Klara and the Sun

Use these essay questions as writing and critical thinking exercises for all levels of writers, and to build their literary analysis skills by requiring textual references throughout the essay.

Differentiation Suggestion: For English learners or struggling writers, strategies that work well include graphic organizers, sentence frames or starters, group work, or oral responses.

Scaffolded Essay Questions

Student Prompt: Write a short (1-3 paragraph) response using one of the bulleted outlines below. Cite details from the text over the course of your response that serve as examples and support.

1. Klara’s faith stands in contrast with Mr. Capaldi’s scientific rationality. Mr. Capaldi, however, argues for faith in rationality.

• Are faith and science positioned as opposites in Klara and the Sun, or are there areas where they overlap? (topic sentence)
• Give 3 examples to support your stance on whether faith and science overlap in Klara and the Sun.
• In your concluding sentences, explain why you believe Ishiguro uses faith and science in the way he does in the novel.

2. Chrissy and Helen made opposite choices regarding lifting their children, and both women feel guilty about their decision.

• Did Chrissy make the correct choice in having Josie lifted? (topic sentence)
• Use 3 examples from the novel to support your belief about Chrissy’s choice for Josie.
• In your concluding sentences, explain what effect the decision to have Chrissy lifted had on her family.

3. Compared with many works of science fiction, Klara and the Sun offers few details about the novel’s setting, including time, place, and political landscape.

• Does Ishiguro’s decision to include fewer details on the novel’s setting strengthen or weaken the novel’s thematic message? (topic sentence)
• Describe the novel’s thematic message, then provide 3 examples that show how the setting of the novel strengthens or weakens that message.
• In your concluding sentences, explain why you believe Ishiguro made the decision to include fewer details about the setting of his novel.

Full Essay Assignments

Student Prompt: Write a structured and well-developed essay. Include a thesis statement, at least three main points supported by text details, and a conclusion.

1. In Klara and the Sun, there is an underlying conflict between technology, science, and faith. What elements in the novel illustrate Ishiguro’s viewpoint on faith and the human soul? What plot scenarios illustrate his viewpoint on bioengineering and artificial intelligence? How do these viewpoints overlap at times? Based on the novel, what message does Ishiguro want to convey about where the lines of morality should be drawn?

2. Klara and the Sun begins and ends with Klara in the company of the store manager, who is always kind to Klara and appreciates her unique abilities. What does the manager teach Klara? What lesson does the manager learn from Klara? What effect does her appearance at the end of the novel have on Klara’s narrative?

3. Klara’s understanding of the outside world is limited, but her analysis of human emotions is extraordinary. Are there any limits to her empathic abilities, and if so, what are they? When does she read emotions wrong, and what does that mean? How much of Klara’s understanding is programming, and how much is her ability to learn through perception? Provide evidence to support your ideas.