43 pages • 1 hour read
Rachel YoderNightbitch
Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 2021A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Essay Topics
Consider the mythical WereMothers in Wanda White’s Field Guide, and other female communities in the text. How does Nightbitch show the similarities and differences between the WereMothers and Book Babies group of mothers? What does the novel suggest is an ideal community?
How does Nightbitch represent the world of modern art? Discuss in connection with the projects of Nightbitch’s artist friends and her own performance project.
Consider the role of both herbs and alcohol in Nightbitch’s performances and Jen’s herb party. How does the novel portray intoxication as an integral part of art and performance?
Consider the distinction between performance art, art “happenings” and traditional art. According to the novel, what problems and challenges do performance art and “happenings” bring that traditional art does not?
How does the novel paint an opposition between reason and intuition opposed in the text? What are some of the benefits of instinct? Use examples from the text to support your argument.
Consider the relationship between motherhood and art in the novel. Does the novel suggest that it is possible to fully reconcile the demands of motherhood with artistic creation?
Consider the significance of play. How is the play portrayed in the novel? Does true play necessarily have to cast aside the rules and inhibitions of the adult world?
How far does Nightbitch succeed where her mother failed, in protecting her talent and career? To what extent is this due to social change, Nightbitch’s individual initiative, or both?
Consider the role of violence in the novel and in Nightbitch’s performance. How is violence necessary to Nightbitch’s messages about the struggles and power of motherhood?
How does food function as a symbol in the novel—for example, the contrast between processed food and hunted meat? How does personal authenticity relate to the food that one consumes?
