Room Lesson Plan

What do Jack’s observations suggest about the connection between reality and imagination?

Much of Room is about perception, reality, and imagination. Imagination is very much a coping tool for Jack. He soothes his anxiety by connecting to the characters in books like Dylan the Digger and Alice in Wonderland. However, the lines between what’s real and what’s not become blurry. Donoghue brings up Alice so often, especially in the final two chapters, in part because Jack is like Alice, thrust into a confusing and fascinating wonderland. Moreover, Donoghue’s narrative through Jack seems to suggest that so much of reality is story. This is emphasized in the way that the media...