a child?
Is it possible for a smart woman to fall for a man with more hair than brains?
Can a woman go to the extremes Francisca does for her husband’s honor?
Is honor stronger than jealousy?
Can revenge override maternal instinct?
Historical Similarities
Can you detect examples of history repeating itself?
Are attitude against Jews in Spain similar to our attitudes toward immigrants?
Making war to dissimulate domestic problems still happens?
Has religion fostered more love than hate?
Can people really be unaware of abuses inflicted on minorities down the street?
Is human history a history of migration?
Be the Movie Director
Which actor for:
Francisca
Miguel
Mr. Pinelo
The Falcon
Don Miguel the Old
Maria Benavides Guerrero
Send your comments and suggestions, please.