Essay Questions

What motivates Lady Schrapnell to reconstruct the cathedral?

Henry explains, “Her great-great-something grandmother went to Coventry and- I know , I know the experience changed her great-great-something grandmother’s life, and when Lady Schrapnell found her diary, it changed her life, and she decided to rebuild the cathedral exactly as it was just before it burned down in honour of et cetera, et cetera.” Lady Schrapnell’s motivation arises from the desire to posthumous pay homage her relation. Reading the diary affirmed that the cathedral was significant to the relation. Psychoanalytically, Lady Schrapnell yearns to cement the relation's memories of the cathedral through the reconstruction. The cathedral would be an embodiment of the 'great-great-grandmother.'

Why are 'missing moments' significant for Henry?

Henry explains, “It was bad enough that I’d landed fifteen hours later than I was supposed to have. Now I’d also left the cathedral only partly searched, which was as bad as not searching at all, and even if I was able to get back there at something close to the time I’d left at, there would still be all those missing moments, during with the verger, led by the cat, might have found the bishop’s bird stump and given it for safekeeping to his brother-in-law, whence it would pass out of history altogether.”

Missing moments are critical in reconstructing history, so Henry must comb through it to find the bird stump. The moments no matter how short would alter the course of history; hence, Henry is very concerned that missing the moments would hinder him from his quest to locate the stump. Furthermore, once the moments have passed, it would be impossible to reverse or reconstruct them. Henry opts to endure time-lags rather than miss such material moments.

How does race intersect with time-travel?

T.J Lewis, a black man, recounts, “Lady Schrapnell came and took everyone else. She would have taken me, but the first two thirds of Twentieth Century and all of Nineteenth are a ten for blacks and therefore off-limits…It’s the first time my having black skin has been an actual advantage.” Race influences the period that Lady Schrapnell assigns historians. Lewis's acknowledgment of the advantage that his skin offers him confirms that some periods are uncomfortable and problematic.