Essay Questions

Describe the irony in the perception of Sylvie and Jerome.

Sylvie and Jerome are deluded about their financial status. They assume that they will get rich soon even though they do not work hard for the success that will translate to wealth. Instead, they spend their time imagining themselves in situations where they are wealthy.

The following are examples of situations where they are deluded. They wanted and imagined themselves in glamorous houses that were filled with expensive furniture. They even kept tabs on the neighborhoods that were posh even though they knew that they could not afford to acquire the property. They bashed the L’Express newspaper yet it was the only newspaper that they could afford. In addition to that, they spent endless hours in antique shops and stores looking and admiring items that they knew that they could not afford in their current financial situation.

Explain the parallelism between poverty and wealth.

The narrator draws a parallel between wealth and poverty by contrasting the current status of Jerome and Sylvie and the life that they imagined themselves to live. Jerome and Sylvie were from low middle-income economic status but they admired and wanted a high-class status. The narrator contrasts wealth and poverty using houses and clothing.

Glamorous houses are described in the novel in great detail. They are huge mansions that are filled with many rooms, expensive furniture and expensive food and drinks. These are contrasted with the house that Jerome and Sylvie lived in that was a two-roomed apartment filled with cheap furniture. Clothing is also used to contrast wealth and poverty. Expensive clothing like silk blouses, cashmere sweaters and lambswool coats. These are contrasted to the clothes that Jerome and Sylvie could afford which they bought at the flea market.

Describe the factors that drive friendships in the novel.

In the novel, Things: A Story of the Sixties, friendships are portrayed. These are between Jerome and Sylvie and their co-workers. Some of the factors that drive formation of friendships in the novel are; similar economic status, similar jobs and similar tastes.

The friends of Jerome and Sylvie were mostly their co-workers in the research sector. They went on field trips to conduct market research on products, services and government policies. They met in hotels in the field when they went for research in the provinces. They shared similar tastes in literature, music and clothing. They shared some of their items. They are also from a lower middle-income background.