logo

22 pages 44 minutes read

Zora Neale Hurston

Spunk

Fiction | Short Story | Adult | Published in 1925

A 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

1.

Spunk and Joe are foil characters, not just for their actions and attitudes, but physically as well. Compare and contrast the physical descriptions of each character, including clothing, body language, and more. How do their physical attributes interact with their other, intangible qualities?

2.

Hurston divides “Spunk” into four short, numbered sections or scenes. What happens in the gaps between these scenes? Why might Hurston have structured the story as she did, leaving most of the action to happen “off-screen?”

3.

Walter and Elijah essentially act as dual narrators of the story, both relating events and offering commentary. They disagree on several points. Identify at least one point of disagreement between them, then examine the attitudes and beliefs that lead to the disagreement. Does Hurston guide readers to accept one side or the other? How so?

4.

Certain roles are implied for or explicitly applied to various characters based on their gender, relationship status, or other qualities. Analyze one or more characters based on the social pressures and roles that are applied to them: How does the social/peer pressure manifest? What does the character do in response? What are the outcomes for the individual and for society?

5.

Several characters raise the possibility that Joe is haunting Spunk from beyond the grave, but Hurston stops short of providing conclusive evidence that this is so. Does it matter whether Joe is really haunting Spunk? Why might Hurston have chosen to leave the question unanswered?

6.

Lena appears in the story only tangentially, as related to the conflict between Spunk and Joe, and other characters relay or interpret her actions. Can you find any evidence to doubt the motives and emotions ascribed to Lena by the men in the store?

7.

Several key scenes take place at specific times of day, including dusk, nighttime, and morning. Analyze the story’s scenes and events in terms of temporal setting, specifically time of day. What is the thematic significance of the temporal setting of each scene?

8.

Joe reminds Lena of their marriage to coerce her to return to him. Later, Elijah says that Spunk intends to “rush” his marriage to Lena because “he don’t want folks to keep on talkin’ bout her” (60). As depicted in “Spunk,” what functions does marriage serve as a social construct, and who does it benefit?

9.

Hurston is known for her careful use of idiomatic language. Consider the dialect as a characterization tool: Can you find speech patterns specific to individual characters? What do those patterns suggest about the characters in question?

10.

The final few lines of the story make a distinction between the conversations shared by the men and the women at Spunk’s funeral. How does that difference reflect gender roles prevalent at the time? Can you find other evidence of gender roles in the story?

blurred text
blurred text
blurred text
blurred text