The man in the yellow suit calls the Tucks “illiterates” (74) Miles cites his lack of schooling as a reason why he does not know how to do something useful in the world (87) the man in the yellow suit is extremely well studied, having gone to the university to study philosophy, metaphysics, and medicine (95). Discuss the differing levels of education and decorum between the Tucks and the other characters in the novel.How is the larger question of what to do with the immortality water tied to the respective positions in the novel? Does the Tuck family’s supposed moral high ground justify their other behavior? Should the Tuck’s be punished for kidnapping Winnie? Should Mae be punished for killing the man in the yellow suit? Should Winnie and the Tucks be punished for breaking Mae out of prison? Why are the Tucks, by virtue of their family secret, exempt from retribution? Or are they? How did Babbitt manage to get her readers to root for the Tucks? What signals them as the heroes of the piece, and vice versa what marks the man in the yellow suit as the villain? What do you think of the fact that the Tucks are all relatively well-developed characters and the man in the yellow suit does not even have a name? Consider their ages and physical appearances. The villain of the book, the man in the yellow suit, is an unscrupulous businessman and a blackmailer. Discuss the fact that the Tuck family (who are the title characters, are beloved by the protagonist, and are presented as the novel’s heroes) are kidnappers and murderers. This is a very morally ambiguous novel.If you would like to read a more straightforward review of Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt, you can do that here. As always, these questions do include spoilers. Please feel free to use my discussion starters if you ever find yourself in the situation where they’d be useful.
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