Rock Paper Scissors

Reflecting on Adam’s ability to schmooze with the film-industry people he works with, Robin says that Adam is two different people and that she likes the quiet, shy version of him the best. To what extent are most of us different people depending upon the setting we’re in? Does everyone have one true self without pretense that is their true version of themselves? Do you think that people can live happy, fulfilling lives without being their truest self? Support your views.

On their anniversary, Adam buys Robin a ticket to a play she’s to attend without him. He does this knowing that he’s going to bring the gorgeous star October O’Brien to their home alone while Robin is at the theater. How innocent is Adam’s intention? How should Robin feel when she sees Adam and October in her kitchen?

Amelia, orphaned before her birth and raised by a parade of questionable foster parents, remarks that she didn’t learn how to love since no one taught her. Is the ability to love innate, like learning to walk, or something one learns by being with others, like learning how to talk? Support your choice.

Adam comments that no one is purely a hero or a villain but that every person has the potential for both. Since everyone thinks they’re one of the “good guys,” how can individuals tell if they’re generally a hero or a villain? Are outside observers better capable of judging whether another person is a hero or a villain than the individual is? Ultimately, Robin recovers the life that was stolen from her and saves the life of Adam in doing so; yet she takes a life and vicariously lives Henry’s life knowing that he’s dead. Is Robin a hero or a villain? Support your opinion.

Amelia consulted with an attorney and financial analyst before their trip and was planning on leaving Adam when they got back to London anyway (thus opening the door for his reunion with Robin). How would the lives of Robin, Amelia, and Adam have worked out if Robin hadn’t sent them the free trip to Blackwater Chapel?

Amelia, when thinking about how she was able to seduce Adam, stealing him and assuming Robin’s life, asserts that the marriage between Robin and Adam had run its course. The two certainly had lots of conflict, and Robin questioned the durability of their union. Was Robin’s plan more about getting Adam back or recovering what she lost while getting even with Amelia? Support your opinion.

Despite all the intrigue, twists, and revealed secrets, the story doesn’t turn physically violent until Amelia grabs a knife to stab Adam. Why does she decide that killing him is her only course of action?

To what extent do you think Robin and Adam can live peaceful, productive lives knowing that they killed and buried Amelia and perpetrating the lie that Henry is still alive? How long can they continue to write stories in Henry’s name given that he was in his late eighties when he died?