71 pages • 2 hours read
When Breath Becomes Air
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Essay Topics
Consider Kalanithi’s decision to split the memoir into two parts, rather than dividing it into chapters. Does this inform how you prioritize the events of the story? Aside from the two parts indicating Paul’s life before and after the diagnosis, what are some of the other main differences (or similarities) between them?
When Breath Becomes Air is heavily informed by poetics and the study of language. What rhetorical devices does Kalanithi rely most heavily on to pay homage to the writers he loves? In what ways do the references to writers help advance the narrative?
Part 1 of the book begins: “I knew with certainty I would never be a doctor” (19). Kalanithi shapes his memoir by tracing, chronologically, stories from his own life and immersing them in a larger existential discussion. What are some of the key life events and/or concepts that pull Paul back to medicine as he grows older, despite his potential to study whatever he wants?
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