This document provides discussion questions about a section of the book "The Young Dystopian Woman" and introduces concepts about dystopian female characters. It asks the reader to consider how the relationship between Emmi and Saba changes in the specified pages. It introduces the character Mercy and asks what she tells the characters Emmi and Saba. The document also discusses concepts like contests of strength replacing beauty contests and compares the dystopian female characters of Saba, Tris, and Tally to analyze what they have in common. It asks if they could be considered "good girls" or "bad girls" and in what ways Saba fits each characterization.

1. SABA
The Young Dystopian Woman

2. Pages 40-80
Answer the following questions in groups.
1. How does the relationship between Emmi and Saba change during pages 40-80?
2. Who is Mercy? How does she live up to her name? What does she tell Emmi?
3. What does she tell Saba? Why was Lugh taken? Who are the Ton Ton?
4. What’s the heartstone?
5. Who is Nero and why do we love him?
6. What is your guess about the apocalyptic event that caused the world we know to
end?

3. Good Girl or Bad Girl
Bad Girl characteristics: Good Girl Characteristics:
Strong sweet
Domineering submissive
Crass obedient
Bold pretty
Powerful nurturing
Angry quiet
Mean neat and clean
Bad –tempered careful
Mean soft-spoken

4. Dystopian Women
• They are not pretty
• They are subversive
• Punishment for transgressing traditional female identity is smaller or
non-existent
• They move beyond mere tomboys and are more at ease with masculine
behaviors
• They are aggressive and can be violent
• Gender in dystopia stories is not an issue
• Beauty contests are supplanted by contests of strength

5. Tris in
Divergent

6. Tally
Youngblood
The Uglies

7. The Uglies
Standards
of Beauty

8. Saba in Blood Red Road
•Now Read the description of Saba and
Lugh on page 3

9. Contests of Strength
•Watch excerpts of Hunger Games.
•Watch excerpts of Divergent.
•How do these scenes compare to the cage
fighting in Blood Red Road?

10. What do these dystopian women have in
common?
•Are they be considered good girls or bad girls?
•In what other ways in Saba a bad girl? Is there
any way in which she could be considered a
good girl?

11. Homework
•Read Dustlands: Blood Red Road, 85-199