Essay Questions

What is the significance of the novel’s title?

The title comes from a cryptic story told to the author by his grandmother involving two sacrificial offerings to the goddess of fate. One offering was a spring lamb of excellent quality stuffed with all sorts of delicacies presented by a beautiful, wealthy woman. The other offering is a dead black dog with a single decomposing apple in its mouth offered by a beggar woman dressed in tattered rags. Mysteriously, the offering that was accepted by the goddess was the dog and she nonchalantly explains the reason for the odd selection as “…Appearances are deceiving. The world is not what you think…” This particular story involving the black dog is a meta-reference to the author’s family hiding as much of their experience of the genocide of their race, and event that to many of the author’s family members as least, is an event so horrible that they would rather forget things altogether rather than relive them even as a memory.

What does the Black Dog symbolize?

The eponymous black dog is an omen of ill fortune. It is symbolic of the harshness of not just death but life as a whole. The author’s grandmother never gives a clear enough reason for the goddess’ selection of the wretched offering but one is able to surmise that in choosing the dog the grandmother—and by extension their whole family—has decided to embrace the cynical outlook that life, despite their ability to choose to look at the proverbial glass as “half-full”, life is ugly and has many bitter realities that come with it. There is however, another layer of meaning behind this mysterious symbol. In spite of its macabre associations the black dog can also be taken as a symbol of possibility; from the ugliness and severity of death there is the promise of new life and new opportunity.

Why is the author’s constant efforts in trying to unearth the truth spurned by his family?

The author tries his best to both unearth and record not just his immediate family’s personal history but also the genocide that took place. He pursues the matter out of a sincere desire honor his family heritage and to show the world the truth of the horrors of the Armenian genocide. In spite of his efforts and honorable motives his family spurns his efforts, even convincing him to do away with the project altogether. Their reason for not wanting to participate in the author’s efforts is not just because of the personal trauma they have no wish to relive but also because his family members know, deep in their gut, that the genocide was not just perpetrated by a handful of hateful individuals; it became a full-blown racial slaughter because many everyday citizens had decided to turn a blind eye to it and allowed it to happen—a matter chillingly similar to the ethnic cleansing done by the Nazis.