BY THE WATERS OF BABYLON FINAL TEST – Flashcards
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Biltmore
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a New York City hotel
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Moses
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Robert Moses (1888-1981) New York City public official who oversaw many large construction projects, such as bridges and public buildings
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Allusion
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reference to something from the past.
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Allusion in story
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Psalm 137- "By the waters of Babylon, there we sat down and wept, when we remembered Zion"
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Who is the author?
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Stephen Benet
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What is the setting?
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in the undefined future near and in New York City
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In which point of view is the story told?
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first person point of view
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Who is John?
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Son of a priest
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Who is telling the story?
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John
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Who is the protagoist?
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John
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What do John's brothers do?
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they are hunters
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Why John takes this journey...
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to become a man
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narrator
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the voice that tells the story
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first-person point of view
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the narrator is a character in the story
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naive narrator
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narrator who does not fully understand what he sees or experiences
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allusion
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reference
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tone
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attitude of the writing or narrator
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bones, metal, fire, forbidden to all but priests and their sons
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What are some details about the dead places?
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the world after a catastrophic war
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What can you infer about the setting of the story?
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intellectual, driven, curious
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What are three of John's character traits?
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the father recognizes his son's craving for knowledge, and strong dream that outweighs society's laws
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Why does the father allow his son to travel to the place of the gods even though it is forbidden?
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he interprets signs such as the white fawn, finding a knife, and killing the panther
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What makes John conclude that he is doing the right thing in breaking society's laws?
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he faces his fears and continues on
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What does John's death song tell you about him?
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nuclear war
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What can you infer happened at the Great Burning?
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George Washington
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Who was the "ashing" statue a statue of?
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it has been poisoned by the "dust" from the bombs.
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Why do the food of the gods cause death for some of John's people?
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liquor
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What drink made John's head swim?
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it's more vivid and immediate
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In what way does the first-person point of view make the story more exciting for readers?
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a nice room in a high rise
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What is most likely the place of great riches ?
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because he believes things from the past are magic when really they're just things from normal humans
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Identify some details from the story which lead the reader to conclude that John is a naive narrator?
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lthe living room of a high rise
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Where does John sleep in "the place of great riches"?
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they didn't go to sleep exactly at night; they used lights to turn the night into day
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What does John mean when he says the gods did not sleep with the sun?
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bewilderment; amazed by the gods, but still doesn't understand what happened to them
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IN what ways do the narrator's comments reveal the author's tone, or attitude, toward the doomed civilization?
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by bombs in a terrible atomic war
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What destroyed the gods and their city?
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He still does not understand much, but he has learned of the ( gods' ) mistakes in the past.
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Is John still a naive narrator? Explain.
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No, not initially, because of a lack of wisdom, he believes the city was inhabited by magic gods, but in the end, he realizes after his epiphany that they were men.
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Does the narrator have enough knowledge to accurately describe his experiences in the place of the gods?
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He expects to die when he arrives because he believes demons and spirits will kill him; he describes the city in supernatural terms.
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How do the narrator's beliefs affect what he says about the place of the gods?
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John understands that information too quickly devoured can lead to disaster. The author is warning modern society about the dangers of technology outstripping man's ability to control his failings.
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How do the narrator's experiences and ideas help express the author's tone toward the doomed city and its people?
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The radioactivity of the war has declined to safe levels.
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What can you infer about: "I take the metal from the dead places, but I am not blasted."?
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since the place of the gods is in NYC the "bitter water" must be the (salty waters) of the Atlantic Ocean.
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What can you infer about: "I thought the river meant to take me past the place of the gods and out into the bitter water of the legends."?
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The description of the great burning coming down from the sky is spookily reminescent of a nuclear holocaust.
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What can you infer about: "...It is there that are ashes of the great burning."
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the towns and cities where all the formerly modern world's (our world) residents are dead.
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What are dead places?
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He hungers for knowledge.
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Why does John set out on his journey?
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John weeps when he dreams about the destruction of NYC in the terrible war of the gods. Babylon was the super power of her day yet that did not save her at her end. The United States is the super power of our day.
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Why is the allusion to Psalm 137 in the story's title appropriate?
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The story serves as a warning to our world.
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What can you infer from what John learns in the story?
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fasting (n)
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the act of abstaining from food
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rite of passage (n)
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any important act or event that serves to mark a passage from one stage of life to another
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paradox (n)
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(logic) a self-contradiction which is nevertheless true.
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purification (n)
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the act of purging corruption, sin, or guilt.
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enchantment (n)
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a magical spell
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haunches (n)
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The hip, buttock, and upper thigh in animals and humans
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chamber (n)
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a natural or artificial enclosed space
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burrow (n)
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a hole in the ground made by an animal for shelter
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summon (v)
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to gather or bring together
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perplexed (adj)
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full of confusion or bewilderment
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Rite of Passage
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a ritual that serves to mark the movement and transformation of an individual from one social position to another.
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emulate
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strive to equal or match, especially by imitating
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emigrate
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move out of a country or region to settle in another
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emancipate
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free from slavery or servitude
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elusive
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difficult to catch or to hold; hard to explain or understand
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eloquent
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well-spoken; expressive; articulate
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impose
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to forcibly place upon
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inadvertent
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unintentional; accidental
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implicate
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to involve in; to connect with or be related to
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impede
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to obstruct or interfere with; to delay
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purified
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cleansed; made pure
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the hero's journey
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a kind of plot device in which the hero leaves on a quest and returns after much struggle enlightenned.
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Noblesse Oblige
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to whom much is given, much is expected.
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elitism
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having to do with the best, the strongest, wisest, smartest, etc.
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August 1945
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Hiroshima and Nagasaki destroyed by atomic bombs.
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1937
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"By the Rivers of Babylon" is written in this year, 8 years before the world learned of the atomic bombs it prophecied.
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He won the Pulitzer Prize in 1929.
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Stephen Vincent Benet
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the elite class of John's tribe
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priests
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The author implies that the downfall of our world will be its lack of the
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spiritual.
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Which world is more materialistic: John's or the "gods"?
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the "gods".
