The Other Emma Questions and Topics for Discussion
Questions and Topics for Discussion
1. In Chapter 1, orphanage matron Clara Dermot wonders if she “…could set aside her misgivings about Lucien Boyesten in the hope of providing Rose a chance for a better life.” Consider her reasons for approving the adoption. What would you have done in her place?
2. When Rose learns she has been adopted and will be leaving the orphanage, she protests, “I want to stay here…my family is here. Please don’t send me away.” How does Rose’s sense of abandonment—by her mother and Clara Dermot—affect her future relationships?
3. After Rose’s first night in her new home in Boston, the cook describes her as “a lost lamb who has come to live in a house full of hungry wolves.” Do you think Rose was better off being adopted by Lucien than if she had remained in the orphanage? Why or why not?
4. Think about Rose’s decision to assume Emma’s identity. Is there such a thing as a “good” lie? Is her deceit justifiable? Did it alter your perception of her? Do her actions as Emma redeem her?
5. What do you imagine Rose’s life would have been like if the blizzard had never happened?
6. Frances’ observance of the Shabbat candle lighting stirs long-buried memories of her life before her mother died and all that she lost. Have you ever had an event trigger a forgotten memory?
7. Over the course of the narrative, several chance occurrences and serendipitous encounters alter the outcome of events. In Chapter 37, one such fortuitous meeting is said to be “beshert, meant to be.” Do you believe in fate or predestination?
8. Abram is a complex character. Sometimes charming, frequently arrogant, he is easily seduced by the lifestyle of the wealthy. Did his revelation about his parents indifference to him as child make you more sympathetic to him?
9. Frances’ life with Marcus and her staunch advocacy for women’s rights relegated her to the fringes of Gilded Age society. “Frances knew some would come to enjoy her company while others would attend [her teas] to satisfy their curiosity about the scandalous woman who dared to defy social conventions.” Discuss her lifestyle choices, and her disregard for the way she is perceived by both the old-money establishment and new-to-society matrons. Do you admire her?
10. Families are formed and fractured over the course of the narrative. Explore what defines a family and the role family ties—both secure and broken—played in the lives of Frances, Rose, Jenny, Simon, and Abram.
11. Consider the various responses to Rose’s disclosure of her true identity. Were you surprised by Simon’s reaction? Why or why not?
12. Deception is a common thread throughout the book: Lucien, Frances, Adella, Abram, and Rose all engage in duplicitous behavior. Consider the spiraling impact of the lies on their lives and on the people who cared about them. Were any of the characters’ actions more forgivable than others?
