A Monk Jumped Over a Wall: Readers' Guide1. Discuss the metaphor of A Monk Jumped Over a Wall. Once one smells the soup, does one still have any choice as to whether to scale the wall, or is it too late by then? Does the analysis change in the context of modern life? 2. What happened after the book ended? Did J.J. stay in Boston or return to New York? Did he go into practice with Ira? Did he wind up with Amy? What will Josie do next? 3. Why didn't the author relate the story in strict chronological order? 4. Would golf be a better game if defense were allowed? 5. In Chapter 32, Josie Steele makes the case that, except in the extreme, wealth does not create choice; it reduces it. Is this true? Why or why not? 6. Discuss the following, from Chapter 30: "No true martial artist ever relinquishes his sword to circumstance. He continues to hear his own, clear voice, regardless of what else is going on. Because he knows he can't trust anything--anything--but that voice." Is your voice clear? What, if anything, interferes with it? 7. How has the author expanded upon the underlying philosophy of his previous book, Blue Road to Atlantis, in A Monk Jumped Over a Wall? |