Questions for Discussion 1. Defiance is a graphic novel, a story told in words and pictures. How do you think this story would be told differently if it was a novel, with only words? How would it be different if it was a movie, with just pictures? 2. In the book's introduction, the author tells how many of the French people turned against their own countrymen and sided with the Germans during the German occupation. What do you think would have motivated someone to do this? Conversely, what would motivate people not to turn against their countrymen? 3. Throughout the book, Jacques is worried about all three of the Tessiers and the possibility of them accidentally exposing the Resistance. What about the Tessiers' behavior do you think is causing his concern? Do you think he's right to be worried? 4. The pieces of art that Paul tacks up around town making fun of the Germans are dangerous, say the French police.

What power does art have to affect a situation like this? How could it be dangerous? Are there ways that art in the present day - fine art, political cartoons, street art - could be considered similarly dangerous? 5. Paul's father Didier is a prisoner-of-war in Germany. How do you think the Tessier family dynamic would be different if Didier was at home? Would Paul, Sylvie, and Marie be as eager to support the Resistance? 6. Everyone in the book lies - to family members, authority figures, and strangers. But their lies are to support a greater good - the victory of France against Germany. Do you think that in such an extenuating situation, not telling the truth is okay? Are there other situations where lying (or doing other things you think are wrong) isn't bad? 7. Think about the methods of information distribution in Defiance: posting art and signs on walls, distributing pamphlets, being informed about news in school. Have the invention of television and the internet changed how information is distributed today? If Defiance was written in an era where they existed, how might the story be different? 8.

At the beginning of the 20th century, Mahatma Gandhi famously advocated a philosophy of non-violent resistance - rebelling peacefully, through education, persuasion, and civil disobedience. Do you think this strategy could have worked for the French Resistance? Think about how their adoption of such a philosophy might have changed the course of World War II.