60 pages • 2 hours read
Richard LlewellynHow Green Was My Valley
Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 1939A 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 the novel explore the relationship between the Welsh and the English?
How does Huw portray his father as a community leader? How does that portrayal shed light on the definitions of masculinity or manhood in the novel?
The slag heaps begin to appear all around the village. What do they represent to the people of the Valley? How does this detail in setting affect your analysis of the community?
What role does religion play in How Green Was My Valley? Is it presented as a negative or positive force?
Describe the ways in which the novel explores a relationship between the past and the present.
The novel depicts several couples who suffer from ill-fated love. Are there other examples of ill-fated love? What do those example suggest about love or culture?
How would you describe the mentorship Huw receives from different characters such as his father or Reverend Gruffydd? Do they offer him similar or different guidance to growing up? Which mentor has the most impact on Huw’s adulthood?
How do Huw’s father, brothers, and friends teach him that fighting for himself is important?
Beth loses many family members, both temporarily and permanently. What toll does this take on her mental health? Why is Beth the only character who seems to lose a sense of reality?
Why does Huw feel the need to share his story? What is he trying to achieve in his role as the narrator of How Green Was My Valley ? What other character would you like to have told the story from their point of view? Why?
