1. The use of names and titles is an important aspect of Dessa Rose. Find some of the points where a name or title shows the reader what a character is feeling, or marks a turning point in the novel.

2. Although Dessa and Rufel come from dramatically different backgrounds, are there ways in which their situations are similar?

3. By the end of the novel Dessa and Rufel have come to understand each other in a new way. What do they learn about one another to make this new understanding possible?

4. The prologue to Dessa Rose begins in Dessa's unconscious mind as she lies remembering, perhaps delirious, in the cellar at the Hughes farm. The last section, "The Negress", is narrated in Dessa's own first person voice. How do you think this adds to an overall understanding of the characters, especially Dessa?

5. Dessa Rose is set more than 150 years in the past. What do you think the novel has to say about freedom and race relations in our own time?