“A Christmas Memory” by Truman Capote

On a separate piece of paper, answer each question using complete sentences.

1. Literary Elements/Point-of-view: Is the story told in first person or third person point-
of-view?
2. Literary Elements/Narrator: Who is the narrator of the story? Describe him in detail.
What would make him a reliable narrator (someone you can trust)? What about him would
make him unreliable as a narrator?
3. Literary Elements/Setting: Describe two settings (time and place) found in the story.
Give one interesting detail Capote gives about each setting.
4. Reading Strategies/Recall: What is the relationship between the narrator and the old
lady in the story?
5. Literary Elements/Figurative language: What does the old lady mean when she says, “It's
fruitcake weather!”?
6. Reading Strategies/Recall: Who is Queenie? What happens to her at the story's end?
7. Reading Strategies/Recall: What are the ingredients they need to make a fruitcake?
8. Reading Strategies/Recall: How do they earn money to buy the ingredients? (Discuss at
least three ways).
9. Reading Strategies/Recall: Where do they hide the money they have saved for their
ingredients? (Be specific!)
10. Reading Strategies/Inferences: Why do they throw the penny out the window?
11. Reading Strategies/Recall: Which ingredient is the most expensive and hard to get?
Where do they go to get this ingredient?
12. Reading Strategies/Inferences: Why doesn't Mr. HaHa charge them? What does he
want in return? What inference can we make about Mr. HaHa from this exchange?
13. Reading Strategies/Inferences: Who receives the fruitcakes Buddy and the old lady
make? What inference can you make about the pair based on who they give fruitcakes to?
14. Reading Strategies/Inferences: Why do the relatives get angry with the old woman? Did
she realize she was doing anything wrong? Why or why not?
15. Reading Strategies/Recall: How does Buddy cheer her up? What do Buddy and his friend
do the next day?
16. Reading Strategies/Recall: What presents would Buddy like to buy his friend? What
presents does he end up giving her? Why?
17. Reading Strategies/Recall: What presents would the old woman like to buy Buddy? What
does she end up giving him? Why?
18. Reading Strategies/Inferences: Why are Buddy and his friend disappointed with their
gifts from “the relatives?
19. Reading Strategies/Recall: How do Buddy and his friend spend the rest of their
Christmas Day?
20. Reading Strategies/Inferences: Why are Buddy and his friend so happy?
21. Literary Elements/Foreshadowing: What realization does Buddy's friend come to when
they are lying in the grass? How is this an example of foreshadowing?
22. Reading Strategies/Recall: Where was Buddy sent after that last Christmas?
23. Reading Strategies/Recall: What happens to Buddy's friend at the end of the story?
24. Literary Elements/Symbolism: What does the image of the kite symbolize (or represent)
at the end of the story?
25. Literary Elements/Author's Style: Truman Capote has a very unique writing style. List
some of the writing techniques that he uses in “A Christmas Memory”.