The Last Silk Dress | Topics for Discussion & Projects

The Last Silk Dress Topics for Discussion

1. Lucien and Tim are very different, and yet they are close friends. What binds the two men? How, in their differences, do they seem to embody the "Yankee" and the "Confederate" spirit?

Examine qualities the men have and how these qualities are somehow linked to stereotypical Southern or Northern character traits.

2. By the end of the novel, you learn what Susan learns: the secret of her past. Does this knowledge affect your evaluation of Charlotte as a mother?

Look carefully at the last scene in which Susan and her mother are together.

3. Knowing what you do about slavery, do you sympathize with the people of Richmond? If so, how have Rinaldi's descriptions swayed you?

4. If you were Lucien's younger sister, would you be pleased with the way he treats you?

5. At the beginning...
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