1.  Look at the narrative style. Discuss how Morrison uses the stream-of-consciousness approach in writing her novel and what it conveys to the reader.

2.  Notice how each chapter begins as though the narrator was in the middle of a sentence.  How does this affect the narrator’s point-of-view?

3.  Toni Morrison uses a variety of birds in Jazz at different parts of the novel: a parrot says, “I love you,” hens and roosters, and a bird with red wings.  How is the reader to receive these birds, and how are they used as symbols in the novel?

4.  Defend, refute, or qualify the following statements: Toni Morrison wants to tell us that love can conquer all odds.

5.  The music in Jazz influences not only the characters’ actions, but also keeps the beat of the novel.  Is the reader supposed to view life as one big, soulful jazz improvisation, or a steady march of drums?

6.  Love is a complex mystery, as described in Jazz.  How does Toni Morrison portray this idea through her use of symbolism?

7.  How do racial issues come into play in Jazz?

8.  The city in Jazz is described in such detail that it becomes a character.  Discuss how the city can affect its citizens and impact the decisions they make?

9.  Why would Violet want to keep a picture, right on the mantel, of the girl with whom her husband had an affair?

10.  What do you think is that, “something you have to figure in, before you can figure out,” that the narrator speaks of in the last chapter?