Necessary Trouble

Throughout Necessary Trouble, Drew Gilpin Faust turns to the deeds and the words of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., embracing Dr. King’s commitment to nonviolent activism and his view of America as “a dream yet unfulfilled” (140). Now that you’ve finished the book, revisit Dr. King’s perspective. What does Necessary Trouble reveal to you about progress in America and our capacity as individuals to initiate change? In what ways is Faust’s memoir a celebration of how far we’ve come? In what ways is it a stark reminder of all the work yet left to do? If you were to choose one word that best describes your hopes for America’s future after reading Necessary Trouble, what would it be?

Faust comes of age in 1950s Virginia: “a place of roles and rules, of revered traditions and rigid expectations not entirely removed from slavery times” (17). Share your thoughts on Faust’s upbringing in the postwar American South and the complicated relationship she has with where she grew up. What struck you about her childhood and her family’s way of life? In what ways does Faust’s upbringing shape her future identity as an activist and an advocate for social change? How does Faust’s childhood compare with your own background?

She was “anything but docile or deferential,” Faust says of her mother, Catharine Ginna Mellick. “Yet she neither doubted nor challenged the reality that it was a man’s world” (27). Discuss the complicated figure of Catharine “Cath” Mellick and the mother-daughter dynamic she shares with Faust. What cultural influences and paradoxes shape Cath into the woman she becomes? What common ground does she share with her daughter, and what differences ultimately divide them? Does Cath suffer from what Betty Friedan in The Feminine Mystique called “the problem that has no name” (18)? Why or why not?

War is ever-present in Necessary Trouble, spanning multiple generations of Faust’s family and impacting their lives in a variety of ways. Discuss how three distinct eras of war—WWI, WWII, and Vietnam—affect Faust, her loved ones, and America’s ever-changing identity in Necessary Trouble. Where do you see instances of war spurring transformation, defining character, or fulfilling traditions of service and familial duty? When is war a force of devastation, grief, or righteous fury? Have you or your loved ones been affected by war? If so, how do your memories and experiences compare with what you encountered in the book?

“I never witnessed physical cruelty toward Black people; I never heard the N-word. Prejudice was hidden beneath a surface of politeness and civility that scarcely masked the assumption of superiority” (70). Delve into the theme of racial inequality in Necessary Trouble, tracking Faust’s awakening to the gross injustices and racial disparities in the American South and midcentury America. When is bigotry overt in the narrative? When is it implied or telegraphed through coded attitudes, behaviors, and customs? When do these hypocrisies and injustices become too much for Faust to bear—when does she have her own personal “epiphany” (84)?

In 1957, a nine-year-old Faust writes a letter to President Eisenhower imploring the president to put an end to segregation. She’s motivated, in part, by her steadfast belief in fairness: “As a child, I was close to obsessed with what was and wasn’t fair” (88). Discuss the concept of fairness and the key role it plays in Faust’s political awakening. What does fairness mean to the author? How does it come to define her commitment to the civil rights movement and gender equality? Take a moment to read Faust’s letter, comparing the voice you hear with the author you’ve come to know. In what ways is Faust different by the end of Necessary Trouble from the nine-year-old who wrote that letter in 1957? In what ways does she remain strikingly true to her younger self?

The launch of Sputnik triggers a wave of panic through 1950s America, intensifying Cold War pressures and destabilizing an entire generation of Americans. Faust feels “[her] cradle upended” by the event: “America was not what I had been told it was . . . It could not protect me” (104). Discuss Sputnik’s seismic impact on the author and America as a whole. What effect does Sputnik have on Faust’s emerging worldview and her sense of America as an all-powerful force?

In chapter 6, Faust presents three literary figures that had a tremendous impact on her: Nancy Drew from Carolyn Keene’s mystery books, Scout from Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, and Anne Frank. Delve into this revealing chapter, unpacking the influence of “these [three] girls who dared” (127). How does each figure affect Faust as a young person? If you encountered these literary works in your formative years, what impact did they have on you?

At the age of thirteen, Faust leaves Virginia for New England to enroll at Concord Academy. At the center of it all stands a remarkable individual: “Head Mischief” Elizabeth B. Hall. Share your thoughts on Hall and her complicated legacy. What do you make of her approach to education and the lessons she conveys to her students? In what ways is Hall a progressive figure who inspires young girls to break free from the constraints of the past and pursue education? In what ways is the headmistress “very much the product of her background and her time” (133), someone who takes her privilege for granted and reinforces America’s entrenched hierarchies? 10.In chapter 8, Faust embarks on an astonishing peace-building trip across communist Europe that challenges her preconceived notions of the Soviet Union and the presumed superiority of America’s way of life. Delve into Faust’s journey, the many people she meets, and the lessons she learns. What struck you about the trip? Where do you stand on Faust’s expanded view of freedom after she visits East Germany—amending America’s fixation on “freedom from” things with the Soviet Union’s emphasis on the “freedom to be educated, to get health care, to work” (160)? Do you see other versions of freedom at work in Necessary Trouble?

Faust’s time at Bryn Mawr sharpens her talents and enhances her perspective on the world around her. Yet the author also sees a disparity between academia and engagement: “My academic work transported me to an ethereal realm of ideas; the civil rights movement was about action in the here and now” (208–209). Discuss the twin pillars of education and activism in Necessary Trouble and the dynamic role they play in Faust’s development. When is Faust emboldened by education and the radical act of educating girls and women? When do educational systems impede her push for social change?

Selma’s Bloody Sunday is a breaking point for Faust: “If I did not stand up, if I did not act after witnessing this, I would be ashamed forever” (217). Discuss this pivotal chapter in the author’s life and in American history. Why is it so critical for Faust that she takes action? What does taking action look like for Faust? Would you have acted as Faust does? Why or why not?

Albert Camus is a kind of moral and literary North Star for Faust; she regularly looks to his words for guidance and uses a passage from The Plague to caption her graduating yearbook photo at Bryn Mawr. Discuss Camus’s influence on Faust and the importance of Camus’s quote: “I only know that one must do what one can to cease being plaguestricken” (235). What connections do you see between this quote and Faust’s upbringing, her political awakening, and her commitment to social justice? What does “plaguestricken” look like to the author? What does it look like to you?

The 1968 assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., sends shockwaves through America and stuns Faust to her core: “I felt it not just as the death of a man, but of a moment and a possibility” (254). Discuss this devastating event as it unfolds in Necessary Trouble. What changes does Faust see in the civil rights movement and its commitment to nonviolence in the wake of Dr. King’s assassination? What changes occur in Faust’s political point of view and her sense that “the world seemed to be coming unglued” (256)?

The book concludes with the U.S. presidential election of 1968—a momentous event for America and the author. Discuss the pivotal developments leading up to the election and Faust’s careful consideration of which candidate to support. Were you ever faced with a crucial choice at the voting booth that tested your principles? If so, how do your memories compare with what Faust captures at the end of Necessary Trouble?