The Portal
What term does the narrator use to describe the internet/social media in the novel?
What is the portal?
According to Tetzlaff, authenticity in rock is not a fixed trait but a ________.
What is a performance / perception / social construct?
Both texts explore how this element of modern life affects our sense of truth.
What is media / technology / the internet?
In Part 2, this emotional experience reshapes the narrator’s understanding of life.
What is grief / love / caregiving?
Lockwood uses this kind of narrative structure in No One Is Talking About This to reflect the disjointed nature of internet life.
What is fragmented / vignette-style / non-linear structure?
he narrator’s relationship with the portal is largely defined by this tone in Part 1.
What is irony / detachment / humor?
Tetzlaff argues that rock musicians often construct authenticity through this kind of narrative.
What is the myth of struggle / rebellion / personal truth?
In No One Is Talking About This, Lockwood’s poetic, fragmented prose mirrors this cultural phenomenon.
What is the fragmented nature of online communication / social media?
The narrator’s voice becomes more _______ in Part 2.
What is sincere / grounded / vulnerable?
Tetzlaff might describe the use of fragmented form in rock as a way to signal this to the audience.
What is rawness / emotional honesty / rejection of polish?
This event causes the narrator to disconnect from the portal in Part 2.
What is the birth of her sister's medically fragile baby?
Tetzlaff believes that this group plays a central role in defining what is “authentic.”
Who are the listeners / the audience / the fans?
Tetzlaff might argue that the narrator’s online identity is a performance of authenticity for this reason.
What is to fit in / to gain approval / to seem "real" in the portal?
Tetzlaff’s idea of authenticity might align with the narrator’s emotional transformation for this reason.
What is because she becomes more honest / connected to lived experience?
Both Lockwood and Tetzlaff suggest that breaking from traditional forms is often a sign of this in contemporary art.
What is authenticity / individuality / rebellion?
This is how the narrator reflects on the usefulness of internet language in the face of real-life grief.
What is that it fails / breaks down / loses meaning?
Tetzlaff believes that this group plays a central role in defining what is “authentic.”
Who are the listeners / the audience / the fans?
The failure of language in Part 2 of Lockwood’s novel echoes Tetzlaff’s idea that this can't always be communicated through image or style.
What is genuine emotional experience / truth / grief?
The narrator’s shift away from the portal suggests that meaning comes from this, not from online validation.
What is real-life relationships / presence / physical connection?
The fragmentation in Part 1 of Lockwood’s novel contrasts with the increasing ________ in Part 2.
What is emotional coherence / narrative focus / sense of grounding?
The portal symbolizes this larger theme in contemporary life.
What is disconnection / overstimulation / the fragmentation of identity?
Tetzlaff's argument challenges this long-held belief about authenticity in rock.
What is that authenticity is “natural” or inherent in the artist?
Both authors raise this fundamental question about modern communication.
What is “Can anything be truly authentic anymore?”
Lockwood and Tetzlaff both imply that identity in the modern age is constantly shaped by this.
What is performance / perception / external influences?
Tetzlaff and Lockwood both explore how fragmented form reflects this larger modern experience.
What is information overload / identity crisis / the search for meaning in chaos?