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Unit I: The Power of the Individual
Test Study Guide
Definitions
Individuality: Having and valuing your own identity and uniqueness
Independence: Being free
Realism: Art or literature that remains true to reality (real life, real situations, real relationships)
Femininity: Womanliness
Masculinity: Manliness
Agency: Power, especially to effect (make) change
Emancipation: Freedom
Slave narrative: A text written by an ex-slave who has escaped from slavery and who supports abolitionism
Documents
CMS Conduct Code
1. What kinds of infractions does the CMS conduct code punish? Insubordination, illegal activity, cheating,
violent offenses
2. What are some kinds of punishments? After School Detention, In School Suspension, Out of School
Suspension, Expulsion
3. How specific is the CMS conduct code in its expectations? Please provide examples. In some places it is
very specific (e.g., bringing weapons to school), but in others, it is more vague. For example, students
must be respectful of patriotic observances, but what does “respectful” mean? Isn’t that up to the
individual teacher, then?
Declaration of Independence
1. When was the Declaration of Independence published? 1776
2. What was the purpose of the Declaration of Independence? Establish freedom for the colonies from
England
3. Who wrote the Declaration of Independence? Who was it against? American colonists (e.g., John
Hancock and Thomas Jefferson) wrote it against the British colonial rule under King George III
4. What are some of the reasons the colonists wanted to create their own country? Unfair taxation without
representation, lack of citizenship
Emancipation Proclamation
1. Who gave the Emancipation Proclamation? President Abraham Lincoln
2. What is “emancipation”? Being free
3. Who did the Emancipation Proclamation free? Who didn’t it free? It freed slaves in the states in the
confederacy that were in open rebellion to the Union (those who willingly seceded). It did not free slaves
in the Border States who did not want to secede from the union.
Bill of Rights
The 1st Amendment
1. What rights does the 1st Amendment give? Right to free speech, freedom of religion, freedom of the
press, freedom to petition, and freedom of assembly
The 2nd Amendment
1. What rights does the 2nd Amendment give? Right to bear arms
A Doll’s House (Henrik Ibsen)
Main characters: Nora, Torvald Helmer, Dr. Rank, Mrs. Linde, Nils Krogstad
Plot: A woman illegally borrows money to save her husband’s life. She is blackmailed by the man she
borrowed money from; he wants to keep his job that the woman’s husband, his boss, fired him from.
Theme: Relationships are flexible and we must consider how men and women can both contribute
equally to families.
Controversy surrounding the play and Ibsen’s beliefs: Women’s rights in 1800s Norway? A tough pill to
swallow for many of his contemporaries (people of his time).
“The Man Said to the Universe” (Stephen Crane)
Figurative language: Personification (the universe speaks to the man) gives the universe active power to
hurt the individual. This emphasizes man’s inability to enact change or have power.
Theme: The universe and life is tough and doesn’t care who you are. You do not have power.
“We Real Cool” (Gwendolyn Brooks)
Language and Style: Repetition of “we” emphasizes universality (shared-ness) of the experience. Use of
slang/vernacular emphasizes who the “we” is.
Theme: There are certain groups in society who make free choices, but the consequences for their
actions are vast; they are a neglected group and thus their “free” decisions, which are uninformed and
rebellious, are often detrimental to their success.
Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass (Frederick Douglass)
Plot: A man is enslaved in Maryland. He attempts escape a few times. Finally he is successful. He goes
on to speak across the North to abolitionist crowds.
Elements of the slave narrative: Material condition of the slave, analysis of the Christianity of slave
masters, cruelty of the master, the escape.
Theme: An equal or fair society, a society that is just and humane, does not include slavery.
Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl (Harriet Jacobs)
Plot: Slave woman is raped by master. She hides in attic for seven years. She escapes North.
Elements of the slave narrative: Material condition of the slave, cruelty of the master, breakup of
families, the escape.
Theme: An equal or fair society, a society that is just and humane, does not include slavery.
Historical Review Information
1. How many colonies were there? 13
2. Who was in charge of the colonial army in the Revolutionary War? Who was in charge of England? George
Washington was in charge of the colonial army and King George III was in charge of England
3. When did the Civil War occur? 1860 – 1865
4. Who was the president during the Civil War? President Abraham Lincoln
5. Who wrote slave narratives? Ex-slaves, escaped slaves
6. How common was it for slaves to escape? Very rare
7. What are some myths about slavery? Some slaves were treated well; slavery was better for the slaves than
freedom
8. What are some laws that Southern states passed in regards to slavery? Anti-miscegenation laws, anti-literacy
laws, anti-manumission (freeing) laws
9. What type of drama did Ibsen write? Realism
10. What was the focus of most of Ibsen’s plays? Relationships
11. How was Ibsen’s A Doll’s House received? Critics were angry that he had created a strong female
character. They were especially peeved at the ending where Nora walks out and slams the door; in fact,
Ibsen had to change the ending in order for it to be performed.
Major Thematic Question
What power do individuals have to make changes in societies?
To answer this question (it will be a short answer/paragraph question), consider these things:
1) Slave narratives used to support abolitionism, and slavery did end.
2) Declaration of Independence started the Revolutionary War, without which we would not be here.
3) Emancipation Proclamation freed some slaves, but not all; it was a political movement by Lincoln to
intimidate the South.
4) CMS Conduct Code regulates individual behavior
5) The Bill of Rights lays out individual freedoms that may have been suppressed by a larger government
6) Nora in A Doll’s House cannot change her society, but does change her own little world.
7) Stephen Crane’s character in the poem “A Man Said to the Universe” cannot change the world around
him.
8) Gwendolyn Brooks “We Real Cool” features children who do what they want, even at the risk of their
lives.