Facing Death | Exercise With Summary | Grade 12 | English
0Summary: "Facing Death" by August Strindberg is a tragedy centered around Monsieur Duran, a bankrupt businessman living in Paris with his wife and three daughters. Despite facing financial ruin, Monsieur Duran maintains a facade of dignity and refuses to accept charity. As the play progresses, the family is faced with mounting debt and eviction. In a desperate attempt to provide for his daughters, Monsieur Duran contemplates suicide to secure a life insurance payout. However, his plan is foiled when he discovers that the policy has lapsed due to unpaid premiums. In the end, Monsieur Duran dies of a heart attack, leaving his family in financial ruin and despair.
Questions and Answers:
a. Where does the play take place?
The play takes place in Paris.
b. Why do the grocery, the baker, and the butcher send their bills to the Durand household?
The grocery, the baker, and the butcher send their bills to the Durand household because they have not been paid for their services.
c. Why does Monsieur Duran spend money on candles when he doesn’t have money to buy even bread?
Monsieur Duran spends money on candles so that his family can have light at night.
d. Why did Monsieur Duran sell his life insurance?
Monsieur Duran sold his life insurance because he needed the money to pay his debts.
e. Why has Monsieur Duran paid fire insurance?
Monsieur Duran has paid fire insurance because he is afraid that his house will catch on fire.
f. How did Monsieur Duran and Mrs. Duran run out of their inheritances from both the sides?
Monsieur Duran and Mrs. Duran ran out of their inheritances from both sides because they spent the money on gambling and other extravagances.
g. Why does Monsieur Duran tell a lie about his birthplace?
Monsieur Duran tells a lie about his birthplace because he is ashamed of being born in a poor family.
h. What business is Monsieur Duran running to make a living?
Monsieur Duran is running a small business selling umbrellas.
i. What plan does Monsieur Duran have to help his daughters with money?
Monsieur Duran plans to commit suicide so that his daughters will receive the insurance money.
j. How does Monsieur Duran die?
Monsieur Duran dies of a heart attack.
Additional Questions and Answers:
a. Sketch the character of Monsieur Duran.
Monsieur Duran is a proud and stubborn man who refuses to accept help from others. He is also a loving father who wants to provide for his daughters, even if it means sacrificing his own life.
b. How do we know that the Duran family has reached a dead end?
We know that the Duran family has reached a dead end because they have no money, no food, and are about to be evicted from their home.
c. ‘The mother, though already dead, seems to have had a great influence on the daughters, especially Theresa.’ Do you agree?
Yes, I agree that the mother had a great influence on the daughters, especially Theresa. Theresa is the only one of the daughters who is able to stand up to her father and tell him the truth.
d. Discuss the relationship between Monsieur Duran and his wife.
The relationship between Monsieur Duran and his wife is strained. They are both proud and stubborn, and they are both unwilling to compromise. This leads to a lot of conflict between them.
e. ‘Money determines the relationship between characters in this play.’ Elaborate this statement with examples from the play.
Money is a major factor in the relationships between the characters in this play. For example, Monsieur Duran's refusal to accept charity from his brother-in-law leads to a rift between them. Similarly, the Duran family’s financial problems put a strain on their relationships with each other.
f. Monsieur Duran kills himself so that his daughters would get 5000 francs as the compensation from the insurance company. What does his plan tell us about him?
Monsieur Duran's plan to kill himself shows that he is a desperate man who is willing to do anything to provide for his daughters. It also shows that he is a proud man who is unwilling to accept help from others.
g. Discuss Facing Death as a modern tragedy.
Facing Death is a modern tragedy because it deals with the themes of despair, alienation, and the power of money. The play also explores the effects of social and economic conditions on the individual.
a. Write a few paragraphs describing the role of the father in the family.
The role of the father in the family is changing. In the past, fathers were seen as the breadwinners and disciplinarians. Today, fathers are more involved in child-rearing and are expected to be more emotionally supportive.
b. In his famous essay “The Experimental Novel,” Émile Zola says: This is what constitutes the experimental novel: to possess a knowledge of the mechanism of the phenomena inherent in man, to show the machinery of his intellectual and sensory manifestations, under the influences of heredity and environment, such as physiology shall give them to us, and then finally to exhibit man living in social conditions produced by himself, which he modifies daily, and in the heart of which he himself experiences a continual transformation. (21) To what extent do you agree with Zola’s idea that human beings’ intellectual as well as emotional capacities are determined by their environment and heredity? Discuss with examples including Facing Death.
I agree with Zola's idea that human beings' intellectual and emotional capacities are determined by their environment and heredity. In Facing Death, we see how Monsieur Duran's pride and stubbornness, which are inherited traits, lead to his downfall. We also see how the family’s poverty, which is caused by environmental factors, affects the relationships between the characters.