Last Exit to Brooklyn

Criminality is a frequent motif in the lives of the characters. How does the setting affect their relationship to crime?

How does the novel treat boundaries of gender?

Last Exit to Brooklyn is written in an idiosyncratic style. How does this style echo the novel’s themes and ideas?

How do the characters express their relationship with their social class? How do working-class characters push back against their supposed oppressors?

Which characters have an unhealthy relationship with alcohol? How do these unhealthy relationships develop, and do they result from the characters’ environment?

The interconnected structure of the different narrative strands suggests that the characters’ lives are deeply entwined. How does the novel use form and structure to reveal the proximity of the characters?

Does Last Exit to Brooklyn reject the idea of a happy ending? Which characters—if any—emerge from their stories happier or more satisfied than they were at the beginning of their respective narrative?

Children in Last Exit to Brooklyn are often victims of abuse. How do these patterns of abuse reflect the violent environment in which the children are raised?