From Final
• Definition of Historical Context
• Example of Historical Context
– Teenage girl looses her father (because he was in
WWI)
• Definition of Social Context
• Example of Social Context
– A story where two brothers, although they are very
smart and nice, struggle to make friends because they
live in poverty and do not have very nice clothes.
(Agenda)
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Journal (5 min)
Introduce Books for Lit Circles + Vote (20 min)
Start Historical Context (definition + examples)
Exit Slip
Friday, March 22, 2013
JOURNAL: What do you ALREADY
KNOW about the Vietnam War? (It
can be from very general to very
specific.) Try to write down at least
FIVE things.
HOMEWORK DUE YESTERDAY: Vocab
Notes & Tiger Questions – Please turn in
to back tray if you haven’t already.
Literature Circles
Review: Social Context
• How do you figure out social context?
• Look at actions and figure out WHY – values
and beliefs of culture.
• Think of it as the unspoken rules or norms of
a culture/society. It’s the BECAUSE behind
the actions/behavior.
• Example: Two girls, though smart and nice,
struggle to make friends…
BECAUSE they live in poverty and don’t have
nice clothes.
Historical Context
• Historical Context - Refers to the events,
setting, religious, or philosophical views, and
social structures that have shaped a given
time.
• The events that took place around something
through which you understand that thing.
• Example: Girl’s father died…
Because he fought in the Vietnam War.
• Ask: WHEN was the text was made? WHAT
WAS GOING ON at the time?
Historical Context: Example #1
"Sally hid her hands behind her back and
crossed her fingers before she answered."
TODAY:
It wouldn't raise much of a response to read this
in a book published in 2010.
Historical Context: Example #1
"Sally hid her hands behind her back and crossed
her fingers before she answered."
BACK THEN:
You’re reading this statement from a transcript of
court documents in Salem, Massachusetts in 1692.
Religious fervor was at an extreme, and villagers
were nearly obsessed with the devil and witchcraft.
For a young woman to tell a lie--a reader would
assume that poor Sally was a candidate for the
gallows!
Historical Context: Example #2
Imagine you're reading a letter from a woman
containing this sentence: "My daughter will be
heading for California shortly after she
marries.”
TODAY:
How much information does this statement give
us? Not much, until we look at the date.
What happens when we discover that the letter
was written in 1849?
Historical Context: Example #2
Imagine you're reading a letter from a woman
containing this sentence: "My daughter will be
heading for California shortly after she marries.”
BACK THEN:
A young woman heading for California in 1849
might be following her husband on a treacherous
treasure seeking expedition for the gold rush. This
mother would be quite fearful for her child, and she
would know that it would be a very long time
before she'd see her daughter again, if ever!
Historical & Social Context
• How are historical and social context related?
• Historical context often influences social
context, and vice-versa.
• Example: Piece of writing from 1780s (ish)
– Historical Context: Industrial Revolution (Cotton
Gin, Steam Locomotive, Human Labor Force)
– Social Context: Family Structure (working parents)
Exit Slip
For each sentence, create a historical context
for the following scenarios:
Example: A girl walks to the store for groceries.
• Historical: Because she lived in the 1750s
before the rise of the automobile.
1. A boy travels to the country.
2. The girl never shows up for school.