Postmodernism in White Noise

Heinrich's argument with Jack about whether or not it is raining expresses the postmodern idea that meaning is never concrete. It is obviously raining as Jack drives Heinrich to school, yet the boy will not admit that rain is falling down. He insists that there is no way to actually know whether it is raining or anything in fact when basing observation on sight because sight is unreliable. People tend to believe what they can see, so Heinrich's argument undermines an important aspect of human reason. Heinrich also uses other abstract arguments to prove to his dad that there is no way to tell if it is raining or not. His arguments convey the idea that nothing and no meaning is necessarily as it logically should be.

White Noise Second Reading Discussion Questions

1. In chapter twelve, why does Bob Pardee look so sad at dinner with Jack, Babette, and their kids?

2. What does the last line of chapter thirteen "The American mystery deepens" mean?

3. What is the significance of Alfonse Stompanato's interrogation of his colleagues about their whereabouts at the moment of James Dean's death in chapter fourteen?

4. Why does Denise not keep questioning Babette about Dylar in chapter seventeen after the family gets off topic after she first asks Babette about the drug?

5. In chapter nineteen, after taking Bee to the airport, why does Jack go to the cemetery?

Hamlet Act 3, Scene 4

1. Summary – Hamlet goes to his mom’s bedroom to talk to her. Polonius is spying on Hamlet from behind an arras. During her conversation with Hamlet, the queen yells out “Help!” and Polonius yells out in response. Hamlet then kills Polonius. Hamlet makes his mom feel bad about marrying her dead husband’s brother and gets her to agree to help him by sleeping with Claudius one more time. During the conversation, Hamlet sees the ghost but his mom does not. Hamlet tells her that he is not actually insane. Hamlet takes Polonius body from the room.

2. Significance – This scene is important because it marks a turn in the tide against Claudius as Hamlet’s mom agrees to help her son and Polonius, Claudius’s faithful servant, is killed.

3. Quotations – Upon hearing Polonius yelling out from behind the arras, Hamlet says “How now? A rat? Dead for a ducat, dead!” He means two things by rat. One is that he is acting like there is actually a rat behind the curtain so that killing Polonius only seems like an honest attempt to kill a rat, not an intentional act to get rid of Claudius’s troublesome servant who is spying on Hamlet. This goes along with his act of insanity because if he is insane then he easily could think that a rat is speaking. Also, Hamlet is calling Polonius a rat for spying on him as he talks with his mother. I like that Hamlet uses “rat” to keep from being thought of as guilty and to call Polonius a mean name.

During her conversation with Hamlet, the queen says “Hamlet, thou hast thy father much offended.” Hamlet responds with “Mother, you have my father much offended.” I like this comeback because it sticks the guilt and blame on the queen while she was trying to put them on Hamlet. Hamlet also makes it clear that he does not consider Claudius his father because his mother refers to Claudius in her statement as being Hamlet’s dad while Hamlet refers to his actual father as his father in his statement to his moth

Response to White Noise First Reading Discussion Questions

Chapter eleven question from She Said She Said: Why is Babette suffering memory loss? Is it in any connection with medical problems that caused the evacuation of the elementary school?

It could be from medications she is taken. It seems as though Denise is pretty worried about medication Babette is taking and Denise does read her medical book a lot. I actually think that the problem with the elementary school is what is causing her forgetfulness. There must be radiation or chemicals or something that are causing problems with people in the school and the radiation or chemicals or whatever it is could be spreading through Blacksmith. I think other people in the town will start to suffer because of the mysterious thing that is causing problems at the school as the story goes on.

Chapter 1 question from Fettucini Alfredo:

Why does DeLillo use long, extensive lists with uncommon items to describe the college students and their arrival?

The list of items shows the shallowness and materialism of the young people of the world of the story. The sports equipment and music and things are held in a place of great importance by the students. The lists are long, showing that they need many worldly things in order to be happy; at least they think they do. They also have drugs and birth control pills showing their lack of morals. DeLillo is commenting on the young people of the real world trying to convey the message that they are too materialistic and shallow and lack morals just like the young people in the story.

Chapter 4 question from Quarter Rose:

Why would any mother in their right mind force their children to spend their Friday night free-time watching television that upsetted them?

Babette just wants to make sure the kids turn out right and that the family is strongly bonded and feels that having the whole family sits down together to watch TV on Friday nights will make the bond between the family members stronger and therefore make sure the children develop well emotionally. She probably chooses Friday nights because they are not school nights and maybe also because the shows on Friday nights are better than those on Saturday nights. She looking out for the kids’ best interests and the family’s best interests, not trying to crush her children’s’ social lives even though she probably is doing a good amount of damage to these. She is just naïve to kids’ normal desire to hang out with friends on Friday nights.

Hamlet Act 3, Scene 2

1. Summary: The play that Hamlet planned takes place and Hamlet has Horatio spy on Claudius during it to see how he reacts to part of it when a murder similar to that of Hamlet Sr. is talked about. Hamlet feels that if Claudius reacts in a horrified manner, the ghost was telling the truth. Hamlet makes offensive comments about Ophelia and his mother before the play. Claudius reacts to the part of the play mentioned earlier in a way that makes Hamlet believe that Claudius did murder his father. Polonius calls Hamlet to go to his mother’s room to talk with her.

2. Questions: Queen – Does it anger you that Hamlet picked the play that he did? Why does Ophelia not stop Hamlet from making offensive comments about her? Hamlet – Why do you interrupt the play? Wouldn’t it have been less conspicuous if you had just let the play happen as it was supposed to happen? Doesn’t your interruption make it easier for the king to see that you chose this play to reveal his guilt about your dad’s murder?

3. Quotations: Hamlet says “What, frightened with false fire?” to Claudius after the king has reacted to seeing the killing of Gonzago in the play. I like this question because Hamlet is basically letting the king know that he knows that the king murdered his father, but actually says nothing that proves that he knows this. He is rubbing it in that he knows this information while still retaining his innocence about the matter. Therefore, he strikes fear in Claudius without giving him grounds on which to have him punished for slandering the king.

When Polonius summons Hamlet to see his mother, Hamlet says to him “[d]o you see yonder cloud that’s almost in shape of camel?”; “[m]ethinks it is like a weasel”; and “[o]r like a whale.” These three quotations all talk about a nonexistent cloud. The quotations are funny because Hamlet is just acting to mess with Polonius.

White Noise First Reading Discussion Questions

Chapter 1: Why do people seem to like Hitler so much?

Chapter 3: Are Murray's statement that "[n]o one sees the barn," the barn being the "most photographed barn in America, and his comments that follow up on this statement meant to be comical or actually somehow philosophical?

Chapter 5: Is Murray in love with Babette?

Chapter 7: Why does Jack say "[w]e believed something lived in the basement" and then not follow this statement with a discussion about it?

Chapter 9: Why does Babette refuse to bring her kids and Jack's kids to dinner at Murray's when he says to do so?

Chapter 11: What does Jack mean when he says "I woke in the grip of a death sweat?"

Hamlet Act 2, Scene 1

1. Summary: First, Polonius has Reynaldo go off to find news about Laertes. Then Ophelia comes into Polonius’s room, very upset, and tells him of her encounter with Hamlet, which is what has caused her to become upset. Hamlet has acted insane in front of her. Polonius determines that Hamlet has gone crazy because he has kept Ophelia from him and decides to tell Claudius of this idea.

2. Questions: Polonius – If you had known that Hamlet truly loves Ophelia, would you have forced Ophelia to stop seeing him? I don’t think you would have. Polonius – Why do you distrust Laertes so much that you send someone to spy on him? Is Ophelia trying to make her father feel guilty for keeping her from seeing Hamlet when she comes into his room to describe her encounter with Hamlet when he is acting insane?

3. Quotations: Polonius says “But beshrew my jealousy!” when he begins to think that he caused Hamlet to lose his mind by keeping Ophelia and him apart because Hamlet really does love Ophelia. He is saying that he is upset to have suspected Hamlet’s intentions regarding Ophelia to be anything but true because it has brought an unfortunate consequence upon Hamlet. This is nice because he actually acknowledges his fault in separating the two young people even though they both truly love one another, as he believes they do, and because he actually feels bad about bringing about Hamlet’s craziness, as he believes he has done.

Polonius says “This is the very ecstasy of love,/ Whose violent property fordoes itself/ And leads the will to desperate undertakings/ As oft as any passion under heaven/ That does afflict our natures” to Ophelia once she has told him of Hamlet crazy actions. He basically is trying to tell her that love can make people do crazy things. The reason I like this quote is because it sounds nice and flows well.