Comparisons
Alex took drugs even though they harmed her in order to not see Grays. What did Darlington do that was similar and also harmed him each time he did it?
Drank the elixir in order to see Grays.
The Gray who killed both himself and his partner saved Alex from the gluma. What was that Gray’s name?
The Bridegroom.
Who controls the amount of power and flow of information given?
Darlington
What does Detective Turner compare Alex to over quality goods?
What he finds on the bottom of his shoe (Pg 146).
What aspects of Tara (the murder victim) did Alex find relatable?
Her body type, the future that Alex would have had if she wasn’t saved by Lethe.
Who did Alex say that she loved and that their death left grotesque emotional wounds?
Hellie
How does Bookshelf work and why is it important when it comes to information? How do you "stop" it?
This tool requires precise requests or it may become physically agitated or emit heat. Someone stands before the central shelf and speaks their request aloud in order for the bookshelf to physically bring books out. To stop a "tantrum," a member must take the Albemarle Book, stroke its spine, and whisper soothing words to the library to reset it
In what ways does Alex consciously or unconsciously “act” like she belongs?
-Alex engages in Lethe’s secret rituals
-Alex downplays and keeps quiet about her past. One example physically would be how she hides her tattoos with her sleeves.
-She has a special ability allowing her to play a very specific role aligning her with the societies goals and allows her temporary acceptance/belonging.
Why did Alex compare herself to a Gray when she saw Meagan at her job?
People looked through her as if she wasn’t there; if someone did see her, they wished they hadn’t similar to how Alex experienced Grays.
When Alex approached Darlington’s bedroom, she took measured steps, similar to what?
A bride approaching the altar.
How does Darlington maintain power and dominance over Alex?
He shares only selective information about Lethe, the societies, and the magic they oversee so that she remains dependent on his guidance and knowledge, which reinforces his authority and maintains the hierarchy of knowledge within the system.
How is belonging constructed within Lethe and the other societies through merit, lineage, or usefulness?
Belonging within Lethe and the other societies is primarily determined by lineage and inherited privilege/wealth for insiders like the Bonesmen, while outsiders like Alex are given only conditional and revocable acceptance based on their usefulness to the continuing of power within the societies.
How does the injured butterfly that Alex saw when she was being assaulted by a Gray, reflect her story?
She, like a butterfly, was trying to metamorphosize and become someone new, but she failed because something harmed her.
Earlier in the book, it was mentioned that Yale had used a woman’s body in their first attempt to communicate with the dead. She had the same name as a woman in the bible whose husband King David killed, so that he could marry her. What was her name?
A: Mary
B: Bathsheba
C: Ruth
D: Esther
B: Bathsheba
How does Alex maintain power and also secrecy?
She uses her ability to see Grays as a way to maintain knowledge that only she can choose to share. Her ability allows her to maintain control and secrecy over knowledge, specifically about Tara Hutchins and Lance. Keeping her past quiet also enables her to only reveal what she chooses to when it comes to her ability.
How does Alex’s presence expose cracks in the system of exclusion?
Alex’s presence exposes the cracks in the system of exclusion by showing that the societies will abandon their supposed standards of merit and enrollment when it is useful, revealing that their power is maintained through privilege and tradition rather than true elitism.
Like Hiram’s Crucible, Hellie was called “golden”. Unlike the crucible and the elixir inside it, Hellie was also described as what?
The elixir caused the drinker to be cold, whereas Hellie was described as “always warm”.
Darlington compared Alex to Undine twice. Who is Undine?
A. The name of a water nymph who gained a soul by marrying a knight, eventually disappearing back into the water after he rejected her, only coming back to kill him.
B. A woman who faked her own death, causing her lover to kill himself and her to follow him once she realized he was dead.
C. A mermaid who turned into sea foam, dying of a broken heart after her lover got married to someone else.
D. A siren who accidentally drowned her lover after she mistook him for a regular sailor, starving herself to death afterwards.
How do the secret societies maintain secrecy and power over Yale and society as a whole?
How does Alex’s outsider perspective allow her to see truths that insiders ignore or normalize?
She did not grow up to be a part of the societies and is not conditioned to normalize the societies traditions as normal, allowing her to question their ethics, notice how separated they are from the majority of Yale, and recognize the exploitation others overlook.