73 pages • 2 hours read
Jeff SmithBone
Fiction | Graphic Novel/Book | YA | Published in 1991A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Essay Topics
In terms of both plot and character, how and why is the Hooded One’s gender significant? How might the story change if she had been a man? How would it change if we had known she was a woman all along?
Bone was originally published serially, in 55 issues over the course of 13 years. With this fact in mind, how does Smith integrate exposition and summarization into character interactions? How is expository dialogue utilized to move the story forward?
How is absurdity utilized in Bone?
Discuss Smith’s use of shadow and negative space. How do these visual elements affect the plot? How do they reflect tone? Do they present thematic significance?
Compare and contrast Phoney and the Hooded One. What traits do they have in common? In what ways are they different? What is their thematic relevance to one another?
Describe the importance of foraging, hunting, and scavenging in Bone. How does it fit into the plot? What thematic significance does it have?
Discuss the role of death in Bone. What narrative and thematic purposes are served by the threat of death, undeath, and actual death?
What is the significance of romantic love in Bone? How do the characters’ romantic feelings for one another (or lack thereof) affect the way they are presented to the reader?
What is the thematic significance of associating the antagonists with vermin, such as rats and locusts?
What is the role of commerce in Bone?
