44 pages • 1 hour read
Tatiana de RosnaySarah’s Key
Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 2006A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Essay Topics
The key itself is an important symbol in the novel. In what ways does the key both open and close the world for Sarah and Julia?
Why is the story told from multiple points of view in the first half of the novel? What does this contribute to your understanding of the novel?
Name three ways that the truth becomes painful for those in the novel. Does the end of the novel justify causing that pain? Explain.
In what ways does Zoë play a vital role for her mother, Julia, in her quest to discover more about Sarah and the apartment?
For Julia, home is a tricky term, full of complexities and complications. Why does Julia struggle so much with the idea of home throughout the novel? Is this ever fully resolved?
Silence, or an unwillingness to speak up or speak truthfully, causes many of the hardships for the characters in the novel. Give three examples of this from the noveland show the results of the failure to speak.
Bertrand plays the role of antagonist in the novel. At first glance, he may seem to possess few redeeming qualities. What positive aspects of Bertrand are revealed as the novel progresses?
After Julia reveals that his mother, Sarah, was a Holocaust survivor, William gets angry and flees. Why do you think he decides to return to Julia and discover more about the memory of his mother?
Given that this novel is a historical novel, and many things have been invented, how does a fictitious book such as Sarah’s Key illuminate and color real historical events?
Discuss how the author manages and manipulates time in the novel. How does this affect other aspects of the book, including plot and character?
