44 pages • 1 hour read
August WilsonGem of the Ocean
Fiction | Play | Adult | Published in 2003A 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
How does Wilson use character Names as symbols in this play? What might be the greater meaning behind Ester’s, Solly’s, Caesar’s, and Citizen’s names?
Discuss The City of Bones. What does it represent to the characters in Gem of the Ocean?
How does Gem of the Ocean depict the power of Black Community? Support your response with evidence from the text.
How does Gem of the Ocean illustrate Redemption and Spiritual Healing?
What does Gem of the Ocean argue about The Nature of Freedom? Include quotations from the text in your answer.
How does Gem of the Ocean depict Racism and the Law?
Trace the presentation of Solly’s Chain throughout the play. How does the chain function symbolically?
Discuss the character of Garret Brown. Why did he choose his course of action, and what might it say about him as a man? Use quotations from the text to support your response.
Discuss Caesar’s characterization. How does he perpetuate institutional racism?
What are the play’s magical realist elements, and how do they add to its thematic structure?
Related Titles
By August Wilson
