Anne of Green Gables — Chapter 3

Narration Prompt

Summarize the chapter's argument or narrative arc, then identify the central tension and evaluate whether Montgomery handles it honestly.

Discussion Questions

1. Anne insists that 'A-n-n-e looks so much more distinguished' than 'A-n-n.' If naming is an act of self-constitution — if the visual form of a name participates in creating the self it designates — what theory of language and identity does Anne's practice embody, and does the novel take this theory seriously or present it as charming eccentricity?
2. Matthew's 'We might be some good to her' inverts Marilla's utilitarian calculus. Is Montgomery staging a confrontation between consequentialist ethics (what outcome does this produce?) and deontological ethics (what do we owe this person regardless of outcome?) — and does the novel's resolution of this question satisfy philosophically, or does it evade the harder implications?

+ 2 more questions in the complete study guide