2. In "Father Time," how does Sedaris's description of Mayview connect the essay's motif of the inevitable march of time with his concerns about fatherhood?

3. In "Highfalutin," how does Sedaris describe Amy's writing and acting?

4. In "Highfalutin," what two things does Amy do while she and Sedaris are shopping that he finds funny but also mortifying?

5. In "Active Shooter," what contrast does Sedaris see between the drills he recalls in his own elementary school and the ones being practiced today?

6. In "Father Time," how does Sedaris contrast his attentiveness to his father with that of his siblings?

7. In "To Serbia with Love," how does Sedaris describe the flea markets that he and Patsy visit in Eastern Europe?

8. In "Themes and Variations," what kinds of people does Sedaris resist giving money to?

9. In "A Speech to the Graduates," what does Sedaris say frustrates him about talking to parents whose children want to be writers?

10. In "Themes and Variations," what does Sedaris discover about women, and how does he discover it?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

What is the meaning behind the anthology's title? Consider the content of the essay of the same name and how it relates to other essays in the collection. Consider how the title sums up a larger idea in this collection--earnestly or ironically. Also think about the reversed title in the essay's final collection. What is the point of reversing this title, and how does this choice add to your understanding of Sedaris's choice of Happy-Go-Lucky for the entire collection? Write an essay that makes and defends a claim about Sedaris's choice of title for this anthology of essays. Support your assertions with evidence drawn from throughout the collection.

Essay Topic 2

Sedaris has given several interviews offering advice about how to write humorous essays. Go online and find one of the articles where he offers such advice. Then, write an essay in which you summarize the advice he gives and apply it to one of the essays in this collection (any essay except "Smile, Beautiful"). Do all of the pieces of advice seem to apply to your chosen essay? Which ones are deployed most effectively in this essay? Why are they so effective? Consider questions like these as you explicate the humor in the essay and compare it to the advice Sedaris gives in the article you have chosen. Offer both quoted and paraphrased evidence from both the article and the essay in support of your observations, and cite all sources in MLA format.

Essay Topic 3

In "A Speech to the Graduates," Sedaris explicitly offers advice to younger people. But this is not the only place in Happy-Go-Lucky where he offers advice in one form or another. Choose one of the pieces of advice from "A Speech to the Graduates" and show how this advice is echoed in other essays in the collection. You might show how Sedaris enacts this advice in his own life, how he offers this advice to readers through editorializing, and/or how he explicitly offers this advice to other people he interacts with. As you choose which piece of advice to trace through the collection, be mindful not to interpret the advice too narrowly. For instance, in "A Speech to the Graduates," Sedaris offers advice about scented candles--but of course, what he is saying at a deeper level is to consider yourself worthy of an investment in quality items and experiences.

(see the answer keys)

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