Either/Or

How does Selin’s friendship with Svetlana help shape her? How are the girls different, and how do those differences affect their relationship?

Discuss the theme of Education Versus Learning. How do Selin’s interests as a learner deviate from the kind of thinking and argumentation she is encouraged to do as a student?

Discuss the theme of Literary Analysis and Self-Examination. What does Selin learn from the books that she reads, and how does she apply those lessons to her own life? In what ways are these two processes separate for her, and how do they merge?

Discuss Ivan’s characterization. Do you agree with Selin’s assertion that his behavior is reminiscent of the seducer in Kierkegaard’s “The Seducer’s Diary”?

Discuss the theme of Identity, College, and the “Immigrant” Experience. How does Either/Or differ from many other immigration narratives? Consider Selin’s attitude toward her identity, especially society’s perception of her as Turkish American. What failings and risks of societal expectations of the immigrant experience do her reflections highlight?

Choose one of the books that Selin reads and analyzes and discuss its importance within the narrative. How does it speak to Selin’s experiences? How does it shape her actions?

Discuss the symbolism of the library. What does it represent? How does it function within the narrative?

Discuss the motif of literature. Why does Selin find literature more readily understandable than human behavior?