Find out about a tradition in your own family, community, or ethnic group, perhaps by consulting grandparents or other older relatives. Mama Day's given name is Miranda and Cocoa's is Ophelia. Research one of these plays and write an essay comparing Shakespeare's heroines to their namesakes in this novel. Compare the worlds of these books. Compare Gloria Naylor's use of this technique to the magical realism of Gabriel Garc a M rquez's One Hundred Years of Solitude, Louise Erdrich's Tracks, or Zora Neale Hurston's Of Mules and Men.
All Stories Are True .
This teacher's guide was written by Peter Trachtenberg. Peter Trachtenberg has taught writing and literature at the New York University School of Continuing Education, the Johns Hopkins University School of Continuing Education, and the School of Visual Arts.