Death Be Not Proud Study Guide Key Facts FULL TITLE · Death Be Not Proud AUTHOR · John Gunther TYPE OF WORK · Non-fiction memoir GENRE · Illness narrative; epistolary narrative LANGUAGE · English TIME AND PLACE WRITTEN · Late 1940s, the United States DATE OF FIRST PUBLICATION · 1949 PUBLISHER · Harper & Row NARRATOR · Gunther (in main narrative); Johnny (in letters and diary); Frances CLIMAX · Johnny's doctor's cannot extract any fluid from his stone-sized tumor. PROTAGONIST · Johnny SETTING (TIME) · 1945-47 SETTING (PLACE) · New York; Connecticut; Massachusetts POINT OF VIEW · Gunther's; Johnny's (through his diary and letters); Frances's FALLING ACTION · Johnny's death and funeral TENSE · Immediate past tense FORESHADOWING · Gunther reveals on the first page that Johnny died; he also sees it on a doctor's face early on. TONE · Elegant, journalistic, yet often emotional and philosophical THEMES · Courage and willpower in the face of death; the uniqueness of loving life; childhood versus adulthood MOTIFS · Johnny's bump Study Questions What effect on the reader does Gunther's disclosure that Johnny died in the second paragraph of the memoir have? Johnny is undoubtedly a fine human being, but when can his strengths be interpreted as failings? Discuss Johnny's sense of humor, especially with regard to his illness. Essay Topics Discuss the difference in Johnny's relationships between his father and his mother. How does Johnny mature throughout Death Be Not Proud? How does science and medicine fail Johnny, aside from the fact that he is not saved? (Consider the limited communication he and his parents have with his doctors.)