"Superstitions"
By: Mary La Chapelle
About the Author
Mary La Chapelle was born on April 28, 1955 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Mary La Chapelle is an American short story writer. La Chapelle went to the University of Minnesota and graduated there. Mary La Chapelle also graduated from Vermont College with an MFA, which is abbreviated for Master of Fine Arts. During her writing career, Mary La Chapelle was awarded the 1986 Nelson Algren Fiction Award and the 1988 Whiting Writers' Award. Another work of Mary La Chapelle is "House of Heroes and Other Stories"' which was published in 1988.
Pre-Reading Reflection
What does it mean to be superstitious? Give an example.
To be superstitious means to have or show belief that something will give you good luck or bad luck. For example, a four-leafed clover will give you good luck
Do you consider yourself superstitious?
Yes, I consider myself superstitious because I hope for many things, and that I believe that certain things will give me good luck.
If yes, what are some superstitions you have, and why do you think you have them?
One superstition I have is that whenever I have a tennis tournament, I wear the same clothes or shoes from past tennis tournaments. I believe they give me good luck. I think I have this superstition because wearing the same apparel from past tournaments makes me feel that I am back in the tournament. I feel better wearing the same apparel.
If no, why do you think you are not superstitious?
If no, I think I am not superstitious because I always rely on myself. I rather do the right thing or what is necessary than hoping that good luck will come to me.
Why do you think people develop superstitions?
People develop superstitions because they think the superstitions they develop will help them determine if something will give them good luck or bad luck. They hope for the best for them.
To be superstitious means to have or show belief that something will give you good luck or bad luck. For example, a four-leafed clover will give you good luck
Do you consider yourself superstitious?
Yes, I consider myself superstitious because I hope for many things, and that I believe that certain things will give me good luck.
If yes, what are some superstitions you have, and why do you think you have them?
One superstition I have is that whenever I have a tennis tournament, I wear the same clothes or shoes from past tennis tournaments. I believe they give me good luck. I think I have this superstition because wearing the same apparel from past tournaments makes me feel that I am back in the tournament. I feel better wearing the same apparel.
If no, why do you think you are not superstitious?
If no, I think I am not superstitious because I always rely on myself. I rather do the right thing or what is necessary than hoping that good luck will come to me.
Why do you think people develop superstitions?
People develop superstitions because they think the superstitions they develop will help them determine if something will give them good luck or bad luck. They hope for the best for them.
Vocabulary
Theorized:
The term "theorized" means to predict as used in the quote "He theorized that little kids who got in from the top and out from the top never had to make their beds." (Page 42)
Apprehensive:
The term "apprehensive" means to be cautious as used in the quote "She was apprehensive as she brushed on toward the attic, because if she were to find it had been left open, it would be a bad sign that she couldn't change." (Page 42)
Compelled:
The term "compelled" means determined as used in the quote "It was something she had begun, and now she was compelled to continue." (Page 43)
Persistent:
The term "persistent" means keeping on as used in the quote "The sun was warm and persistent with promises to shine over everything by noon." (Page 54)
Precautions:
The term "precautions" means things to be aware of, or dangers, as used in the quote "She was aware of certain precautions, like not looking into the sun too long." (Page 54)
Perceived:
The term "perceived" means to be aware of, to know, or to recognize as used in the quote "After waiting for what she perceived as a stubborn enough amount of time, she stood up and followed him." (Page 56)
Anguish:
The term "anguish" means to suffer as used in the quote "Groggy, but conscious now, Jimmy cried like a wounded soldier, all anguish and failure in something he didn't understand." (Page 60)
The term "theorized" means to predict as used in the quote "He theorized that little kids who got in from the top and out from the top never had to make their beds." (Page 42)
Apprehensive:
The term "apprehensive" means to be cautious as used in the quote "She was apprehensive as she brushed on toward the attic, because if she were to find it had been left open, it would be a bad sign that she couldn't change." (Page 42)
Compelled:
The term "compelled" means determined as used in the quote "It was something she had begun, and now she was compelled to continue." (Page 43)
Persistent:
The term "persistent" means keeping on as used in the quote "The sun was warm and persistent with promises to shine over everything by noon." (Page 54)
Precautions:
The term "precautions" means things to be aware of, or dangers, as used in the quote "She was aware of certain precautions, like not looking into the sun too long." (Page 54)
Perceived:
The term "perceived" means to be aware of, to know, or to recognize as used in the quote "After waiting for what she perceived as a stubborn enough amount of time, she stood up and followed him." (Page 56)
Anguish:
The term "anguish" means to suffer as used in the quote "Groggy, but conscious now, Jimmy cried like a wounded soldier, all anguish and failure in something he didn't understand." (Page 60)
Contrasting Ideas
Examples of when Frances feels strong:
An example of when Frances feels strong is when she sits next to Jimmy, arm to arm. She feels protective about Jimmy. For example, "Sometimes as they sat arm against arm on the sofa, and he looked ahead distracted by the T.V., she would trace the veins in his fine hand with her finger, and that quiet tenderness would come over her. She would move closer to him and cover his whole arm with her own, laying her brown hand over his so each of her fingers covered one of his, and nothing was left exposed." (Page 44) Frances feels strong when she plays with Jimmy with their walking sticks. Frances is making a bond with Jimmy. For instance, "On the stoop they both leaned down to pick up their walking sticks. Jimmy had smoothed them out by rubbing them against the concrete driveway. That was in the spring, and now the two sticks had become a part of their routine." (Page 54) Another example of when Frances feels strong is when she and Jimmy are planning to go across a bridge. The are communicating to each other and creating a bond, or relationship. The author states "Jimmy leaned her chair back. "All right then, we're going to take an important bridge today. It's over the river, like you thought, but it's not a common bridge. I think, mostly, that people don't know about it. So once we take it, it'll be our bridge, and the territory on the side'll be our territory. Now, I'll get the supplies, and you tell the home office." (Page 48) Frances feels strong when she lets Jimmy be the leader of the expedition across the bridge. Frances has the responsibility of Jimmy, so she is letting Jimmy do what he wants. For instance, "Nope. This is a secret maneuver. We can't have everybody in the neighborhood knowing about it." "Oh, big deal." "Hey! You're supposed to obey me now." "Okay, okay, let's go," she surrendered, giving him one last kick from the rocker." (Page 48) Another example of when Frances feels strong is when she holds back her feelings when she is against Jimmy. For example, "He pulled his thumbs through the empty belt loops of his fatigue pants and pressed his other four knuckles into his hips. As he stared her down, Frances resisted. Her eyes started laugh at him. She wanted to protest and call him silly. But the largest part of her wanted to be drawn into his fantasy, and this turned her expression to expectation. She waited." (Page 48) |
Examples of when Frances feels helpless:
An example of when Frances feels helpless is when she walks through the house with her eyes closed. She is very cautious during that time. For example, "Her hand hesitated at the doorway molding as a draft wafted over the little hairs on her wrist. The door was open. She passed her hand over empty space, making believe there was a door there . This didn't help, and the panic she had dreaded surged up from her stomach, making her run blindly down the hall until she was at the opening of the stairway." (Pages 42-43) Frances feels helpless when she is telling her mom about the bad thoughts she has. For instance, "Frances sighed, closed one eye, looked at her mother. "Sometimes I have bad thoughts." She announced this sentence, each word stated loudly and with long pauses in between, as though her mother might be hard of hearing or slow-witted. "I don't think them on purpose, and I wish God would just forget about them so that I won't be in trouble." (Page 50) Another example of when Frances feels helpless is when she talks about some of her superstitions with her mom. She is having obsessive compulsive behavior. The author states "What about M&M's, for heaven sakes?" her mother asked. "I have to eat them in order. I lay them all out in rows by color. I eat the M&M's from the longer rows until all the rows are the same length as the shortest row." Frances was finding this a difficult process to explain. "In other words, until there is the same number of each color left. Then I eat one from the red row, one from yellow, one from brown, never changing the order, until they're all gone." (Page 51-52) Frances feels helpless when she is exhausted that the mashed banana is all over her. For instance, "Frances scraped the mash disgustedly off of her clothes and wiped it onto the grass with her fingers. She saw that Jimmy's banana had also exploded at the top, and she caught him by the arm, as he rolled toward her, to save him from the mess. "Watch out for the banana." "Eyugh!" Jimmy feigned repulsion, and then, making his eyes wicked, he took the banana in his hands like a cake decorator and squeezed it onto her bare leg. "God! You're such a goon. Why do I ever think we can be friends?" (Page 55) Another example of when Frances feels helpless is when she climbed the rocks to get to Jimmy. For example, "Her ears were full of her own breathing, and with each breath she would call out to herself, "That's not a bridge. That's not a bridge. That's not a bridge." The closer she came to Jimmy's position, the more panicky she became, and her refrain turned to, "This is the bad thing. This is the bad thing." But the she caught herself and changed it to, "No, it's not. No, I won't let it be. No, I won't let you do it." She was losing her breath when she finally reached the upper trail." (Page 58) |