Suddenly, Last Summer

Violent Venable recalls her son telling her that when he is gone, “[I]t will be [hers], in [her] hands, to do whatever [she] please[s] with” (353). Do you concur with Violet that he was referring to his literary reputation, or did he mean something else? Support your analysis with evidence from the text.

Sebastian Venable is closely linked with the color white: his suit, shoes, hat, the “white pills” he took for his heart condition, the blank pages of his notebook, and the “blazing white” day of his death. What is the effect or thematic significance of this association?

Catharine Holly says she debuted in New Orleans’s diverse, sexually open French Quarter long before her debut in the Garden District, the wealthy white enclave associated with her aunt. How might the clash between Violet and Catharine reflect the cultural differences of these two locales?