Our Town Vocabulary and Reference Guide

Our Town Vocabulary and Reference Guide

Name______

**Please save and refer to this vocabulary guide as we study the play.**

· Albany- the capital city of the state of New York, located in the eastern side of the state

· Amerindian stock- Native American people of the United States and Canada

· Antietam- also known as the Battle of Sharpsburg, fought on September 17, 1862, near Sharpsburg, Maryland and Antietam Creek; the first major battle in the American Civil War to take place on Union soil; the bloodiest single-day battle in American history

· anguished- tormented; distressed with severe pain, either physically or mentally

· anthropological data- information gathered from the study and science of humanity

· Appalachian range- a system of mountains in the eastern United States

· Archeozoic granite- a common type of igneous rock which is granular in texture; this rock consists mainly of quartz, mica, and feldspar

· Babylon- an ancient city of southwest Asia on the Euphrates River, famed for its magnificence and culture; the capital of Babylonia

· beckons- gestures to someone to come; signals to somebody to approach with a movement of the hand or head

· bereaved- those suffering and mourning the loss of a loved one

· bitingly- sarcastic; sneering

· “Blessed Be the Tie That Binds”- the most famous hymn written by John Fawcett, a British-born Baptist pastor and hymn writer; Fawcett originally wrote the hymn as a poem in 1782

· Boston Tech (MIT)- Massachusetts Institute of Technology; a private research university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts

· brachycephalic- having a short, broad skull; a description of primitive man

· Bryan- William Jennings Bryan; a leading American politician from the 1890’s until his death in 1925; he ran for President of the United States three times, served in Congress as a Representative, and acted as the 41st Secretary of State for the United States

· Buffalo- a large city in the state of New York, located in the western side of the state

· burdock- a coarse weed with burrs

· Caesar- Gaius Julius Caesar; a statesman, general, and writer who was born on July 13, 100 BC and was assassinated on March 15, 44 BC; considered by some to have been the greatest man of all time

· Canuck- a slang term for Canadians

· careening- leaning to one side; tipping

· Cicero’s orations- speeches given in 63 BC by Marcus Tullius Cicero, the consul of Rome

· citified- characteristic of a sophisticated, urban style of living; conformed to city habits and fashions

· Concord- a city in eastern Massachusetts

· constable- a person holding a particular office, most commonly the rank of an officer within the police

· contriving- planning with cleverness

· Conway- a town located in the center of the White Mountain National Forest in eastern New Hampshire

· Crawford Notch- a steep and narrow gorge of the Saco River in the White Mountains of New Hampshire; part of Crawford Notch State Park

· Daughters of the American Revolution- an organization for women who are directly descended from a person involved in the independence of the United States

· Decoration Day- now known as Memorial Day, a holiday originated after the American Civil War to commemorate the Union and Confederate soldiers who died in the Civil War; by the 20th century, Memorial Day had been extended to honor all Americans who have died in all wars

· Devonian basalt- a dark gray to black igneous rock that is finely grained

· diligent- hard-working

· “epytaph” (epitaph)- words put on a tombstone such as “Rest in Peace”

· evangelist- a preacher of the gospel

· exertion- strenuous action or effort

· gangling- awkwardly tall and slender

· genealogists- those who study ancestry and family trees

· Gettysburg- a town in southern Pennsylvania; the site of a major Civil War battle fought between July 1–3, 1863; this battle resulted in the largest number of casualties in the Civil War and is often described as the war's turning point

· gingham- a plain-weave cotton fabric, usually striped or checked

· gropes- searches blindly; thinks carefully for an answer

· Grover’s Corners, New Hampshire- a fictional community created by Thornton Wilder; a town modeled after several actual towns in the Mount Monadnock region of southern New Hampshire including Peterborough, Jaffrey, Dublin, and others

· Hamilton College- a private liberal arts college located in Clinton, New York

· Handel’s “Largo”- a piece of music composed for the opera by George Frideric Handel in 1738

· heliotrope- an aromatic plant with clusters of purple and white flowers

· highboy- a tall chest of drawers on legs

· high school commencement- a high school graduation ceremony

· hovered- waited nearby; stayed in one place

· hypocrisy- the practice of professing beliefs, feelings, or virtues that one does not hold or possess; falseness

· illiterate- unable to read or write

· incubator- a box or chamber used for hatching eggs

· Jaffrey, East Jaffrey, Peterborough, and Dublin- actual towns located in southern New Hampshire

· Lake Sunapee- the fifth-largest lake in New Hampshire, located on the southwestern side of the state

· Lake Winnipesaukee- the largest lake in New Hampshire covering 72 square miles, located on the eastern side of the state

· languid- weak; without energy; lifeless

· legacy- money or other possessions left in a will; an inheritance

· Lindbergh flight- a famous solo non-stop airplane flight made by Charles Lindbergh on May 20–21, 1927; Lindbergh traveled from New York to Paris, a distance of nearly 3,600 miles

· listlessness- lacking energy; not inclined to give effort; lethargic

· livery stable- a stable where horse owners pay a weekly or monthly fee to keep their horses

· Louisiana Purchase- the purchase of the Louisiana Territory from France at a price of $15 million, or approximately four cents an acre; the ratification of the Louisiana Purchase treaty by the Senate on October 20, 1803 doubled the size of the United States

· lugubrious- very sad; mournful in an exaggerated manner

· lumbago- a form of rheumatism or arthritis

· Manchester- the largest city in New Hampshire, located in the southern part of the state

· march from Lohengrin- the "Bridal Chorus" from the 1850 opera Lohengrin by German composer Richard Wagner; a march played for the bride's entrance at many formal weddings

· Mayflower- the ship that transported 102 English Pilgrims, including a group of Separatists, to New England in 1620

· Mendelssohn’s “Wedding March”- a song written in 1842; one of the most frequently used wedding marches, generally played on a church pipe organ

· Merchant of Venice- a tragic comedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1596 and 1598

· Mesozoic shale- a fine-grained sedimentary rock composed of mud that is a mixture of clay flakes and other tiny mineral fragments

· miser- one who lives poorly in order to save money and keep it; a "Scrooge"

· Monroe Doctrine- the declaration byPresident James Monroe in December 1823 that the United States would not tolerate a European nation colonizing an independent nation in North or South America

· mortality rates- the number of deaths in a population

· mountain laurel- a species of flowering plant in the blueberry family

· Mount Monadnock- also known as Grand Monadnock; a mountain in southwestern New Hampshire, known for its presence in the writings of Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau; the most prominent mountain peak between the White Mountains of New Hampshire and the Massachusetts Berkshires; the highest point in Cheshire County, New Hampshire; long been known as one of the most frequently climbed mountains in the world

· Mount Washington- the highest peak in the northeastern United States at 6,288 feet; located in the Presidential Range of the White Mountains in New Hampshire

· Napoleon- Napoleon Bonaparte; the first emperor of France from 1804-1815

· North Conway- a town located in the White Mountains of eastern New Hampshire with Mount Washington located to the northwest

· pantomime- a theatrical scene or entire play without words, only gestures

· parcels- packages

· parched- dry; lacking rainfall

· parson- a member of the clergy; a minister

· phosphate- a carbonated drink with flavored syrup

· pince-nez- eyeglasses kept in place by a chain or a spring that clips onto the nose

· proscenium- the part of the theatrical stage in front of the curtain

· Pullman- a brand of manufactured railroad cars (including sleeping cars) developed by George Pullman in the mid to late 1800’s and early 1900’s

· rheumatism- a chronic and painful disorder which can attack the joints on the arms and legs, leaving them inflamed and swollen

· Robinson Crusoe- a novel by Daniel Defoe published in 1719; a story about a castaway who spends 28 years on a remote tropical island

· sacrament- a sacred religious act recognized as having particular importance and significance

· savant- a person of learning; an intelligent scholar

· tableau- a scene where the actors freeze and do not speak; a posed scene

· traipsin’ (traipsing)- walking about aimlessly or carelessly

· Treaty of Versailles- the peace treaty that officially ended World War I between the Allied and Associated Powers and the German Empire in 1919

· trellis- a lattice structure used to support growing vines or flowers

· undertaker- a funeral director

· vestiges- slight traces of something

· wan- showing or suggesting poor health, fatigue, or unhappiness; pale in color

· weaned- taking away something to which a person is accustomed

· Whistler’s Mother- an famous oil painting made in 1871 by American painter James McNeill Whistler; the painting shows a profile of the painter’s mother sitting in a chair with her hands folded on her lap

· White Mountains- a mountain range covering about a quarter of the state of New Hampshire and a small portion of western Maine in the United States; part of the northern Appalachian Mountains, they are the most rugged mountains in New England

· whooping cough- also known as pertussis; a highly contagious bacterial disease that causes uncontrollable, violent coughing which can make breathing difficult

· Woodlawn and Brooklyn- neighborhoods in New York City

· wormed- worked or obtained something by being persistent

Our Town Study Guide—Act I Name ______

1. Describe the setting of this play. Be sure to include the time of day, month, year, city, and state.

The Stage Manager in Our Town has a leading part in this play, but he does not play a major character in the plot of the play. His important roles and functions include the following:

-He acts as a source of information about the town and/or the characters.

-He manipulates the action and moves the play along.

-He plays minor character roles.

2. Describe two examples of the Stage Manager acting as a source of information about the town and/or the characters. Please include the page numbers of your examples.

3. Describe one example of when the Stage Manager acts as a manipulator of the action. (He ends some scenes and moves the play along.) Please include the page number of your example.

4. Describe one example which shows the Stage Manager as a player of a minor character role. Please include the page number of your example.

5. Why do you think Thornton Wilder presents the two main families on the stage at the same time, shifting the focus from one side of the stage to the other? Fully explain your opinion.

6. Compare and contrast the two main families shown in Our Town. Be sure to include several of their similarities and differences.

SIMILARITIES:

DIFFERENCES:

GIBBS family: WEBB family:

7. Name and briefly describe the two scenes In Act I that involve George and Emily talking together.

8. On pages 38-39, the Stage Manager tells the audience what items Grover's Corners plans to place in the new bank's cornerstone to be opened in a thousand years. List below four of the items that will be placed in the town's "time capsule."

9. List below five items you would include in a "time capsule" of Amery. What items would truly represent our town and our surrounding community?

10. List below five items you would include in a "time capsule" of yourself. What items would truly represent you?

11. Briefly identify and describe the following characters. Also include the person’s occupation, if given.

Joe Crowell-

Howie Newsome-

Rebecca Gibbs-

Wally Webb-

Professor Willard-

Mrs. Soames-

Simon Stimson-

Constable Warren-

12. Reread the Stage Manager's lines on pages 38-39 as he discusses the ancient city of Babylon. Fully explain the significance of the following quotation. What ideas do you think the author is trying to convey through these important words?

"Yet, every night all those families sat down to supper, and the father came home from his work, and the smoke went up the chimney—same as here."

13. Reread the Stage Manager's lines on page 39 as he discusses Grover’s Corners. Fully explain the significance of the following quotation. What ideas do you think the author is trying to convey through these important words?

"So, friends, this is the way we were in our growing up and in our marrying…and in our living and in our dying."

14. On page 44, Rebecca asks the following question of her bother: "George, is the moon shining on South America, Canada, and half the whole world?"

Carefully consider Rebecca’s question and the major themes and ideas presented so far in Our Town. How do the sun and moon connect and relate to all of us as human beings on this Earth?

Our Town Study Guide—Act II Name ______

1. When does Act II take place? Be sure to give the time of day, month, and year.

2. How many years have passed since Act I ended? ______