Eat Pray Love: One Woman's Search for Everything Across Italy, India and Indonesia

Content Warning: This section of the guide contains discussion of mental illness.

Gather initial thoughts and broad opinions about the book.

1. The division of Gilbert’s journey into three distinct parts creates a unique narrative structure around pleasure, devotion, and balance. Which section affected you most deeply, and how did it resonate with your own life experiences?

2. The book offers a particular vision of self-discovery through an exploration of travel, privilege, and spiritual curiosity. What surprised you most about Gilbert’s approach to finding herself? Did your impression of her journey change from beginning to end?

3. Many readers compare Eat Pray Love with Cheryl Strayed’s Wild, as both feature women seeking healing through travel after personal crises. What distinguishes Gilbert’s memoir from other travel narratives about self-discovery?

Encourage readers to connect the book’s themes and characters with their personal experiences.

1. Gilbert notes that she “recognized herself as a friend” (60) in a mirror reflection. When have you experienced a moment of profound self-recognition or compassion toward yourself?

2. Throughout the memoir, Gilbert struggles with depression and loneliness, even personifying them as characters who visit her apartment. Have you ever visualized your emotional challenges as external entities? Was this technique helpful in addressing them?

3. The author’s year-long journey involved deliberate seeking rather than simply escaping. Consider a significant change you’ve made in your life. Was it primarily motivated by running from something or moving toward something else?

4. Richard from Texas tells Gilbert she wears her “wishbone where her backbone ought to be” (165). What area of your life might benefit from more decisive action rather than wishful thinking?

Examine the book’s relevance to societal issues, historical events, or cultural themes.

1. The memoir confronts societal expectations about marriage, motherhood, and women’s life choices. Gilbert writes about the pressure she felt to have children after turning 30. Have cultural attitudes toward these life milestones evolved since the book’s publication in 2006? If so, in what way?

2. Gilbert observes that Italians prize “the beauty of doing nothing” (68), contrasting sharply with American productivity culture. In what ways have contemporary notions of leisure and productivity shifted in recent years?

3. In Bali, Gilbert encounters traditions where women face severe consequences for divorce while men retain social standing. What responsibility do travelers have when encountering cultural practices that conflict with their own values?

Dive into the book’s structure, characters, themes, and symbolism.

1. What significance does Gilbert’s organization of her memoir, inspired by the 108 beads of japa malas, hold for the narrative? How does this structure enhance or detract from the themes she explores?

2. The recurring motif of food serves as both literal nourishment and metaphor throughout the memoir. Gilbert arrives in Italy underweight and depleted after her divorce. How does her changing relationship with food mirror her emotional and spiritual journey?

3. Gilbert’s introspective storytelling in Eat Pray Love differs from her approach in works like Big Magic, where she focuses more on creative living than personal crisis. How does her writing style in this memoir contribute to its emotional impact and accessibility?

4. The concept of balance appears repeatedly throughout the memoir. Which of the contrasting experiences Gilbert explores seems most central to her transformation?

5. Secondary characters like Richard from Texas, Ketut Liyer, and Wayan function as guides on Gilbert’s journey. Which character did you find most compelling, and why did their wisdom feel particularly significant?

Encourage imaginative and creative connections to the book.

1. If you were to embark on your own “Eat Pray Love” journey focusing on three qualities you wish to develop, which locations would you choose? Describe what would you hope to gain from each place?

2. Design a fourth section to add to Gilbert’s journey that would begin with the letter “I.” Where would she go next, and what aspect of life would she explore there?

3. Gilbert embraces the word “antevasin” as symbolic of her own identity. Create your own three-word mantra to guide you through a year of intentional transformation. How would you apply this mantra to your daily life?

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