A Visit from the Goon Squad

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. Throughout the novel, Sasha struggles to give up her penchant for stealing things.

• How does Sasha ultimately overcome her compulsion to steal from others? (topic sentence)
• Describe 3 major instances that show Sasha’s progress toward overcoming her kleptomania.
• In your concluding sentence or sentences, sum up Sasha’s arc and where she is at the novel’s end compared to where she was at the beginning.

2. Characters in this novel try to express themselves through their appearance and on their bodies.

• How are bodies a site of meaning and identity in A Visit from the Goon Squad? (topic sentence)
• Support your thesis by providing 3 examples of characters who express or create their identities using their physical appearance.
• Finally, in your concluding sentence or sentences, connect this back to the theme of Identity.

3. Lincoln tries to create his own music by sampling the pauses in the music of others, making this silence a positive entity.

• What role do silence and space play in A Visit from the Goon Squad? (topic sentence)
• Provide 3 examples from the text that mention silence or space to support your argument. Think critically about silence as a presence rather than an absence.
• Finally, in your concluding sentence or sentences, connect this idea back to the theme of either Time or Meaning.

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. How does this novel deviate from traditional expectations of a novel? How does it push against the boundaries of form or use satire creatively to dig at conceptions of genre as embodying a fixed set of characteristics? Use at least 3 examples from the text to support your argument, and consider how Egan’s choices in form might relate to the theme of either Time or Meaning.

2. This novel begins by looking back at the past and ends in the future, at a time when toddlers will be referred to as “pointers.” What role does technology play in this novel, and how does it affect characters’ understandings of Time? Be sure to think about technology not just as what is new and contemporary but also as the devices or objects that might seem obsolete today.

3. What is the relationship between the created and the natural? The music industry is very concerned with reputation, and characters like Bennie, Kitty, and Dolly all must contend with their fame and its ups and downs. How do characters construct their own identities and attempt to make them appear natural? Provide at least 3 examples from the text to support your argument, and ultimately connect them to the broader theme of Identity in the novel.