Lesson 2/Activity 1: And In This Corner… An Introductory Study

“Every writing career starts as a personal quest for sainthood, for self-betterment. Sooner or later, and as a rule quite soon, a man discovers that his pen accomplishes a lot more than his soul” - Joseph Brodsky^[1]

^[2]

This is the cover art for the Construction and Management Simulation Game “Theme Park”

released in 1994 by Nintendo. The rides in a theme park tend to have something in common,

 like all superhero rides, or space rides, etc.. This is true as well for themes in literature.

Everything in the novel seems to share a common thread. That’s a theme.

Benchmark:                

11.4.2/11.5.2 -

Determine two or more themes or central ideas of a text and analyze their development over the course of the text, including how they interact and build on one another to produce a complex account; provide an objective summary of the text.

Learning Target:        

I can use a novel’s first chapter to identify a central theme.

Essential Question:        

How can a novel’s first chapter depict a central theme in the piece, then develop over the course of the text?        

You Will Need:        Two or Three days

                        Access to the Internet

Activity:                Please follow the six (6) steps in order.

STEP 1:  

Consider the summary of Huck Finn you viewed earlier. What were some themes from that summary? List two themes in a new doc. Name the doc “Themes in Huck Finn”. Then star it for later use.

STEP 2:

Close read the first chapter to The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, by Mark Twain. Watch for Concepts that keep coming up and note Twain’s intentions for this novel if any.

Chapter 1 of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, by Mark Twain

STEP 3:

Add at least three more themes to your list. Themes could revolve around his current family situation, his way of viewing the world, the tone of the book (serious, funny, adventurous)

STEP 4:

Now, study this mini lesson on Twain’s Intentions. Have your “Themes” doc handy.

A Kid’s Adventure Story or an Anti-Racism Campaign? 

STEP 5:

Add your prediction(s) to your “Themes” doc.

STEP 6:

Submit Assignment