Beautiful Ruins

Jess Walter

Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 2012

A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.

Download PDF

Summary

Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Chapters 1-3

Chapters 4-6

Chapters 7-9

Chapters 10-13

Chapters 14-17

Chapters 18-21

Character Analysis

Themes

Symbols & Motifs

Important Quotes

Essay Topics

Tools

Beta

Discussion Questions

Essay Topics

The phrase “we want what we want” appears multiple times throughout the text. What does this phrase mean in terms of the overall theme of the universality of desire? How is want distinguished from need?

Compare Pasquale to Richard Burton. Who is the true romantic leading man in Beautiful Ruins?

Research behind-the-scenes information on the production of Cleopatra. Is Michael Deane’s account of the production in Chapter 15 an account based in truth or bitter libel?