Friday 22nd April 2022
Context
Steps to Success
• What does ‘context’ mean?
• What is the Great Depression
and the American Dream?
• Why were so many writers
inspired by this period?
In your exercise books, write a sentence
that explains the single most important
thing that you learned from yesterday’s
lesson.
The most important thing I learned in yesterday’s lesson was…
What is context?
What is context?
Context, in literature, is the background,
setting or environment that helped create the
text.
Context is important because it helps us to
understand why a text was written and its
deeper meanings.
What might we discuss when we
discuss context?
●
When was the text written?
●
What the society was like at the time the
text was written?
●
What or who influenced the writer?
●
What political or social influences there
would have been?
What were the ‘Roaring 20s’?
America spent the 1920s
(post World War 1) rebuilding
their country. They had to!
•
•
Prohibition, a ban on the production,
importation, transportation, and sale of
alcoholic beverages, began in 1920
and lasted until 1933.
But all prohibition did was force the sale
to go ‘underground’, in what became
known as ‘speakeasies’.
What was the ‘Great
Depression’?
• The Great Depression was
the worst economic
recession in the history of the
industrialized world, lasting
from 1929 to 1939.
• It began after the stock
market crash of October
1929, which sent Wall
Street into a panic and
wiped out millions of
investors.
What is the ‘American Dream’?
“a chicken in every pot and
a car in every garage.”
Symbolism
● What does ‘symbolism’ mean?
In your exercise books, write a definition for ‘symbolism’
If you’re amazing, try the Sharples Challenge Club:
● SCC: Write an example of a symbol in Macbeth – what does your symbol
Symbolism and the American Dream
Glossary
Orgastic: a future of potential and
promise, of things that have yet
to be denied.
What do we learn about the American Dream from
this symbol and the novel's ending?
•
•
•
•
What does ‘context’ mean?
What was the Great Depression?
What is the American Dream?
Why were so many writers inspired by this period?
Friday 22nd April 2022
Big Question:
How do writers embody the
‘American Dream’ in their
work?
Success Criteria:
• What is the American Dream?
• Is it achievable?
• Why were so many writers
inspired by it?
Starter Task:
What can you remember about the ‘Roaring 20s’?
What can you remember about the Great
Depression?
“a chicken in every pot and a car in every garage.” –
How does this portray the American Dream for most
Americans?
The American Dream is best defined by James Truslow Adams as a “dream of
land in which life should be better and richer and fuller for every man, with the
opportunity for each according to his ability or achievement” (Adams 404).
Throughout the centuries of the United States, a better and fuller life has meant
different things to different people. Today, a better and fuller life is often viewed in
terms of economic and material prosperity such as buying your dream house or
car. Since the founding of the United States, the American Dream has continued
to become more and more materialistic. The value of people’s success is not
measured in their quality of life, but through the amount of property they have.
Think:
What is your American Dream?
Do you think it is achievable?
• What is the American Dream?
• Is it achievable?
• Why were so many writers inspired by it?
Friday 29th April 2022
Big Question:
How does John Steinbeck present the
American Dream at the end of ‘Of Mice and
Men’?
Success Criteria
To recall facts about the American Dream.
To analyse Steinbeck’s presentation of the
American Dream.
To evaluate Steinbeck’s presentation of the
American Dream.
What can you see in this image?
What sort of emotions do you feel looking at the image? Does it look like a happy or a sad life?
Sharples Challenge Club: What imagery is being presented? How might the imagery relate
to the American Dream?
Self reflection:
Did you meet the success criteria?
To recall facts about the American Dream.
To analyse Steinbeck’s presentation of the American Dream.
To evaluate Steinbeck’s presentation of the American Dream.
Based on my work this lesson, I think that I……
WWW:
EBI:
1. “The darkening slopes of the Gabilans.”
2. “We gonna get a little place.”
3. “The air feels fine.”
4. “An’ live on the fatta the lan’.”
The ‘fat of the land’ is an expression that
refers to having the best of everything.
1. Out of the 4 quotes
from ‘Of Mice and
Men’, which best
reflects the American
Dream? Provide 2-3
explanations to
support your choice.
Challenge: None of
these do it for you?
Can you find an even
better quote that
reflects the A.D.?
“The American Dream is just an illusion.”
To what extent do you agree with this statement?
“Figment of the imagination;
trickery; deception”
Quote
Agree/Disagree
Justification
“The air feels fine.”
Agree
At the start of the extract, John Steinbeck ironically uses nature
imagery to create a tranquil atmosphere. George tells Lennie to take
off his hat because “the air feels fine.” The use of the adjective ‘fine’
effectively connotes a sense of peace because the air is pleasant.
Moreover, the fact that Lennie and George are out in the wild, away
from society, suggests connotations of freedom which establishes the
promise of the American Dream. However, the peaceful imagery of the
weather foreshadows Lennie’s death later in the extract, which shows
that the American Dream is nothing more than an illusion for Lennie
and George; in this case, they will never achieve their dream because
George knows he will kill Lennie.