Book Club Discussion Questions
Please be aware that this discussion guide will contain spoilers!
- The four narrators of An Instance of the Fingerpost illustrate that
there is never just one side to a story, that an event can be interpreted in
a multitude of ways. As readers, however, we're conditioned to trust our
narrator. Did you find one narrator inherently more trustworthy than
another? What qualities suggest a credible narrator, and how does Iain Pears
play off of our assumptions in his characterizations of Marco da Cola, Jack
Prestcott, John Wallis, and Anthony Wood? Can you think of other books in
which this multi-perspective technique was used to similar ends, or other
books that feature unreliable narrators?
- An Instance of the Fingerpost is set in the early years of the
Restoration, a time in English history marked by political intrigue and
social unrest. The Civil War has just ended. Oliver Cromwell, rebel and
"lord protector" of England, is dead, and the monarchy of Charles
II has been restored to power. Although the eleven years of Crowmwell's
Commonwealth are not described in great detail, they are evokedin very
different ways - by a number of characters (Wallis, Prestcott, Sarah Blundy
and John Thurloe among them). What might we infer about Cromwellian England
from the characterand memoriesof his supporters and detractors? Is it
safe to assume it was any easier for those citizens (like Sarah Blundy) who,
during the Restoration, have been forced to the fringes of society?
- The Oxford University of the novel is steeped in its own plots, schemes,
and rivalries (think of the competition between Marco da Cola and Richard
Lower, and Lower's alliances with Robert Boyle, as well as the university
fellows' various reactions to the murder of Robert Grove). How does Pears
use Oxford as a microcosmic reflection of the larger, more tumultuous
society?
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- How does the author develop themes of identity and belonging throughout the narrative?
- What role does the setting play in shaping the characters' decisions and relationships?
- Discuss how the ending reframes the events of the story. Were you surprised?
Unless otherwise stated, this discussion guide is reprinted with the permission of Berkley Books.
Any page references refer to a USA edition of the book, usually the trade paperback version, and may vary in other editions.