The Rainbow

The novel covers advancements in technology and industrialization in sweeping descriptions and through observations made by different characters. How does the novel criticize or show favor to modernity, industry, and other noteworthy forms of societal progress?

Two chapters in the novel are both titled “The Widening Circle.” What significance does this title bear for the content of these chapters, and how do the events of those chapters illuminate the novel’s major themes?

Will and Ursula both admire cathedrals and religious art or architecture. Choose two instances in the novel in which they encounter and are profoundly affected by these structures and images. Explore the significance of those passages to their character development as a whole. Avoid plot summary.