Refer to Explorations in Literature for a complete version of the narrative.

Part A

What is one theme in Joan Didion's "Goodbye to All That"?

Only the most sophisticated and intellectually curious people can ever truly understand New York City.

A person's love for an idealized place will dissipate as soon as he or she encounters it in reality.

Youthful enthusiasm, optimism, and naïveté can lead a person to "fall in love" with a place.

There is frenetic beauty to city life that cannot be appreciated by those who have not grown up experiencing it.

Question 2
Part B

How does Didion develop the theme in Part A throughout her essay?

She writes of how all of her illusions about New York City were quickly shattered when she arrived and promptly fell ill.

She describes how excited she was to live in New York when she first arrived and how happy she felt in the city as a young woman.

She writes about the way people who were not born in New York City can never understand why others love it so much.

She describes in detail the various writers and thinkers she encounters and who appreciate the city unreservedly.