30 pages • 1 hour read
Alexander WeinsteinSaying Goodbye to Yang
Fiction | Short Story | Adult | Published in 2016A 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
Why is “Saying Goodbye to Yang” told from the first-person perspective of Jim? How would the story change with an omniscient narrator?
How does the world of “Saying Goodbye to Yang” resemble yours? How is it different?
After reading the rest of “Children of the New World,” consider why “Saying Goodbye to Yang” is the first story in the collection. How does it set the tone for the following stories?
What can you infer about Jim and Kyra as characters from the different reactions they have about Yang’s death?
What function do George and Russ—an acquaintance and a stranger who each share crucial moments with Jim—serve in the story?
How do you interpret Yang’s baseball glove, butterflies, moths, and matchbox project?
Do you think the family is changed at the end of the story? Why or why not?
Do you think Yang is self-aware and/or is sentient? Cite examples to support your argument.
