Unit 7: Lesson 3: Activity 1

The Modernist and Postmodernist’s American Dream

Diego Rivera was commissioned to create this fresco originally titled “Man at the Crossroads Looking with Hope and High Vision to the Choosing of a New and Better Future” for Rockefeller Plaza, New York City in 1933. When the painting turned out to be too controversial, Nelson Rockefeller stopped Rivera’s work. The painting was eventually destroyed, but not before Rivera could reproduce a similar work in Mexico City called “Man, Controller of the Universe.”

Man at the Crossroads by Deigo Rivera^[1]

Benchmarks:

11.5.6.6 Determine an author’s point of view or purpose in a text in which the rhetoric is particularly effective, analyzing how style and content contribute to the power, persuasiveness, or beauty of the text.

11.9.3.3 Evaluate a speaker’s point of view, reasoning, intended audience, and use of evidence and rhetoric, assessing the stance, premises, links among ideas, word choice, points of emphasis, and tone used.

Learning Target:

I can summarize an author’s point of view, reasoning, audience, and evidence, analyze how style and content contribute to those aspects, and evaluate the effectiveness of the piece. (5.6.6, 9.3.3)

Essential Question:

How does an author in the modernist and/or postmodernist literary period create an effective text that represents points-of-view and purposes relevant to its cultural landscape and ideas of the American Dream?

Summary:

In this activity, you will participate in a discussion about the American dream with other students.

You Will Need:

One 50-minute class period

Internet access

Discussion forum

Activity Instructions:

Step 1:

Using the online discussion tool, participate in a discussion about the American dream as you understand it from your own experiences and observations based on texts you’ve studied.

Step 2:

In your discussion, respond to one of these questions in an original post:

1. What does it mean to be American?
2. What does it mean to be successful in the US?
3. What dreams do you have? your parents? your grandparents?
4. In your self-selected text, what dreams do the characters have?
5. How has the American dream changed over time? What influences how people understand what the American dream is?

Your original post should answer one of the above questions in a well-written paragraph and then offer a bullet-point list of evidence (at least 5 pieces of evidence/examples that support the ideas articulated in your paragraph).

Step 3:

 In addition to your original post, you need to comment/reply to at least 3 other posts. Your comments/replies should include well-supported reasoning.