53 pages • 1 hour read
Thomas KingThe Back of the Turtle
Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 2014A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Essay Topics
Explore the significance of storytelling in The Back of the Turtle. How does the sharing of stories deepen the main characters’ relationships to one another, and to themselves?
Can The Back of the Turtle be read as a cautionary tale for modern times? Support your answer with evidence from the text.
King spends much of the narrative exploring how the news media can be used as a tool to obscure the truth. How does this concept apply to social media?
Dorian defends Domidion’s deadly mistakes by arguing that side effects are an unavoidable consequence of scientific progress. How is this belief informed by his lifestyle and experiences? Would he think differently if he lived in Samaritan Bay?
How does King’s frequent shifting between characters with different values and perspectives enhance the themes of the narrative?
What do the sea turtles represent within the story? What do they mean to individual characters? Does this differ from what they symbolize to readers?
At the end of the novel, Dorian receives no comeuppance besides being reminded of his mortality. What might King have intended by letting such an egregious villain escape punishment?
How does the creation myth of “The Woman Who Fell from the Sky” parallel the narrative of The Back of the Turtle?
In his famous essay “Politics and the English Language” (1946), novelist George Orwell claims that the language of politics intentionally conceals the truth even from the speaker. Does this apply to Dorian? Provide textual evidence to support your conclusion.
What kind of relationship do the residents of the Smoke River Reserve have with their environment? How is it changed by Domidion’s intervention?
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