SuitabookThe Sphinx at Dawn
Madeleine L'Engle
- Reading
- Try the stories one at a time, pausing after each to talk about what its central encounter means; this lets the contrasting situations stand apart.
- Themes
- Gifts, wealth and friendship: A poor carpenter’s son befriends a rich merchant’s son, cares for his camel, shares knowledge of gifts, and later has his treasures taken. The tale sets friendship and unequal means alongside a lesson about gifts having a price, but its judgement of the characters’ choices is unclear.
- Curiosity and the Sphinx: Yehoshuah and his camel encounter a hungry Sphinx in the desert; Yehoshuah tries to answer its riddles. The outline connects the riddles with a larger journey, but does not establish how the Sphinx or Yehoshuah’s boldness is ultimately presented.
- Worth knowing
- The Sphinx is described as monstrous and hungry, and Yehoshuah’s treasures are taken in the other tale. These moments may be worth discussing if they concern your reader.