History 476

Devine

Spring 2007

 

Study Questions for Russell Baker, Growing Up

 

 

  1. What role did Russell’s mother play in her son’s life?

 

  1. What values did Russell’s mother try to teach her son?

 

  1. How was Russell a different kind of person than his mother? 

 

  1. Describe life in Morrisonville.  Why didn’t Russell’s mother want her children to grow up there?

 

  1. In what ways are Russell’s mother and his grandmother, Ida Rebecca, similar?  How are they different?

 

  1. Compare and contrast Uncle Allen, Uncle Hal, and Uncle Charlie.

 

  1. How were Russell and his extended family able to survive the Depression? What strategies did they have for “coping?”

 

  1. How do the experiences of Oluf shed light on the fate of many men during the Great Depression?

 

  1. Why does Russell like Uncle Harold?  How is Uncle Harold different than his mother?

 

  1. How does young Russell adjust to urban living?

 

  1. How did growing up during hard times affect Russell and his sister’s childhood?

 

  1. How does Russell’s family react to the outbreak of World War II?

 

  1. How did Russell’s upbringing leave him at something of a disadvantage when he got to college?

 

  1. How did the Joe Louis fight affect race relations in Baltimore?

 

  1. How did Russell’s family react to the dropping of the Atomic Bomb?

 

  1. Do you think Mrs. Baker was a good mother to Russell?

 

  1. Do you think Russell Baker has any “lessons” he wants to teach his readers?