63 pages • 2 hours read
Yoko OgawaThe Housekeeper and the Professor
Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 2003A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more. For select classroom titles, we also provide Teaching Guides with discussion and quiz questions to prompt student engagement.
Introduction
Teacher Introduction
The Housekeeper and the Professor
- Genre: Fiction; contemporary literary fiction
- Originally Published: 2003
- Reading Level/Interest: Lexile 940L; college/adult
- Structure/Length: 11 chapters; approximately 192 pages; approximately 5 hours, 55 minutes on audio
- Protagonist/Central Conflict: The novel follows the story of a brilliant mathematician, known only as the Professor, who has a memory span of just 80 minutes due to a traumatic accident. The story unfolds through the eyes of the Housekeeper, a single mother hired to care for the Professor. As the Housekeeper and her son develop a bond with the Professor, they learn valuable lessons about memory, friendship, and the beauty of mathematics.
- Potential Sensitivity Issues: Themes of memory loss; themes of aging; emotional depth
Yōko Ogawa, Author
- Bio: Born 1962; Japanese author known for her poetic and contemplative writing style; The Housekeeper and the Professor is one of her acclaimed works, celebrated for its exploration of memory and its emotional resonance; often focuses on the intricacies of human relationships and the impact of small moments; awarded various literary prizes for her contributions to contemporary literature; regarded as one of Japan’s most prominent and influential authors
- Other Works: The Diving Pool (1990); The Memory Police (1994); Hotel Iris (1996); Revenge (1998)
CENTRAL THEMES connected and noted throughout this Teaching Guide:
- The Nature of Memory
- The Nature of Family and Relationships
- The Poetry of Mathematics
- Philosophies of Education
STUDY OBJECTIVES: In accomplishing the components of this Teaching Guide, students will:
- Develop an understanding of the sociological and educational contexts regarding the topics of caregiving of elderly people and memory, which impact the role of the Housekeeper in supporting the Professor.
- Analyze paired texts and other brief resources to make connections via the text’s themes of The Nature of Memory, The Nature of Family and Relationships, The Poetry of Mathematics, and Philosophies of Education.
- Draft and present a summary of a story that recontextualizes Ogawa’s main narrative into an alternate setting, based on text details.
