The Confessions of Frannie Langton Reading Guide & Discussion Questions

Book Club Discussion Questions

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For supplemental discussion material see our Beyond the Book article, 19th Century Literary Companions and our BookBrowse Review of The Confessions of Frannie Langton.

Please be aware that this discussion guide will contain spoilers!

1. Why is Frannie taught to read? What makes reading such a powerful skill that it was denied to slaves? Why does Phibbah, a slave like Frannie, plead with Miss-bella not to teach Frannie? How does the ability to read change her?
2. Consider all the literary allusions throughout the book. What does each work bring to the novel? In what ways might Voltaire's Candide or Mary Shelley's Frankenstein be particularly relevant? Why do you think Moll Flanders is so important to Frannie?
3. How does Frannie navigate and survive the brutal, oppressive ignorance of slavery? What are the particularly important decisions she is forced to make? How does she bear the extreme anger and grief that result from such oppression?

Unless otherwise stated, this discussion guide is reprinted with the permission of Harper Perennial. Any page references refer to a USA edition of the book, usually the trade paperback version, and may vary in other editions.