Lines 9–11: How do you know that this story is set in the future? Lines 14–15: Why do you think the author chose to write in this style? What are examples of the author’s choices that reveal his style?
Lines 28–41: What do the objects in the museum reveal about future Earth?
Lines 51–60: Which words reveal what is most important to humans at this time in the future? What point might the author be making?
Lines 71–83: Sum up what readers learn about Earth’s transformations.
Lines 88–92: What point is being made about human “progress”?
Lines 87–113: Which details are really about our world today, not the future? What do you think is the author’s purpose in listing these “top-selling items”?
Lines 118–122: Do you think the artistic work that the narrator describes deserves to be called artistic? Explain.
Lines 123–143: What are the different names for Earth in this paragraph? What does the narrator point out about a theme? How is that idea connected to the theme of this story?
Lines 155–162: How effective does the narrator seem to be in these lines?
Lines 161–162: Which two sentences best point to the theme of this story? Recast the theme in your own words.