STUDY GUIDE

Study Questions for The Confessional

for teachers & book clubs

Questions credited to Becky Powers 

1. List the main characters, including Mac. Describe each one. Where does he live? What kind of person is he? What does he want? What’s his secret? What might he lose if people find out his secret? Explain your answers with anecdotes and illustrations from the story. 

2. Summarize the letter that Mac wrote to the El Paso Times. Why did he write it? How did different people respond to his letter? Did the letter cause his murder or might he have been murdered anyway, without writing it? Explain your answer.

3. What are some of the ways the different characters identify themselves? Is race, social status, or sexual preference a person’s most important identifying characteristic? Why or why not?

4. Describe incidents of racism in this story. How would you define racism? What do you think causes it?

5. How does the fear of rejection affect the various characters in the book?

6a. Webster’s Dictionary defines obscene language as language that is a)abhorrent to morality or virtue, b)regarded as taboo in polite usage, c)repulsive by reason of crass disregard of moral or ethical principles, d)so excessive as to be offensive. Are there times that some of the language in this book fits this definition?  

6b. Why do the teens use obscene language with each other but not with the adults? 

7. Do the teens in this story have the same sense or a different sense of right and wrong as the adults? Give examples. How do the teens decide what is right or wrong? How do the adults decide? if right and wrong is primarily based on general consensus in the culture, how has the general consensus of what is right or wrong changed since your parents were teens? Since your grandparents were teens? Which generation do you think had it really right? How did you decide that?

8a. Webster’s Dictionary defines a hypocrite as: “A person who puts on a false appearance of virtue or religion.” Who are the hypocrites in this story? Why do they choose to pretend to be something they aren’t? 

8b. Who is the most genuine character in the story? Explain. 

8c. Does hypocrisy help or hinder a person’s development of identity? Explain.

8d. Do you think it is possible to be completely genuine-to be the same way with all the people in your life?  Why or why not?

8e. Can you be honest and genuine in a relationship without telling everything you know? In other words, is honesty the same thing as full disclosure? For example, can you be honest with one friend and at the same time protect the confidences of another friend? Or can you be honest and genuine even with someone you think you can’t trust? Does another person’s untrustworthiness/hypocrisy force you to be dishonest, too? 

9a. In this story, who is a good friend? Who’s a bad friend? Back up your answer with examples from the book. 

9b. Is it possible to be a good friend and a real jerk, at the same time? Why or why not? 

10a. Some observers say that the central goals for individuals in the American culture are to be happy and to feel good about yourself. Would the teens in this story agree or disagree? What about the adults? Give examples to back up your opinion.

10b. Are there times when it might be OK to be unhappy and uncomfortable with yourself? Explain your answer. 

10 c. How might racism be connected to the goals of being happy and feeling good about yourself? How might hypocrisy be connected?

11. Compare the ways the different characters in this story deal with their anger. Contrast Isaiah’s philosophy with Jim Hill’s.

12. Did Alexander Gold deserve to be beaten up? Why did the other boys beat him up?

13a. Why did Daniel decide to confess to a priest? What message did the priest give him? Do you agree or disagree with his message? Explain.

13b. If Jim Hill had confessed to the priest, would the priest have given him the same message? If yes, why? If no, how do you think the message would have differed?

14. Isaiah Contreras makes the comment that getting angry about some things is normal. In other words, it’s OK to get angry about certain things. Do you agree or disagree? Explain why. If you agree, give examples of things it would be OK to be angry about. What might be good ways to express “normal” anger?

15. How would you define guilt? If there are things it’s OK to be angry about, are there also things it’s OK to feel guilty about? Explain why or why not. If you believe there are things someone should feel guilty about, explain the best ways to deal with or resolve that guilt. What do guilty people need?

16a. At the end of the book, Jim whispers a plea to his mom to save him. Why? What does he hope/want to be saved from? What do you think it would take to save Jim? Do you think his mom can save him? Why or why not?

16b. Who else is trying/hoping to be saved from something in this story? Explain. Where do they go looking for that salvation? What do they do to try to get it?

17. Which character stuck in your mind the most after you finished the book? Why?