Cunningham, Michael: *1952

Specimen Days, 2005 - Thematic Parallels: To Be Human

To Be Human is the state of existing as a conscious, emotional, moral, and spiritual being, with the ability to reflect, create, connect, and seek purpose throughout life, using recurring characters, themes, and motifs to draw connections between the past, present, and future.
Cunningham, Michael: Specimen Days, 2005
The novel reflects on what it means to be human through recurring characters, themes, and motifs that connect the past, present, and future.
The following books are thematically similar. They can be read in groups, compared with one another, or used to explore similar topics with a class over an extended period:
- Shaw, George Bernard: Pygmalion, 1981, ~100pp
  The play questions what it means to be human in society while exploring gender roles, the power of education, and the ways in which language and manners influence a person’s place in society.
  - While Pygmalion and Specimen Days differ in form and era, both grapple with how identity is constructed—through language, society, and power—and the struggle to reclaim or define one’s humanity amidst those forces.
- Solnit, Rebecca: Hope in the Dark, 2004, ~370pp
  The work explores how humans find meaning and agency in difficult times. It encourages readers not to give up in the face of challenges, but to find strength in the possibility of a better future, even when that future is not guaranteed.
  - While Solnit speaks directly to activists and Cunningham crafts a meditative literary journey, both reject fatalism and instead insist on the ongoing potential of the human spirit to reimagine and reshape the world.
- Plath, Sylvia: The Bell Jar, 1963, ~260pp
  The novel delves deeply into themes of identity, societal expectations of women, and the struggle to forge an authentic self in a restrictive and patriarchal environment.
  - While The Bell Jar is intimate and singular in voice, and Specimen Days is kaleidoscopic and experimental, they align in their exploration of human fragility, alienation, and the search for meaning in an often indifferent world.
- Niffenegger, Audrey: The Time Traveler's Wife, 2003, ~70pp
  While primarily a love story, it also explores themes of time, identity, and what it means to be present in one's own life.
  - Both novels use time as a narrative device to explore identity, memory, and the human need for connection. Their nuanced treatments of time and memory offer complementary perspectives on how individuals seek meaning and connection in a fragmented world.
List of general discussion questions on To Be Human (pdf)
List of essay prompts on To Be Human (pdf)