Alvarez, "Daughter of Invention"

Read "Daughter of Invention" (995)

1.         The narrator’s mother is fond of English-language aphorisms (brief, wise   sayings), but she gets them slightly wrong.  Provide corrected versions of  at least three of these sayings.

2.         What conflicts does the father face in this story?  Why do you think the father does not want his daughter to challenge authority?

3.         A good title often has what might be called resonance—it echoes with meaning. In a paragraph, explain how Alvarez’s title touches on (a) a   humorous detail of the story, (b) a theme of the story, and (c) the climax of the story.

4.         Creative writing: Choose one of the mother’s incorrect aphorisms. Write a short story where the incorrect saying would make sense as the moral of the story. This should be at least 8-10 sentences long; include some dialogue between the characters.

5.         What characteristics of Postmodern Literature appear in this story?