What is the genre of the Pigman?
The Pigman is a young adult novel written by Paul Zindel, published in 1968. It is notable for its authentic depiction of teenagers, and was among the first YA books to take the genre in a more realistic direction.
When was The Pigman by John Conlan published?
It was published in 1968. The novel takes the form of a confession by two teens, John Conlan and Lorraine Jensen, who describe how they developed a friendship with Mr. Pignati, a.k.a. the Pigman, which ended in a betrayal and the Pigman's tragic death.
Is there a sequel to the book The Pigman?
The book's sequel, The Pigman's Legacy, was published in 1980. The Pigman & Me, an autobiography by Paul Zindel, was first published in 1990; it is considered an unofficial triquel to The Pigman. Zindel wrote a screenplay, adapting the book for the stage and screen, but it was not taken up by any filmmaker.
Is the Pigman a good book to read?
The Pigman was well-received at the time of publication and was named the New York Times Outstanding Book of the year, and continues to be a staple of required reading lists for middle and high school students despite occasional challenges for its controversial content.
Why did Paul Zindel wrote The Pigman?
In 1991, Zindel wrote about his only year of normalcy as a teenager. In The Pigman and Me, he introduced the book by telling readers, "because this is an autobiography I have to really tell the truth." He revealed his nightmares about cockroaches and his wish to be Batman in the volume.
What is The Pigman by Paul Zindel about?
The Pigman is a young adult novel by Paul Zindel. It was published in 1968. The novel takes the form of a confession by two teens, John Conlan and Lorraine Jensen, who describe how they developed a friendship with Mr. Pignati, a.k.a. the Pigman, which ended in a betrayal and the Pigman's tragic death.
How old is Mr. Pignati in The Pigman?
Pignati is a lonely, widowed, retired electrician who lives alone in a messy house in John and Lorraine's neighborhood. John describes him as in his late fifties, "pretty big" with a "bit of a beer stomach" (5).
Is The Pigman a classic?
Join the millions of readers who have discovered The Pigman, the beloved bestselling young adult classic from Paul Zindel, the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-Moon Marigolds.
What is the main theme of The Pigman?
The theme of growing up is the most prevalent theme. Both John and Lorraine are products of dysfunctional families and, like all of us, find it easy to point to their parents as the source of their problems.
Is The Pigman appropriate?
Parents need to know that The Pigman is a searing, emotional young adult novel in which two teen siblings learn the impact they can have as kind -- or hurtful -- friends. Written by Paul Zindel, a Pulitzer Prize winner for his play The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-Moon Marigolds. Pignati.
How does Lorraine cheat in The Pigman?
Lorraine continues the story of how they met the Pigman. One day, playing the telephone marathon game, Lorraine cheats by peeking through her fingers and choosing a street address in her neighborhood. This is Mr. Pignati's number.
What is Mr. Pignati's first name?
Angelo PignatiAngelo Pignati (The Pigman) – an elderly widower who lives in a messy house in John and Lorraine's neighborhood. His nickname comes from his last name, as well as his vast collection of ceramic pigs. Lonely since the death of his wife, his friendship with John and Lorraine fills a void in his life.
How does The Pigman end?
Mr. Pignati dies on the floor of the monkey house at the zoo. Lorraine blames John and herself for his death, yelling "We murdered him!" John says that he "wanted to yell at her, tell her [Mr. Pignati] had no business fooling around with kids.
What grade level is The Pigman?
The PigmanInterest LevelReading LevelWord CountGrades 7 - 12Grades 5 - 1235766Jan 7, 2014
What is the climax of The Pigman?
The climax of this story occurs when Mr. Pignati arrives home to find that John and Lorraine have had a party in his house where he experiences not only personal damage, but also emotional betrayal by two young people he believed were his friends.
What does Pigman mean?
: one who takes care of pigs.
What did John and Lorraine learn from the Pigman?
It makes Lorraine begin to cry softly, so John takes her by the hand and tells her it's time to go. As they look at each other, the ambulance lights flashing behind them, they both know the real truth: they have trespassed, too, have gone where they don't belong and now they are being punished for it.
What is the setting of the Pigman?
The Pigman is set in New York City, mainly in Staten Island.
When and where does the novel The Pigman take place?
Staten Island, NY in the mid-1960s.
Who signed the pigman?
Told in chapters alternating from Lorraine's and John's point of view, The Pigman opens with an "Oath," signed by both John and Lorraine, two high school sophomores, in which they swear to tell only the facts, in this "memorial epic" about their experiences with Angelo Pignati, whom they later refer to as the "Pigman."
Who is the surrogate parent in The Pigman?
Paul Zindel 's first novel, The Pigman, published in New York in 1968 by Harper & Row, is a story of two dispossessed young people who find a surrogate parent in Angelo Pignati, an Italian man who has never had children and whose wife is dead. He shares his humor and joy in life with them, and in his presence, they are allowed to be carefree and childlike in a way that they can't be with their own families.
What animal does Pignati feed him?
Mr. Pignati seems oblivious to the baboon's nasty personality, and he talks lovingly to the animal and feeds him peanuts and other treats.
Is Pignati poor?
He is both, and he's also poor; his house is rundown and messy, but when they go over to his house, he meets them with a huge smile. Unlike their families, he's filled with a sense of enjoyment of life despite his problems. He plays games with them, invites them to go to the zoo with him, and shows them his wife's collection of pig figurines, which she began when she married him and changed her name to Pignati.
Is the Pigman a young adult novel?
Though there is some disagreement as to the exact date that young adult literature emerged as a separate and distinct genre from that for children and adults, scholars agree that a handful of novels led the way, broke new ground, and prepared the soil for what was to grow into a blooming genre. The Pigman by Paul Zindel is one of those touchstone books that set apart novels for adolescents. It did more than that, however. Zindel's remarkable novel set the standard for writers to follow. Mr. Zindel (or, as I address him, Paulissimus) recently found time to share his thoughts and feelings about writing for the YA audience.
Who wrote the Pigman?
Join the millions of readers who have discovered The Pigman , the beloved bestselling young adult classic from Paul Zindel, the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-Moon Marigolds .
What is the pigman about?
The Pigman is the perfect read for fans of modern classics like The Outsiders by S. E. Hinton and Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher. When high school sophomores John and Lorraine made a prank phone call to an elderly stranger named Angelo... Read Full Overview.
When was The Pigman first published?
Families can talk about what aspects of The Pigman, which was originally published in 1968, date it. Conversely, what things could happen today as easily as they could have happened back then?
What is the pigman about?
The book was written in the late '60s and reveals differences between modes of communication and entertainment then vs. now.
What does the Pigman show about freedom?
The Pigman shows that freedom and responsibility go hand in hand.
What age did John try beer?
John was encouraged to try beer at age 10, when he would drink what was left in beer glasses after his parents' parties. John's father is a reformed alcoholic who stopped drinking when he developed cirrhosis of the liver; John knows this but continues to drink -- daily it seems.
Who wrote the book The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man in the Moon Marigolds?
Written by Paul Zindel, a Pulitzer Prize winner for his play The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-Moon Marigolds, this book depicts the unusual friendship between two troubled high school teens and a kind older gentleman named Mr. Pignati.
Is the Pigman a good story?
This is a hugely entertaining story that adolescent readers will appreciate for being meaningful without being moralistic and having complex characters that are not black-and-white. The bad guys are also good, and the good guys are also bad. John and Lorraine are sympathetic but always very real-seeming teens who lie to their parents, make big mistakes, and have a lot to learn about the impact of their behavior. Their parents are quite flawed, but they're whole people who show the effects of their own challenging lives. And the Pigman is a loving gift of a character.
Introduction
- Paul Zindel's first novel, The Pigman, published in New Yorkin 1968 by Harper & Row, is a story of two dispossessed young people who find a surrogate parent in Angelo Pignati, an Italian man who has never had children and whose wife is dead. He shares his humor and joy in life with them, and in his presence, they are allowed to be carefree and chil...
Author Biography
- Paul Zindel was born on May 15, 1936, in Staten Island, New York, and grew up on Staten Island with his mother and sister. His father, a police officer, abandoned the family when Zindel was very young, and Zindel rarely saw him. His mother struggled to make ends meet, and because of their poverty, the family moved often. Zindel felt like a misfit because he had no father and because t…
Plot Summary
- Told in chapters alternating from Lorraine's and John's point of view, The Pigmanopens with an "Oath," signed by both John and Lorraine, two high school sophomores, in which they swear to tell only the facts, in this "memorial epic" about their experiences with Angelo Pignati, whom they later refer to as the "Pigman."
Characters
- John Conlan
John Conlan is a fifteen-year-old high-school sophomore who lives in Staten Island, New York, and is best friends with Lorraine Jensen, another student. He is good-looking, charming, and highly intelligent, but is bored with school and with life in general, and his humorless, joyless family life … - Mr. Conlan
John Conlan's father, whom John calls "the Bore," works on the Coffee Exchange on Wall Street, and his life is totally subsumed in his job. His son says, "If he sells more than two hundred lots in a day, he's in a good mood. Anything less than that, and there's trouble." He is bothered by his son'…
Themes
- Relationships with Parents
Both John and Lorraine have poor relationships with their parents, who regard them as disturbing burdens. Lorraine's father is dead, and her mother makes ends meet by working as a private-duty nurse. Mrs. Jensen's ethics and values are questionable: she steals from her patients, gets kickb… - Consequences
John and Lorraine, like many teenagers, have little sense of the consequences of their actions, and they learn that their acts have consequences only when it's too late to change anything. At first, they tell themselves that they're just having fun—just going over to Mr. Pignati's, just having …
Topics For Further Study
- In the book, Mr. Pignati has a major effect on John and Lorraine. Write about an older person who affected your life in a way you'll never forget, and how they influenced you.
- John does not believe that he and Lorraine are totally responsible for Mr. Pignati's death, but Lorraine does. In your opinion, who is right, and why? If John and Lorraine were put on trial for kil...
- In the book, Mr. Pignati has a major effect on John and Lorraine. Write about an older person who affected your life in a way you'll never forget, and how they influenced you.
- John does not believe that he and Lorraine are totally responsible for Mr. Pignati's death, but Lorraine does. In your opinion, who is right, and why? If John and Lorraine were put on trial for kil...
- Mr. Pignati has lived a very lonely life since his wife died; he has no real friends until John and Lorraine come into his life by accident. Do some research to find out how most elderly people liv...
- John and Lorraine's parents don't talk to their children, and they often act as though the children are a disturbing burden. Do you think this is typical, or are most parents effective? W…
Style
- Point of View
Zindel's The Pigmanis told from the point of view of its two main protagonists, who claim they are typing the story in the school library as the librarian, who thinks they're working on a book report, looks on. Chapters written by Lorraine alternate with chapters written by John; both tell the stor… - Extracts from "Real Life"
An interesting feature of the book is the occasional insertion of handwritten elements, such as John and Lorraine's signatures on an "Oath" to tell the truth about the incidents described in the book; some graffiti John writes on a desk; and some pencil-and-paper games Mr. Pignati plays …
Historical Context
- The Pigman was written in the late 1960s, a time when American society was in an uproar. Protests against the Vietnam War, the growth of the Civil Rights and feminist movements, and a vigorous celebration of teenagers and young adults as the new, free generation were set against those who wanted to preserve the status quo and traditional values. Zindel's book was groundbr…
Compare & Contrast
- 1960s: Teen smoking, drinking, and drug use become prevalent in the 1960s, when knowledge of the ill effects of drugs is still not widespread, and when a widespread sense of experimentation and reb...
- 1960s: Not everyone can afford a telephone, and instead of using touch-tones, phones use a rotary dial system. Phone numbers have two letters and five numbers, like "Sa7-7295," the nu…
- 1960s: Teen smoking, drinking, and drug use become prevalent in the 1960s, when knowledge of the ill effects of drugs is still not widespread, and when a widespread sense of experimentation and reb...
- 1960s: Not everyone can afford a telephone, and instead of using touch-tones, phones use a rotary dial system. Phone numbers have two letters and five numbers, like "Sa7-7295," the number for the h...
- 1960s: In the 1960s, AIDS is unknown, and people don't worry about many of the consequences of sexual activity. Rates of teen pregnancy, divorce, and single-parent families are higher than those of...
- 1960s–1970s: The Vietnam War rages throughout the 1960s and early 1970s, sparking wide…
Critical Overview
- The Pigman is widely acknowledged as a turning point in young adult literature. According to Jack Davis Forman in Presenting Paul Zindel, Zindel's "commitment to write realistically about the concerns of teenagers" set his books apart from "the previous genre of teen fiction calcified in the gender and age stereotypes of the 1950s." Forman quoted Kenneth Donelson and Alleen Nilssen…