To Kill a Mockingbird: Then and Now (a Synthesis/Research Essay)
Purpose/Rationale
I recognize that To Kill a Mockingbird has been a source of conflict and conversation in many academic circles in recent years. It is defended as a classic that has been taught since time immemorial, but today we recognize the problematic nature of a story seeks to address the complex issues around discrimination (in terms of racism, classism, and ableism) through the lense of an unreliable narrator who is thrice privileged (for being white, relatively wealthy, and able-bodied).
That being said, in my first teaching post, the selection of class-sets of novels I had were limited, and this was also a text with which I was well familiar, so it is one I selected to teach to my linear "English 12/Social Justice 12 class."
That being said, in my first teaching post, the selection of class-sets of novels I had were limited, and this was also a text with which I was well familiar, so it is one I selected to teach to my linear "English 12/Social Justice 12 class."
Process
When discussing the characters, themes, and issues in the novel, we did so through a "Social Justice lense." As specific issues arose in the novel, I had the students read contemporary, current-event new pieces discussing those same issues. We examined these issues that existed in the time/place where the story took place (1930s, Alabama), at the time when Harper Lee wrote the novel (1956), and issues that largely still exist today.
When we had finished the novel, I had the students choose one problem/theme that was presented in the novel and write an essay where they needed to argue whether or not that was still a same problem/issue today. In presenting their argument, they needed to use current-event sources (either ones we discussed in class, or sources they found on their own) as evidence that the issue they were exploring was either still a problem, less of a problem, or not a problem anymore.
When we had finished the novel, I had the students choose one problem/theme that was presented in the novel and write an essay where they needed to argue whether or not that was still a same problem/issue today. In presenting their argument, they needed to use current-event sources (either ones we discussed in class, or sources they found on their own) as evidence that the issue they were exploring was either still a problem, less of a problem, or not a problem anymore.
Reflection
The student's projects were varied and effective. One student chose to explore the use of the "n-word" in the novel, how it was used, and if its usage is still a problem today. Another student chose to look at sexism/gender roles (specifically focusing on the characters of Scout, Atticus, and Jem) and discussed how these gender roles still exist, but more people are making moves to bend them. Finally, my third student in that class (this was very small class) chose to look at the way mental illness was represented in the novel through the character of Boo Radley and how mental illness is discussed in popular media today; this student would later choose this as a topic of a research project I assigned later that year).
Resources
mockingbird_essay_proposal.docx | |
File Size: | 31 kb |
File Type: | docx |
mockingbird_essay_outline.docx | |
File Size: | 14 kb |
File Type: | docx |