Snow

Take one of the novel’s epigraphs and interpret its connection to the plot, themes, characters, or literary devices in Snow.

What role do the concept of God and symbolic representations of God play in the novel? How do characters confront their doubts in God’s existence?

The theme of theater and life bleeding into each other is central to the plot. What is the connection between art and politics in the novel?

The women of Kars face many challenges in the novel. How does the novel characterize the challenges women face amid the political situation in Kars, and how do the relationships between women complicate these matters further?

How do the events in the novel reflect the influence of mass media on politics and worldviews? What roles do television, the news, and radio play in uniting, alienating, or emotionally influencing the people of Kars?

What are some of the parallels that the author draws between the Islamists and the Marxists in Kars? How does the author capture their similarities and differences throughout the narrative?

What are some of the contradictions that the warring factions (the Islamists, the secularists, the Kurdish nationalists) become entangled in? How does the character Ka respond to these contradictions? Whose “side” does Ka ultimately take? Does he take a side?

How does this novel explore the concept of “the other” and the limitations of understanding other individuals, political groups, cultures, religions, and nations?