Playing St. Barbara, by Mirian Szczepanski

Characters
Downhillers	Uphillers
Sweeney Family Fin – father Clare – “Mutti” – mother Deirdre Katie – Sister Mary Gertrude Norah Rosie – Deirdre’s friend Kamila – Clare’s friend – husband did not join union Essie Hunt – African American woman who helped Clare with birth control and “miscarriages” Billy McKenna “The Cossack” – married Deirdre Jack Kukoc – Katie’s boyfriend – arrested and jailed in riot Paul Visocky – Norah’s boyfriend who she rejected – married Grace Cverna Tina Kukoc – died in slate dump collapse Frank Sestak – new fire boss – first Slovak to be promoted Tereza – daughter	Dan Phelan – Asst. Superintendent, 1940 promoted to Arizona Big Bill Keating – pit boss – became Asst. Superintendent in 1940 Maeve – wife - took over pageant when new Superintendent’s wife refused Bill Finch – Superintendent – returned to Pittsburgh 1940 Mrs. Finch – “The Queen” – director of 1929 pageant
	Others
	Fr. Kovacs – parish priest H.C. Frick Coke Company Trudy – Clare’s cousin in Pittsburgh Drastovic – tale-teller Klu Klux Klan The Brotherhood – company-sponsored union – outlawed by Pres. Roosevelt in 1941 United Mine Workers Roz Hamilton – owner of “La Femme” David Steinback – bacteriologist, “Dr. Ketchup”

For Discussion:

NOTE: All page numbers are from paperback edition.

1. Discuss Fin Sweeney:
1. Why was he so angry and abusive?
2. Could his wife and daughters have done anything to change him?
3. On page 330 after Fin was rescued from the mine, Norah wonders, “Had he ever been happy?  Had swinging a bat and hitting home runs given him whatever fleeting pleasure that she and sisters and Mutti could not?”  Is Norah taking too much responsibility for Fin’s happiness? 
4. Could you find any goodness in Fin?  He was instrumental in unionizing mine workers and saved Anton Zekula in mine collapse.
5. On page 355 Fin asks Clare, “You’re wishing I died in the pit, aren’t you now?”  Do you think he has any regrets?
2. It was obvious to everyone that Fin was beating Clare and yet only Kamila would address it.  Did the rest of the community, in particular Fr. Kovacs, have any responsibility to change the situation?
3. Discuss Norah and Katie’s reactions to Fin physically abusing Clare.  How did this situation influence the decisions they made in their lives?  Considering Norah, why did she reject Paul?  Was it to stay and protect her mother or was it something else?
4. Do you think Jack Kukoc, Katie’s boyfriend, would have ended up just like Fin?  Why or why not?  See page 208 where he, “pressed Katie’s cheeks until her lips could no longer make words.”
5. On page 368 the author wrote about Clare, “She couldn’t help but wonder – had he worked for a company that allowed the union, would their lives have turned out differently?”  What do you think?
6. What did you think about Clare’s actions to abort and prevent pregnancies?  Were these actions justified?   Norah thought it was her fault that one of the babies dies (page 306).  How did this affect her future as well as the relationship between Clare and Norah?
7. When the Sweeney family first moved to The Hive they all went to the church to register as parishioners and Fin forced Clare to say she was Irish, not German.  He also did not allow her to speak German. Given the war that followed, was this a good thing or inconsiderate?
8. Consider women’s options today compared to the time period of this novel (1930s and 1940s).  How would the story be different today?
9. Consider the United Mine Workers and the progress they made for workers in this country.  Could this progress have been made without men like Fin?
10. Consider the central role the pageant and Festival of St. Barbara played in the novel.  Why was it so important?  What affect did it have on the various members of the Sweeney family?
11. Discuss your reading experience.  Did you enjoy the book or did you find it uncomfortable to read?

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