Sula Vocab

1. Repugnance- noun. Strong dislike, distaste, or antagonism. “All their repugnance was contained in the neat balance” (8). My views of the play had great repugnance because of the horrible job done by the actors.

2. Abate- verb. To reduce in degree or intensity. “Shadrack was suffering from a blinding headache, which was not abated by the comfort he felt when the policeman pulled his hands away from what he thought was a permanent entanglement with his shoelaces” (13). In order to abate the intensity of the argument between the two students, the teacher decided to put both students into their own “time-out” corner.

3. Unequivocal- adjective. Leaving no doubt. “A black so definite, so unequivocal, it astonished him” (13). Because I studied very well for my chemistry test, I felt that it would be unequivocal to think that I would receive nothing less than an A on the test.

4. Quell- verb. To thoroughly overwhelm and reduce to submission or passivity; quiet; pacify. “Who could quell a roustabout with a look, if she were really custard, then there was a chance that Nel was too” (23). My mother had such a handle on me where any look she gave me could quell me from saying anything that I would later regret.

5. Guile- noun. Deceitful; cunning. “Her flirting was sweet, low and guileless” (42). The great Olympiads—Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades—showed great guile when they used the kingdom of Ithaca as a bait for getting Odysseus to do whatever they wanted him to do. *I could only like one of my pictures to this word.

6. Fastidious- adjective. Having high and often capricious standards; difficult to please. “Hannah was fastidious about whom she slept with” (43). I have very fastidious ways about my food: I only eat food that hasn’t been fried, packaged, or cooked by someone other than my mom.

7. Vitriol- noun. Something highly caustic or severe in effect, as criticism. “Made them defend her and protect her from any vitriol that newcomers or their wives might spill” (45). Because my project was so sloppy, I received vitriol from my teacher for my poor works.

8. Insouciant- adjective. Lighthearted unconcern. “Nel’s grimy intractable children looked like three wild things happily insouciant in the May shine” (96). The insouciant children refused to stop stepping on my freshly garden that I worked so hard on everyday for at least two weeks.

9. Contrive- verb. To form or create in an artistic or ingenious manner. “Their evidence against Sula was contrived, but their conclusions about her were not” (118). In order to fit everyone’s schedule, I contrived a plan where all of the members could attend the mandatory rehearsal in a punctual manner and still have time remaining where they can do what they wanted to do afterwards.

10. Pariah- noun. One that is despised or rejected; outcast. “She was pariah, then, and knew it” (122). While everyone else went on the bike trial, I felt like a pariah because out of the whole group, I was the only one who didn’t know how to ride a bike.

*Just so you know, I linked all of my pictures to each word it describes.