Task

Tasks: Namedropper

Comprehension questions and creative tasks to the excerpt from "Namedropper" by Emma Forrest.

Comprehension:

Describe Treena’s looks and interests.
Where does Treena live and how is her neighbourhood depicted?
Why are Treena and Viva always late for school?
How did Treena respond when she got a baby brother?
Give examples of “hate crimes” that Treena has committed towards Marcus? Why does she want to punish him?
Why does the narrator term Treena’s madness as “masculine”?
Treena had tried her hand at babysitting and hairdressing. Explain why she had to quit her jobs.
What annoys Viva about American sex symbols?
In which ways is Treena an extraordinary girl?
Why do you think the author has chosen a first person narrator for her story? How does it affect the story?

What if the tables were turned and Treena got to portray her close friend Viva? Write a text with Treena as the first person narrator.
Based on your interpretation of the character of Treena, create a page from her Facebook profile.
Use this quotation about writing by author Franz Kafka and relate it to Emma Forrest's style of writing: “Don't bend; don't water it down; don't try to make it logical; don't edit your own soul according to the fashion. Rather, follow your most intense obsessions mercilessly.”
Make your own list: "My Top 5 People to Namedrop" and illustrate it with colours, symbols and images.