Riverdale English IV Honors Summer Reading Packet for Hillbilly Elegy by J.D. Vance

The first question is answered as a model. You may download and type your answers, but you must submit a hard copy to your teacher; if you opt to handwrite, please include the questions. Note that the honors statement at the end must be handwritten and signed by you and a parent/guardian.

Chapter 1

  1. What is Jackson, Kentucky, like and why does Vance have such an affection for the place?Jackson, Kentucky is a friendly town of about 6,000 people who live in trailer parks, government-subsidized housing, small farmhouses, and mountain homesteads. It is located in southeastern Kentucky’s coal country.Jackson was Vance’s paradise, a place where he basked in the golden reputation of his Mamaw and was surrounded by people who really knew and loved him. He spent most of the first 12 years of his life exploring the mountains there with his cousins—free from his mother’s drama and the parade of “father figures” she brought home. It was the place he learned the “oral tradition” of his Mamaw’s family, making him feel like “hillbilly royalty.” He saw Jackson as his real home, and it was here that Vance realized he was a “hill person” and part of American’s white working class.
  1. Class disloyalty is something Vance’s grandmother, Mamaw, dislikes. How does she define class disloyalty?
  2. Why does Vance revere the Blanton men? What are they like, and why does Vance find them so appealing?
  3. What are some contradictions apparent in Jackson, Kentucky? How do these contradictions shape the town?

Chapter 2

  1. What are Vance’s grandparents, Mamaw and Papaw, like?
  2. How did Vance’s grandparents get to Ohio? What are the two versions of how and why they left Kentucky?
  3. How does migration out of Appalachia in search of jobs affect communities?
  4. How do Vance’s grandparents adapt (or not) to their new Ohio life? Are changes positive or negative for them?

Chapter 3

  1. What are the ways in which Mamaw & Papaw lead two lives? Why is there such a split?
  2. Mamaw also strongly dislikes disloyalty. Why? Why does she think loyalty is so important?
  3. How do Mamaw and Papaw try to correct past mistakes? Do you think they end up correcting them?
  4. Are you surprised by the violence Vance encounters at home? Does the family consider the behavior violent?

Chapter 4

  1. Compare Jackson, Kentucky, to Middletown, Ohio. How is it similar? In what ways is it different?
  2. Why did Middletown experience an economic decline?
  3. What are some ways in which there are conflicts in attitudes towards work among the people of Middletown?

Chapter 5

  1. How do Mamaw’s views on fighting evolve? Why do you think they change?
  2. What are the circumstances surrounding Vance’s adoption?
  3. Vance’s relationship with his mother changes; what is the catalyst for the change? What is its outcome?

Chapter 6

  1. Describe the kind of relationship Vance and his sister Lindsay have.
  2. How does this chapter discuss religion? Is religion important to Vance?
  3. How is the absence of a father figure significant to the way Vance learns masculinity?
  4. How does hearing his father’s account of the adoption change J.D.’s views? Do you think he forgives his father?
  5. Does religion become a grounding force for Vance? If so, how.

Chapter 7

  1. How big a gap does Papaw’s death leave in the family? How do family members respond to his death?
  2. How do Vance and his sister think of themselves as burdens? Is this justified?
  3. When his mother enters rehab, are you surprised at how Vance and Lindsay adapt?

Chapter 8

  1. In what ways does Vance’s home life become more tumultuous?
  2. How do you fix schools when the problems kids face stem from their lives at home?
  3. How do you think not being able to drop your guard feels? What would that be like for Vance & his sister?

Chapter 9

  1. How does living with Mamaw help Vance understand her better? How does he get to know her in new ways?
  2. At the grocery, Vance sees how class difference and work ethic manifests. Is he justified in his anger?
  3. Would you feel as hopeful about his mother if you were in his position?
  4. Does the stability of living with Mamaw change Vance’s life? Why or why not?

Chapter 10

  1. How self-aware is Vance when he decides he isn’t ready for college? Are you surprised by his self-awareness?
  2. In what ways does the family split anew following Mamaw’s death?
  3. How does the Marine Corps change Vance? What does it teach him?

Chapter 11

  1. What is Vance’s experience like in college? How is it similar and different to his peers?
  2. Why does Vance believe people from places like Middletown are distrustful of contemporary America?
  3. In what ways does the media and internet feed into the anxieties of people from Middletown?
  4. How do these perceptions and views feed into attitudes towards government and American society?

Chapter 12

  1. In what ways does being at Yale challenge Vance’s identity?
  2. How does Yale life make Vance more appreciative of his background and where he comes from?
  3. Is lying about not going to Yale an example of protecting against class disloyalty? Why or why not?

Chapter 13

  1. How did Vance’s experience during FIP highlight his class difference from his peers?
  2. What is social capital? In what ways did social capital come to help Vance?

Chapter 14

  1. What kind of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) did Vance have?
  2. Describe Vance &Usha’s relationship. What behavior does Vance trace to his upbringing? What can he change?
  3. Do you think Vance has come to terms with his feelings for his mother? Or will these feelings always evolve?

Chapter 15

  1. What is the “uneasy truce” Vance strikes in caring for his mother?
  2. When J.D. & Usha marry, they both change their names to Vance. How is this significant for each of them?

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On my Honor, I have neither given nor received any unauthorized aid on my summer reading packet. This is my work alone, and I have not allowed anyone to copy it, nor have I copied from anyone.

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Hillbilly Elegy discussion questions provided by HarperAcademic.com.