Rise and Fall of D.O.D.O (Stephenson) - Discussion Questions

Discussion Questions
We'll add publisher questions if and when they're available; in the meantime, use our LitLovers talking points to start a discussion for The Rise and Fall of D.O.D.O … then take off on your own:

1. Talk about Triston Lyones and Melisande Stokes. How would you describe them, their skills, personalities, inner strengths and weaknesses, desires, fears?

2. Why does Tristan hire Melisande? What are her skill sets that he believes qualifies her to do the work?

3. What does Melisande come to learn about the manuscripts? What are they in such good shape despite their age?

4. (Follow-up to Question 3) How was magic vanished or at least brought to an end? Where did it go? Explain the role photography played in its demise.

5. Talk about Doctor Frank Oda and his role in all this.

6. How about Erszebet Karpaty? And the Irish witch?

7. Talk about the D.O.D.O. — and the joke that runs for about 150 pages to uncover its full name. Did you find it amusing?

8. (Follow-up to Question 7) How would you describe the growth of D.O.D.O mirror into a bureaucracy: to what extent is the novel a satirical mirror of real life institutions?

9. There is a blizzard of memos back & forth. What were your feelings about them? Funny. Informative? Tiresome? Too many?

10. Were you able to pick up references to Shakespeare or, say, Monty Python? What do you think about the chapter sub-headings written in an 18th or 19th century style?

11. Comment on the conspiratorial machinations of The Fuggers (btw, there really is a Fugger bank dynasty, going back to the 14th century).

12. How did you experience Neal Stephenson's melding of technobabble with magic?

13. (Follow-up to Question 12) What challenges might be presented were time travel a possibility? How does Stephenson describe the technical issues?

14. What does the novel have to say about the human proclivity for foolishness?
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15. Well, what do you think of the book? The ending — satisfying or not?
(Questions issued by LitLovers. Please feel free to use them, online or off, with attribution. Thanks.)

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