About Schmidt - Louis Begley [107]
What do you see as lost opportunities in Schmidt’s life; professionally, socially, emotionally? Do you think he regrets having retired from his firm? What do you think he misses the most? What does he have regrets about? How would you feel about stepping aside and handing over power and authority to a younger generation? How would you compensate for the losses experienced and go about rebuilding your life? How would you begin to give it meaning or importance?
Do you think Schmidt truly loved his wife? What is the significance of his marital infidelities? How do you suppose he justified them?
How does Schmidt cope with his alienation from Charlotte? What steps does he take or could he take to reconcile with her?
Why do you suppose Charlotte’s character is written out of focus? Why do we only hear from her indirectly; through letters, telephone calls, and messages?
Why are Carrie and Schmidt attracted to one another? What qualities endear her to him? What does he offer her?
Why does Schmidt object to attending Thanksgiving dinner at the Riker home? What are some of the things he learns about them that surprise him? How was he wrong about them?
How could Schmidt’s attraction to Renata Riker further complicate his relationship with Charlotte and Jon? Do you think Schmidt is jealous of her relationship with his daughter? Why do you think he is unable to accept Renata’s attempts to help him understand how to deal with Charlotte?
Older people today are generally healthier and more vigorous than they were in previous generations. With the additional promise of greater life expectancy, there exist the probabilities of new romances and sexual encounters. What hopes, fears, expectations, might one face in reentering this role after many decades? If you were in this situation, what might you do?
Give some examples of Jon Riker’s behavior that infuriate Schmidt. Why does Schmidt react as strongly as he does? Do you feel his objections are justified? How would you behave in his place?
Money seems to be a recurring theme throughout the book. Schmidt is preoccupied with working out numbers so he can maintain his style of living. How does his preoccupation with money play a role in alienating Schmidt from Charlotte? How does money help Schmidt? How does it hurt him? While Schmidt and Mary never discussed money in Charlotte’s presence, there were many veiled references to it. How do you think Charlotte was affected by her parents’ attitude toward money? Why does her attitude annoy Schmidt?
Begley writes about a very closed, privileged society of wealthy people. How do you think the “upper” and “lower” classes view one another? What sets them apart? How might one compare clannishness and anti-Semitism? Are they in any way alike? How are they different?
The Bridgehampton property acts to create an enormous rift between Schmidt and Charlotte. What does the house represent to each of them? Why can’t Schmidt share the house with them in harmony? Why can’t she accept his gift to her and Jon?
Schmidt is keenly observant and highly intelligent, yet he is unable to understand the reasons for his problems with Charlotte. Why do you think Mary was always the one to take care of matters concerning Charlotte instead of encouraging Schmidt to develop a closer relationship with her?
Anti-Semitism is often extremely subtle. How is the subject of anti-Semitism handled in this book? What do you think a bigot is? What qualities does a bigot have? Why do you think it is so difficult to write about anti-Semitism?
How would you describe Charlotte’s feelings about her father? She accuses him of being anti-Semitic but if she believes this, why had she not objected sooner? Why now and in the manner she chooses? Why does Schmidt not consider himself to be anti-Semitic? What examples does he bring up to bolster his claim? How does his friend Gil react to Schmidt’s description of Charlotte’s fiancé?
Why are Charlotte’s