Trainspotting

How does dark humor impact the book’s message? What would be the result of a straight delivery without the humorous elements? Use an example.

The topic of class recurs throughout the narrative. Choose an example of an instance in which a Skag Boy confronts class issues head on and provide a brief analysis.

Using specific examples, provide an in-depth analysis of the symbolic significance of the “cult of celebrity” that the Skag Boys appear to revere.

The book includes five chapters with the title “Junk Dilemmas” and then a number (No. 63, 64, 65, 66, 67). What purpose do these brief interludes play in the book? What insights do they provide into Mark’s character?

Contrast the aforementioned “Junk Dilemmas” chapters with the Chapter “Straight Dilemmas No. 1.” What differences and similarities are evident? Explain the numbering of the interludes in your response.

Women in the book appear almost exclusively as secondary characters. Those who are not family (grandmothers, mothers, cousins) are frequently used and abused by the Skag Boys, physically and emotionally. Discuss the significance of this portrayal of male/female relationships, providing at least three examples of such interactions. By serving as a counterpoint to the male protagonists, what role do these secondary female characters serve as a whole?

Chapter 39 refers to the book’s title, Trainspotting. Frank and Mark come across Frank’s drunken father at Leith Central Station, and the old man jokingly asks whether they there for trainspotting (meticulously tracking the times between trains). This is a ludicrous proposition here because, as Mark notes, Leith Central Station is practically defunct, and trainspotting there would be a hopeless scenario. Why might the author choose this as the book’s title?

Chapter 19 deals overtly with the topic of racism, as it shows Spud supporting his Uncle Dode in a fight with some skinheads. Explain the significance of a junky like Mark or Spud, arguably an “other” in society, taking the empathetic approach while straight/clean characters like Frank Begbie are shown to be racists.