Little Brother Theme of Rules and Order

Rules are meant to broken. Or is that followed? In the world of Little Brother, like for many vaguely dystopian novels it depends on who you ask and where your allegiances lie. This book has everything from school rules to ethics, police to secret military police, internet spies to…

You get the picture. Doctorow's book really pushes readers to ask questions about why rules are the way they are, and try to make change when the reasons behind them are suspect.

Questions About Rules and Order

  1. Do you see any connections between the rules at Marcus's high school and Gitmo-by-the-Bay? Are the rules for these places more similar or different?
  2. What happens to people who break the rules in Little Brother?
  3. How is being arrested different than being detained? Are the two situations governed by the same rules?

Chew on This

Try on an opinion or two, start a debate, or play the devil’s advocate.

Everyone should always follow the rules without question.

Everyone should always question the rules without exception.