Exploring Identity, Fitting In, and Conflict

• Subtitle: Exploring Identity, Fitting In, and Conflict

• Name Kerry-Ann Gaines

• Date: September 09, 2024

• Subject: English One

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St. Lucy’s Home for Girls Raised by Wolves

OBJECTIVE

St. Lucy’s Home for Girls Raised by Wolves

After an initial reading and discussion of the short story, students will be able to identify and describe character traits and setting details, as well as articulate the conflict that is integral to the story’s plot.

Introduction to the Story

​Text: "This short story by Karen Russell tells the tale of girls born to werewolves who are taken by nuns to be ‘civilized.’ They must decide whether to fit into human society or stay true to their wolf origins."

"St. Lucy’s Home for Girls Raised by Wolves" by Karen Russell is a short story about a group of girls who were raised by werewolves and are sent to a Catholic school run by nuns to be "civilized" into human society. The story is told from the perspective of Claudette, one of the wolf-girls, who narrates her journey through the different stages of transformation as they learn human behaviors, customs, and language.

THEME

A theme is a universal idea, lesson, or message explored throughout a work of literature. One key characteristic of literary themes is their universality, which is to say that themes are ideas that not only apply to the specific characters and events of a book or play, but also express broader truths about human experience that readers can apply to their own lives.

Open Ended

What is one theme we can identity from the summary of this short story?

SETTING

The setting of a story is the time, place, and environment in which the story takes place.

St. Lucy's Home for Girls Raised by Wolves: Setting

• Text:

  • Set in a remote and mysterious institution, St. Lucy’s, where the girls are sent to learn human customs and language.

  • The setting symbolizes the tension between nature (the wilderness) and society (the convent).

CHARACTER

A character is a person, animal, being, creature, or thing in a story.

Types of Character
Protagonist

• Definition: The main character or the central figure of the story. The plot revolves around their actions and decisions.

• Example: Claudette in "St. Lucy’s Home for Girls Raised by Wolves" is the protagonist.

​Character

Antagonist

• Definition: The character or force that opposes the protagonist and creates conflict. The antagonist isn’t always a villain but represents the obstacles the protagonist must overcome.

• Example: The nuns in St. Lucy’s can be seen as antagonists in the sense that they challenge the girls to give up their wolfish instincts and conform to human society.

Dynamic Character

• Definition: A character who undergoes significant internal change throughout the story, such as a shift in beliefs, personality, or attitude.

• Example: Claudette is a dynamic character because she changes from a wild, wolf-like girl to a more humanized figure, though she struggles with her identity.

​Static Character

• Definition: A well-developed character with complex personality traits. They often feel real and relatable, with both strengths and flaws.

• Example: Claudette is a round character because she has conflicting emotions and a multifaceted personality, showing both vulnerability and resilience.

Flat Character

• Definition: A character who is simple and one-dimensional, with limited development or complexity. They often serve a specific role in the story but lack depth.

• Example: Some of the nuns or other girls at the home may be considered flat characters, as they are not fully developed beyond their roles in the plot.

Foil Character

• Definition: A character who contrasts with another (usually the protagonist) to highlight particular qualities or themes.

• Example: Mirabella serves as a foil to Claudette, as her refusal to change emphasizes Claudette’s struggle to adapt to human behavior.

Stock Character

• Definition: A stereotypical character who represents a specific type or role and is instantly recognizable, such as the “wise mentor” or the “bully.”

• Example: The nuns may be viewed as stock characters representing the strict authority figures who enforce societal rules and norms.

Confidant

• Definition: A character in whom the protagonist confides, revealing their thoughts, fears, and desires.

• Example: Jeanette, another wolf-girl, could be considered a confidant to Claudette as they share experiences and emotions during their transformation.

​Main Characters

Key Characters
Text:

• Claudette: The narrator, who is torn between her wolf instincts and the need to conform.

• Jeanette: The sister who adapts most quickly to human behavior.

• Mirabella: The most rebellious, who struggles the most to give up her wolf identity.

  Purpose: Highlight how each character represents a different approach to fitting in.

​Conflict

Conflict is the struggle or clash between opposing forces, which drives the plot forward.

In "St. Lucy’s Home for Girls Raised by Wolves", the conflict is central to the story's themes of identity, belonging, and transformation.

Internal Conflict (Man vs. Self)

• Definition: A struggle within the character’s own mind, involving emotions, decisions, or desires.

• Example: Claudette faces an internal conflict as she struggles with her identity. She is torn between her wild, wolfish instincts and the pressure to conform to human norms and behaviors. This internal battle between her past and what she is being molded into drives much of her emotional journey in the story.

EXTERNAL CONFLICT

​Man vs. Society:

Definition: A character’s struggle against societal norms, rules, or expectations.

• Example: Claudette and the other wolf-girls are in conflict with the human society represented by St. Lucy’s Home. They are expected to abandon their wolf upbringing and assimilate into human culture, which represents society’s expectation to conform and “civilize” them.

Man vs. Man

• Definition: A struggle between two characters with opposing goals or desires.

• Example: Claudette experiences conflict with Mirabella, her younger sister, who refuses to abandon her wolf-like nature. Mirabella’s resistance contrasts with Claudette’s growing desire to fit in, creating tension between the sisters.

​Man vs. Nature:

• Definition: A struggle between two characters with opposing goals or desires.

• Example: Claudette experiences conflict with Mirabella, her younger sister, who refuses to abandon her wolf-like nature. Mirabella’s resistance contrasts with Claudette’s growing desire to fit in, creating tension between the sisters.

​Character vs. Environment

• Definition: A struggle against the environment, which can include physical surroundings or the societal structures the character is placed in.

• Example: St. Lucy’s Home itself represents an environment that conflicts with the girls’ upbringing. The rigid rules and structured education of the nuns are at odds with the freedom and wildness the girls are accustomed to. The home symbolizes the harsh, unyielding pressure to conform to a society that does not fully accept them as they are.

​Central Conflict

• Title: The Internal Conflict of Fitting In

• Text:

  • Claudette’s struggle between her wolf heritage and her desire to fit into human society reflects the broader theme of identity versus conformity.

  • Her internal conflict is intensified by the pressure to fit in, which raises the question: "What is the price of abandoning one's true self to be accepted by others?"

Themes: Fitting In

• Title: The Theme of Fitting In

• Text: "The story explores the sacrifices characters must make to fit into society, asking: Is it worth losing one's identity to gain acceptance?"

Open Ended

• What parts of their wolf selves do the girls lose as they adapt to human life?

• Is the pain of trying to fit in worth the cost?

Themes: Belonging and Identity

• Title: Belonging and Identity

• Text:

  • "The girls, especially Claudette, struggle with the question of where they truly belong: in the world of wolves or the world of humans?"

Open Ended

Can you truly belong somewhere if you have to change who you are?"

​Character Development: Claudette

• Title: Character Development: Claudette

• Text: "As the story progresses, Claudette learns to suppress her wolfish tendencies, but at what cost to her sense of self? She gradually transforms from wild to ‘civilized.’"

​Symbolism

• Title: Symbolism in the Story

• Text:

  • "The transformation from wolves to humans symbolizes the price of assimilation."

  • "The nuns symbolize society’s pressures to conform, while Mirabella represents rebellion against these forces."

​Discussion Questions

Open Ended

• How does Claudette's internal struggle reflect the real-world challenges of trying to fit in?

Open Ended

• What are the consequences of losing one’s identity in order to conform?

Open Ended

• Is Mirabella’s resistance to change admirable or foolish?

Comparisons to Other Genres

• Title: Comparing Across Genres

• Text: "When comparing this story to Ovid’s Metamorphoses or the non-fiction work Braving the Wilderness, we see common themes of transformation, isolation, and identity. All these works deal with the idea of what one sacrifices in order to belong."

​Conclusion

• Title: Final Thoughts

• Text:

  • "The transformation of the girls in St. Lucy’s Home asks us to reflect on our own struggles with identity and the cost of fitting in."

Open Ended

• "What does the story ultimately say about identity and belonging?"