Thematic Unit and Bibliography for To Kill a Mockingbird

Transcription

1 Thematic Unit and Bibliography for To Kill a Mockingbird Racism/ Slavery Education and Justice Gender bias Civil Rights Great Depression Mississippi Trial, 1955 by Chris Crowe Also Roll of Thunder, Hear my Cry by Mildred D. Taylor Their Eyes were Watching God by Zora Neal Hurston The Watsons Go to Birmingham by Christopher Paul Curtis Out of the Dust by Karen Hesse Roll of Thunder, Hear my Cry by Mildred D. Taylor Words By Heart by Ouida Sebestyen The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne Freedom Songs by Yvette Moore The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck

2 Uncle Tom s Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe Great Expectations by Charles Dickens Beloved by Toni Morrison Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglas, an American Slave by Frederick Douglas Show Way by Jacqueline Woodson Racism/Slavery: Crowe, Chris. Mississippi Trial, New York: Puffin Books, This is a retelling of the Emmet Till murder in 1955 through the eyes of a 15 year-old white boy visiting Mississipi at the time of the murder and trial. Historically significant for starting the Civil Rights Movement, this book captures the mood and emotions of this time in American history. Stowe, Harriet Beecher. Uncle Tom s Cabin. New York: Barnes and Noble Book, Though Uncle Tom has become a synonym for a fawning black yes-man, Stowe s Tom is actually American literature s first black hero, a man who suffers for refusing to obey his white oppressors. Uncle Tom s Cabin is a living, relevant story, passionate in its vivid

3 depiction of the cruelest forms of injustice and inhumanity and the courage it takes to fight against them. Taylor, Mildred D. Roll of Thunder Hear My Cry. New York: Puffin Books, Cassie s family is proud of the fact that they own land. As a black family in a white community her family faces prejudice, but Cassie learns the importance of respect for herself and for her family. Entirely through its own internal development, the novel shows the rich inner rewards of black pride, love, and independence. Woodson, Jaqueline. Show Way. New York: G.P. Putman s Sons, Soonie s great-grandmother made show ways, quilts with secret messages for runaway slaves. Follow her relative through history and the stories they tell through their quilts. Children s picture book. Education/Injustice: Dicken, Charles. Great Expectations. New York: Dover Publications, Young Phillip Pirrip's life is shaped by an act of kindness which raises him from poverty to wealth. One of the greatest works of classic literature, this novel is a timeless tale of love, hope and humanity. Sebestyen, Ouida. Words by Heart. New York: Random House Children s Books, Hoping to make her adored Papa proud of her and to make her white classmates notice her "Magic Mind," not her black skin, Lena vows to win the Bible-quoting contest. But winning does not bring Lena what she expected. Instead of honor, violence and death erupt and strike the one she loves most dearly. Lena, who has believed in vengeance, must now learn how to forgive. Gender Bias: Hawthorne, Nathaniel. The Scarlet Letter. New York: Barnes and Noble Books, In early colonial Massachusetts, a young woman, Hester, endures the consequences of her sin of adultery and spends the rest of her life in atonement. Her powerful, bittersweet story is an American classic that

4 continues to touch the hearts of modern readers with its timeless themes of guilt, passion and repentance. Hurston, Zora Neal. Their Eyes Were Watching God. New York: The McGraw-Hill Companies, Their Eyes Were Watching God tells the story of Janie Crawford fair-skinned, long-haired, dreamy woman who comes of age expecting better treatment than what she gets from her three husbands and community. Then she meets Tea Cake, a younger man who captivates Janie's heart and spirit, and offers her the chance to relish life without being one man's mule or another man's adornment. Morrison, Toni. Beloved. New York: Knopf Publishing Group, Sethe was born a slave and escaped to Ohio, but eighteen years later she is still not free. She has too many memories of Sweet Home, the beautiful farm where so many hideous things happened. And Sethe's new home is haunted by the ghost of her baby, who died nameless and whose tombstone is engraved with a single word: Beloved. Civil Rights: Curtis, Christopher Paul. The Watsons Go to Birmingham. New York: Doubleday Dell Books for Young Readers, Enter the hilarious world of 10-year-old Kenny and his family: Momma, Dad, little sister Joetta, and brother Byron, who's 13 and an "official juvenile delinquent." When Momma and Dad decide it's time for a visit to Grandma, the Watsons set out on a trip to Birmingham, Alabama, toward one of the darkest moments in America's history. Douglas, Frederick. Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglas, An American Slave. New York: Barnes and Noble Book, Born a slave in 1818 on a plantation in Maryland, Douglass taught himself to read and write. In 1845, seven years after escaping to the North, he published Narrative, the first of three autobiographies. This book calmly but dramatically recounts the horrors and the accomplishments of his early years the daily, casual brutality of the white masters; his painful efforts to educate himself; his decision to find freedom or die; and his harrowing but successful escape.

5 Moore, Yvette. Freedom Songs. New York: Penguin Young Readers Group, Sheryl Williams, 14, confronts harsh realities while visiting relatives in North Carolina. After witnessing--and then experiencing--acts of prejudice, she understands why Uncle Pete has joined the freedom riders. Once home, Sheryl decides to collect money for the group by holding a benefit concert with her friends, but before she can carry out her plans, Uncle Pete is killed by a bomb. Working harder than ever, they raise more than $5000 and continue their campaign by making the concert an annual event. Great Depression: Hesse, Karen. Out of the Dust. New York: Scholastic, Young Billie Jo tells her story in a series of thoughtful and touching poems as she tries to come to terms with the horrific death of her mother, the loss of her talent to play the piano, and the threat of losing her father to lung cancer. In this testament to the strength of one girl's will, Hesse takes a poetic turn at telling the story of the Oklahoma dust bowl during the Great Depression. Steinbeck, John. The Grapes of Wrath. New York: Penguin, When The Grapes of Wrath was published in 1939, America, still recovering from the Great Depression, came face to face with itself in a startling, lyrical way. John Steinbeck gathered the country's recent shames and devastations--the Hoovervilles, the desperate, dirty children, the dissolution of kin, the oppressive labor conditions--in the Joad family. Then he set them down on a westward-running road, local dialect and all, for the world to acknowledge. For this marvel of observation and perception, he won the Pulitzer in Internet Sites Prince William Network. To Kill a Mockingbird, Then and Now. July Think Quest. 23 May 2006 < This site is dedicated to teaching strategies for To Kill a Mockingbird but my favorite part are the great historical archives where students can learn about the current events during the 1930 s and the parallels with the novel. For example they can

6 read about 1) The Scottsboro Trial: Tom Robinson's trial bears striking parallels to the "Scottsboro Trial," one of the most famous- or infamous- court cases in American history. 2)The Civil Rights Movement: The dramatic impact of the novel To Kill A Mockingbird was heightened by the conditions under which African-Americans were living in the deep South, the emerging changes in their legal situation, and the turbulent relationship between the races at the time of its publication. 3) Mculley Quarter Interview: An interview with a women about growing up black and poor in Alabama in the 1930s. 4) Interview: Southern Girlhood: An interview with 3 southern women who describe their experiences as young girls when their were close to Scout's age. Kansas, Jane. To Kill a Mockingbird and Harper Lee. May Chebucto.org. 23 May 2006 < This site is dedicated to the author, her inspiration for Maycomb county and other historical information about the novel. Audubon, John James. Birds of America: Common Mockingbird Marchex, Inc. 23 May 2006 < > Visit this site to learn all about the Mockingbird and its habits to better understand the theme and symbolism in the novel. Nelson, Cary. The Great Depression. Univerisy of Illinois at Ubania- Champaine. 5 June 2006 < >Visit this site to learn more about the Great depression, the dust bowl and view photos of the era. Berkowitz, Robert E. and Eisenberg, Michael B. Introduction of Setting In To Kill a Mockingbird The Big Six. 5 June 2006 < /#InternetSites > Visit this site to learn about America in the 1930s. It is specifically created for to better understand the setting of the novel To Kill a Mockingbird. The site has a huge resource of information about life in the 1930s like education, women of the 1930s, famous people of the 1930s, entertainment, status of blacks in the 1930s, etc.