The Invisible Japanese Gentlemen
Graham Greene
Pre-Reading Discussion
• Do you have the experience of looking at something but not seeing it? What might affect people’s seeing power?
• What do you make of the title? In what way can people be invisible?
P1: a long shot
• How did the author describe the Japanese gentlemen? List all the details that he had noticed.
• Do you think a group of Japanese people dining in a British restaurant is likely to arouse much curiosity? How do you interpret the girl’s indifference?
P2: a close shot
• What do you know about the girl from the author’s description?
• What does the incongruity of her appearance and way of speaking tell?
• Can you speculate on the background of the girl?
P3-5: her companion
• How did the author describe the man? Did he give him as much attention as he gave the girl?
• Why did the author revert to the Japanese gentlemen while he was observing the girl and her partner?
• Can you speculate on the background of the man?
P6-25: a rising star and her dumb partner
• Why was the author shocked when he found the girl was of his own profession? What qualities do you think are necessary for a writer? Did the girl have them?
• How well did the couple get along? Did their relationship promise a happy marriage?
• In what way did the new title differ from the previous one? What did this change mean?
P26-27: insight of a hardened writer
• Why was the author pessimistic about the girl’s career? Why did he feel it a humiliating thought?
• What insight did the author provide about the nature of a writer’s profession? What did the girl expect of her career? Why was she approved by her publisher but disapproved by the author?
P28-54: ambition and conceit
• What kind of story do you think will be produced in a popular resort like St. Tropez? Why did the girl choose there as the venue for her next book?
• Who seemed to have the upper hand in the relationship? What do you think would happen to the couple after this date?
P55-57: what a future!
• Why did the author think both of them had made a wrong decision about their profession? What advice would he offer them? Does his advice sound sensible?
• What function did the Japanese gentlemen serve in the whole conversation?
Conclusion
• Power of observation; relativity and selective perception;
• Men and women; apparent harmony and deep incongruity; dominance and submission;
• The profession of a writer; sand and gold;• Euro-centrism;• Cultural differences in the conversational style.
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