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Q: Ask students if they are familiar with the CDFW. What does this organization do? (see https://wildlife.ca.gov)

Q: What is a symbol? (A symbol is something that stands for or suggests something else; it represents something beyond literal meaning.)

Q: How is the Joshua tree the symbol of the Mojave Desert? Ask students to describe the plant and list its characteristics. What could this tree stand for besides itself? (very old—existed when giant mammoths walked the Earth; struggles in an inhospitable environment but still a survivor. Not beautiful in traditional sense but has its own unique qualities.)

NB: There are two types of Joshua tree—Eastern Joshua trees (Yucca jaegeriana) and Western Joshua trees (Yucca brevifolia). Scientists generally agree that these are very distinct taxa, but some would categorize them as separate subspecies and others would put them as separate species. The Dome Fire affected Eastern Joshua Trees, and the Western Joshua Trees are the only ones receiving the protections from CDFW. Both are threatened by climate change.

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WATCH

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PLAY

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PLAY

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WORKSHEET

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Pre-writing: get students to write similes (A Joshua tree is like…/ A Joshua tree is as _____ as ____ and metaphors (A Joshua tree is ___) about the pictures. Use imagery (appeal to one or more of the five senses).

How would they describe a Joshua tree to a blind person?

Joseph Smeaton Chase wrote this paragraph in California Desert Trails (1919). You can share this with your students and ask them how the word choice reflects his attitude about the Joshua tree. He does a good job of appealing to the senses!

It is a weird menacing object more like some conception of Poe’s or Doré’s than any work of wholesome Mother Nature. One can scarcely find a term of ugliness that is not apt for this plant. A misshapen pirate with belt boots hands and teeth stuck full of daggers is as near as I can come to a human analogy. The wood is a harsh, rasping fibre; knife blades long hard and keen fill the place of leaves; the flower is greenish white and ill smelling; and the fruit a cluster of nubbly pods, bitter and useless. A landscape filled with Joshua trees has a nightmare effect even in broad daylight: at the witching hour it can be almost infernal.

Poe, Edgar Allan: 19^th C poet (“The Raven,” “Annabel Lee”) and short story writer known for mystery, death and horror (“The Black Cat” and many more)

Doré, Gustav: French artist of the 19^th C famous for illustrating books, one of which was Dante’s Inferno (1861)

The witching hour: midnight

Infernal: hellish

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WORKSHEET

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