Scythe Essay Questions

On page 42, Scythe Faraday says of scythehood: “Therein lies the paradox of the profession... Those who wish to have the job should not have it…and those who would most refuse to kill are the only ones who should.” Does the novel as a whole seem to agree with Faraday? Do you?

Since the novel presents old-guard scythes as mostly good, it's fair to assume that the novel's ethos as a whole supports Scythe Faraday's belief that good scythes should not want to be scythes. However, there are many points of exception, and the answer to this question will depend on your personal outlook.

One counterargument to the quote above is that Scythe Faraday chooses Citra as an apprentice, even though she's killed before, when she pushed Rhonda Flowers in front of a bus. Despite killing before, Citra still develops into a thoughtful, compassionate scythe—she doesn't refuse to kill, but she does regret killing Rhonda. Similarly, Rowan would kill Scythe Faraday at the opera—where he is first introduced to Scythe Faraday—if there weren't repercussions (or at least he believes that he would). It seems that Scythe Faraday possibly means something more like "those who remain affected by killing are the only ones who should."

H.S. Goddard writes in his gleaning journal that he "chooses to glean with pride, not shame...in a perfect world, don't we all have the right to love what we do?" Though Scythe Goddard himself is unequivocally a villain, some elements of his philosophy make sense in the context of their post-mortal world. He embodies an Age of Mortality-esque passion for pleasure, loving what he does, which (without all the murdering—again, he is a villain) might not be such a terrible thing for the post-mortal world to remember.

Overall, the novel seems to present two primary paths of scythehood: Suffer so that others don't have to, or enjoy life at the expense of others. Perhaps, like Rowan when he's ordered to be either the eagle or the mouse, the Scythedom should search for a third option from a different perspective.

The Thunderhead allows economic inequality, even in its "perfect" society. Why does the Thunderhead do this? Does it work?

As Rowan observes, “no one was impoverished anymore. Austerity was a choice, for there were always those who shunned the plenty of the post-mortal world.” Scythe Faraday describes the people who live in his neighborhood as "playing at poverty," implying that they're pretending to be poor, as they willingly choose austerity over plenty. Though this seems like a strange choice to readers whose world is rife with inequality, the people of the post-mortal age aren't suffering or unhappy; they're just a little bit bored. It makes sense that "playing at poverty" could be a way to break up the monotony of millennia.

Citra has a similar take on the Thunderhead's decision: “Perhaps this is why the Thunderhead still allows a measured amount of inequality. It could certainly make sure that everyone had equal wealth—but that would just add to the plague of boredom that afflicts the immortal. Although we all have what we need, we’re still allowed to strive for the things we want.”

The Thunderhead supposedly allows unequal wealth to combat boredom, so that people "strive for the things we want" (notice the second-person "we," a rhetorical choice to involve the reader rather than just describing to the reader). However, in the post-mortal world, people don't really strive, or even want very much. Citra's parents work and are comfortable, but like Citra says, life is about "eternal maintenance," not striving. Her parents are an example of economics simply being tied into that maintenance. If economic inequality or "playing at poverty" could solve the issue of public stagnation, then why is the public stagnating regardless? Exploring measures that might relieve stagnation more effectively could be grounds for a fruitful essay.

Do you think that Scythe Goddard has a point about the "old-guard" scythes being outdated? Why or why not?

By the end of the novel, it's fairly clear that Shusterman doesn't intend for his readers to side with Scythe Goddard. Goddard is a murderer and abuser, and he uses his philosophy or "perspective" to bend others to his will. However, that doesn't mean that there isn't some weight to his perspective on the Scythedom's current direction. Population growth means that more scythes need to be recruited, but the pool of potential recruits to the old-guard way seems to be small. Humans are languishing, and life is about "eternal maintenance." Almost no one stands up to scythes; almost no one tries at anything at all. Rowan discusses intentionally doing poorly, never applying himself to anything—why bother? To stand out is to be at risk. It's clear that humanity's "perfect world" is not exactly perfect, and the Scythedom's mentality has a role to play in that. However, that does not mean that Scythe Goddard is entirely or even partly right, particularly because he's manipulating true/good facts to his advantage, as we see him do elsewhere, like turning Rowan's nobility into a weapon to control him.

Art from the Age of Mortality is featured throughout Scythe, and some from the post-mortal age as well. What does the specific art referenced indicate about this post-mortal society?

Scythe Faraday takes Citra and Rowan to Verdi's opera La Forza del Destino (The Force of Destiny), which Citra has trouble relating to because it centers around murder and vengeance. She struggles similarly to understand the artists Faraday points out in the museum: El Greco, Raphael, and Seurat. References to other artists are peppered throughout the text—Scythe Goddard admires Maxim Easley's Cézanne; Scythe Curie lives in Frank Lloyd Wright's Fallingwater; High Blade Xenocrates uses museum-quality tapestries as rugs. All of this artwork is famous in the real-world Western canon, which makes logical sense for a continuation of present-day America. The works are representative of revolutionary artistic movements (notably expressionism, cubism, and pointillism), and many of the artists referenced were troubled or ridiculed in their time.

Examples of art from the post-mortal age are less frequent and less cohesive. One fashion designer is mentioned, Claude DeGlasse, and Citra observes that "today's designers were all about shocking people out of their happy place"—he's designed a garish orange-and-blue-striped robe for a new scythe. Citra also describes artwork in the Tonist monastery, stained glass that depicts "various strange scenes" like a man carrying a huge tuning fork on his back (Jesus-like) and "nasty vermiform creatures in the form of a double helix that spiraled out of the ground." While these ideas are comprehensible to readers, they're not exactly lovely—if anything, they sound vaguely disturbing. At the Museum of World Art, Rowan calls post-mortal art "easier on the eye," which Faraday amends to "uninspired."

It's stated that without comprehension of murder, death, trauma, and despair, art is hard to create and harder to relate to. The novel's presentation of art seems to support this idea, though the post-mortal artworks mentioned certainly don't sound "easier on the eye." Scythes in particular seem receptive to and interested in art, perhaps due to their proximity to death and despair. While it's hard to imagine a "perfect" society without great works of art, that seems to be the case put forward by Scythe.

Most characters in the book seem to have a foil, or a contrasting character that highlights certain struggles or qualities. Can you identify any foils in the novel? What does this contribute to the novel as a whole?

There are many foils in the novel, and some characters have more than one (for example, Volta and Rowan could be compared fruitfully). Here are some possible points of discussion.

Scythe Faraday and Scythe Goddard: Firm old guard versus firm new order. They both tend to lecture, like Faraday at the art museum and Goddard about his grand vision. They both hold significant sway in the Scythedom, in direct opposition to one another. They both yell during conclaves. They both use various methods of gleaning. However, Scythe Faraday is haunted, prays to God, and shuns excess of almost any kind; even his guilty pleasure, the glass of milk, is couched in demands to prevent waste. Scythe Goddard is indulgent and wasteful, with his diamond-studded limousines and lavish parties. They're both shown to be generous with immunity, but Scythe Faraday grants it out of mercy (breaking commandment #3), and Scythe Goddard grants it for attention.

Scythe Curie and High Blade Xenocrates: A mix of old guard and new order; Scythe Curie used to be flamboyant as a young scythe, earning the title the Grande Dame of Death, and High Blade Xenocrates's politics are diverse and affected by blackmail. They both live in fancy, unique houses (Xenocrates in a log cabin atop a skyscraper, Curie in Falling Water). They both love food, and they're both extremely influential. They've both broken commandments (Xenocrates has a "spawn," Esme, breaking commandment #9; Curie and Faraday were a couple for seven years, bending the same commandment).

Citra and Rowan: Their similarities and differences are mentioned throughout the study guide, as this foil is central to the text. Rowan observes that Citra is the type of person who participates, and he's the type of person who avoids; Citra mostly observes that Rowan's many positive traits annoy her.

Scythe Volta and Scythes Rand and Chomsky: Though all three of Scythe Goddard's junior scythes are a team and work together, Volta is the outlier. He was trained by an old-guard scythe, Scythe Nehru, so his early experiences were different. Scythe Rand is the polar opposite, as she was Scythe Goddard's apprentice from the outset. Rand and Chomsky eat voraciously after gleaning, and Volta eats almost nothing. In the excerpt from his gleaning journal, Scythe Volta refers to Rand and Chomsky as twisted and charming, and he recounts them discussing how they'll self-glean one day; though he writes that he intends to live thousands of years and doesn't consider self-gleaning, he is the one to actually self-glean.

Having so many characters with different ethical codes allows the novel to explore morals without (usually) moralizing, allowing readers to draw their own conclusions. Comparison is also an effective technique to build characters' uniqueness, as differences emphasize individual traits.