Over Sea, Under Stone Study Guide

Kinds of Artistic Knowledge

Earlier this quarter we suggested that artists employ three kinds of knowledge in their creative activities:

1. Artists must possess the skills necessary for their art (dance movements, brush strokes, instrumental and/or voice skills, writing skills, etc). That is, they must be able to actually "do" what it is that they do. A poet isn't much of a poet if he can't write a poem!

2. Artists must also have a knowledge of the conventions within which they work. Picasso may paint in the cubist tradition, but he is knowledgeable in the realist tradition as well.

3. Artists must have a message, point, thought, or impression to convey in their work. When Gershwin wrote "Rhapsody in Blue" for piano and full orchestra, he was trying to suggest that blues could be treated as serious music.

Over Sea, Under Stone Study Questions

These three points suggest how you might want to go about studying and writing about the novel you're reading, Over Sea, Under Stone. Below are some study questions which reflect each of these kinds of knowledge:

A writer must be able to do or manage the skills of writing fiction:

• Plot--What sort of story line has Susan Cooper devised? What happens? Is it a satisfying story line? Does it seem appropriate for the story?

• Conflict--What is the conflict of the story? What is at stake if the central characters fail in their quest? Who are the opponents in the story? How do they complicate the plot?

• Characters--Who are the main characters in the story? What does Cooper tell you about each one of them? How does each character differ from the others? How does Cooper compare Simon, Jane, and Barney? What is each child's personality and why is this personality important to the story? Why does Cooper choose children as the heroes and heroine of the story? Why not Great Uncle Merry?

• Setting--Where does the story happen? What is the country side like? How is this appropriate to the story? Could Cooper set the story anywhere else and still make it work as effectively as it does now?

• Symbols--What objects in the story take on symbolic meaning? In what way is the grail a symbol? Rufus the dog? The manuscript? Each of the characters? The rising tide or the boats? The fact that the grail is found in a cave? The standing stones?

• Theme--Considering all of the elements mentioned above, what is Cooper's point (this gets us into the third form of knowledge; see below)?

A writer must know about the Arthurian tradition in general and the grail tradition particular:

• The grail is an object of great significance and importance. What did you notice in the stories you read? How does Cooper convey this concept in her story?

• The grail can be found only by the most perfect of knights. What qualities do Percival, Galahad, and Bors de Gannis have? Does this suggest a reason why Cooper decided to send children rather than adults on the quest?

• Grail knights always demonstrate their perfection by undergoing severe temptations. What temptations do Percival, Galahad, and Bors face? What temptations to Simon, Jane, and Barney face?

• In the grail stories the heros live by strict codes of ethics. Describe the grail knights' value system. What rules do Simon, Jane, and Barney live by?

• Grail knights always have a spiritual mentor. Who functions in this role in each story?

• How do boats or other symbols like the wind, the number three, or color help to make the stories' points?

• Grail stories often center on illusion and false realities. What illusions do the three grail knights face? How does Cooper suggest that reality is not what the children believe it to be?

• Grail stories fundamentally center around the quest for perfection and the test of one's character. How does the quest test each grail knight or each child in Cooper's story? What does each child learn from the experience?

• Grail stories often involve magical, mysterious, or mystical places like castles or dark forests. Where in Cooper's story do you notice elements of mystery?

• Grail stories ultimately change how the central character views life. What is the effect of the search for the grail on each of the three grail knights? On the three children in Cooper's story?

A writer must have a message, theme, point, or lesson to communicate.

• What is Cooper message? What is she trying to say about the human experience?

• In what ways might the children's experience parallel our own experiences? What do we learn about ourselves from their experience?

• What quests do we have to face? How might/should we go about accomplishing these quests? What do we learn from the children's experiences which might guide our quests?

Assignment

Your assignment for the literature portion of this unit is to write a review (3-4 pages) of Over Sea, Under Stone. In your review you will

• Briefly summarize the story (1-3 sentences are all that is necessary)

• Explain what you feel Susan Cooper's purpose is in writing the story (the rest of the first paragraph should be enough).

• Identify aspects of the story where you see Cooper's purpose evident (see above for suggestions). Illustrate these aspects with references to the story.

• Relate Cooper's treatment of the grail story to the other grail stories you've read (see the handouts). What similarities or differences do you notice? How do these similarities or differences help Cooper accomplish her purpose? Illustrate your discussion with references to the story.

  Evaluation

  cessful reviews will provide a succinct summary of the story, will identify a an appropriate purpose for why Cooper wrote Over Sea, Under Stone, will illustrate this observation with references to the story, will clearly indicate that the writer has read the assigned stories, and will suggest that the writer has creatively understood and interpreted the stories.

  Due Date

  This project is due before you leave for Thanksgiving vacation. The only exception is if you have not yet obtained a book and were expecting to do so during Thanksgiving vacation. You will have another writing project due when you return from Thanksgiving vacation (instructions will follow), so you will want to complete this project as quickly as possible.

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