Unit: Edgar Allan Poe: Master of American Gothic
8th Grade Language Arts (80 minutes)
Day One: Elements of the Gothic Genre and Edgar Allan Poe
Objectives
Students will be able to:
 List elements of the Gothic genre.
 Apply knowledge of Gothic elements to identify contemporary works in the Gothic
genre.
 Identify and analyze Gothic elements in images on novel covers and in YouTube videos,
as well as in written and verbal works.
 Evaluate the impact these Gothic elements have on the reader (mood).
 Compare the representation of Gothic elements in verbal versus visual form, and analyze
how these formats can be used to compliment one another.
Core Content Standards
Reading: Informational Text
Key Ideas and Details
 CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.8.1 Cite the textual evidence that most strongly supports an
analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.
Integration of Knowledge and Ideas
 CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.8.7 Evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of using
different mediums (e.g., print or digital text, video, multimedia) to present a particular
topic or idea.
Range of Reading and Level of Text Complexity
 CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.8.10 By the end of the year, read and comprehend literary
nonfiction at the high end of the grades 6–8 text complexity band independently and
proficiently.
Speaking and Listening
Comprehension and Collaboration
 CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.8.1 Engage effectively in a range of collaborative
discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grade 8
topics, texts, and issues, building on others’ ideas and expressing their own clearly.
 CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.8.1d Acknowledge new information expressed by others,
and, when warranted, qualify or justify their own views in light of the evidence
presented.
 CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.8.2 Analyze the purpose of information presented in diverse
media and formats (e.g., visually, quantitatively, orally) and evaluate the motives
(e.g., social, commercial, political) behind its presentation.
Materials
 “Gothic Elements” PowerPoint and video clips
 Gothic Elements guided lecture notes (copies for all students)
 “Edgar Allan Poe” excerpt from How They Croaked: The Awful Ends of the Awfully
Famous by Georgia Bragg (30-copy class set)
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Post-it strips (regular Post-its cut into thirds; 6 per student)
Scrap paper
Whiteboards (class set)
Dry erase markers (class set)
Erasers (class set)
Entry (PowerPoint Slide 1)
Ask students what they think of as “gothic,” and give them about 30 seconds to do a quick word
association exercise, jotting down a list of whatever comes to mind when they think of that word.
Ask students to share their associations with the class, and make a list on the board of some of
the more commonly occurring associations.
Transition
Tell students that the term “gothic” has come to represent and refer to a lot of different things in
society today (make reference to the wide range of things listed on the board), but in the literary
world, the term “gothic” has a much more specific meaning.
 Ask: “Do you know that Gothic fiction is actually a genre of literature?”
 If any students mentioned Gothic works during brainstorming, point out the specific
examples on the board and direct students’ attention to these; if no student suggested any
Gothic movies or literary works, give students a chance to suggest some now.
Lesson Procedure
1. Overview of Gothic Genre
 (Slide 2) Give students a few examples of famous classic works of Gothic literature, like
Frankenstein by Mary Shelly, Dracula by Bram Stoker, The Phantom of the Opera by
Gaston Leroux, The Legend of Sleepy Hollow by Washington Irving, The Hunchback of
Notre Dame by Victor Hugo, and The Hound of the Baskervilles by Sir Arthur Conan
Doyle.
 Ask students if they are familiar with any of these works and what they have in common.
 Pass out Elements of the Gothic Genre handout (guided lecture notes).
 Point out the place on the handout for students to keep a list of useful example works that
will help them remember and understand what the Gothic genre is, and direct students to
pick one or two of these examples that they are familiar with to add to their list.
 Based on their brainstorming list, as well as what they know about the examples cited
above, ask students to predict what they think the elements of Gothic lit might be.
 (Slides 3-9) Go over the elements of Gothic literature, and discuss how they compare to
students’ predictions; direct students to take notes on their Gothic Elements sheet (guide
and scaffold student note-taking as necessary).
o Ask: "So what are 1 or 2 things you might write in your notes to help you
remember this element? Remember, you don't need to write down exactly what is
on the PowerPoint—just put down a few things that mean something to you and
will help you remember."
o Peer modeling: for the first few slides, ask one or two students to share what they
write on their guided notes.
2. Assess Student Understanding
 (Slide 10) Have students take a second look at the covers of these Gothic novels; point
out that even if we knew nothing else about these stories, we could probably make a
pretty good educated guess that they belong to the Gothic genre just by looking at their
covers; remind students that making predictions is something good readers do all the
time, and that includes making predictions based on cover art, illustrations, and other
visual clues that accompany a text.
 Say: “Let's look at some of the book covers for these classic Gothic novels and short
stories and see if we can figure out which Gothic elements they are specifically depicting.
As I go through the next few slides, I want you to examine the images and think of one or
two Gothic elements that you see depicted in the book cover art.”
 Click through Slides 11-16, pausing on each slide for students to think and share their
responses—make sure students provide reasoning/evidence to support their answers
(there will usually be more than one correct response).
 After taking a few responses, ask students to vote for which one they think is the most
prominent by standing up (say, for example, “If you think isolation is the most important
Gothic element being featured on this cover, stand up now.”)
3. Make Contemporary Connections
 Tell students that the Gothic genre originally included just novels, but as it become more
popular, writers started applying the elements of the Gothic novel to other literary forms,
and the genre expanded to include works of poetry and short stories. Today, the genre
has expanded to include even more types of media: for example, we now have movies
and TV shows that are considered Gothic.
 Talk about the resurgence of the Gothic genre in media today; based on what they now
know about elements of Gothic lit, have students brainstorm some contemporary
examples of the Gothic genre in movies, books, and TV and explain why they think these
are Gothic citing specific Gothic elements as evidence.
o Start by writing one or two examples of your own on the board, using think aloud
to model your reasoning and making notes using a bullet-pointed list. (Some
possible examples: American Horror Story, 666 Park Avenue, Grimm, Buffy the
Vampire Slayer, Supernatural, Being Human, Batman, Harry Potter,
Frankenweenie, Beetlejuice, Edward Scissor Hands, The Nightmare Before
Christmas, Corpse Bride, Sweeney Todd—basically anything Tim Burton—most
Stephen King novels, Lemony Snicket’s Series of Unfortunate Events, Neil
Gaiman’s Coraline.)
o Have students finish brainstorming on their own and discuss their ideas using a
quick Think, Pair, Share format.
o Explain that Tim Burton is a modern master of the Gothic style in film; play a 2minute Tim Burton movie mashup to demonstrate how the Gothic style can be
translated into a visual medium, and ask students to share out some examples of
Gothic elements they noticed in Tim Burton’s movies.
4. Introduce Poe
 Tell students that there is one very important American author who we have to thank for
all the modern Gothic works we know and love: Edgar Allan Poe. Poe is known as the
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father of American Gothic because he was the first major American writer to start using
this style (it originated in Europe), and he used it very, very well, writing some of the
scariest and most disturbing stories in American literature.
Ask students if they have ever heard the phrase: “Truth is stranger than fiction.”
o Ask: What do you think this means? Do you agree or disagree? Why?
o Tell students that Poe's life story, even though it is true, sounds like it was written
as a work of Gothic fiction because it is so bizarre and creepy.
Hand out the How They Croaked Poe bio and “Hold Your Thinking” Post-it strips, and
instruct students to pay attention to the Gothic elements in the story of Poe’s life, making
note of at least three different elements on their Post-its. In addition, students must make
three separate “Hold Your Thinking” notes while reading the piece as well.
o [“Hold Your Thinking” refers to a set of reading comprehension strategies with
which students are already familiar; they include predicting, asking questions,
making connections, giving an opinion, making a statement, and visualizing.]
Read the beginning of the Poe bio aloud, and then instruct students to complete the
reading silently on their own, making annotations on their Post-its as they go.
Discuss the Gothic elements students noticed in Poe's life story, encouraging them to cite
evidence from the text.
Ask: Do you think the events you experience in your life influence the style and subjects
you choose to write about as a writer? Why or why not? Do you think this was the case
for Poe?
Have students stick their Post-its on scrap paper and write their name at the top; then
have students come up a row at a time and place them in a pile at the front of the class
(collect for informal, formative assessment). While they are up, students should pick up a
whiteboard and dry erase marker (also available at the front of the class) and return to
their seats.
5. Gothic Elements/Poe Review
 Say: “Just to show you how big a deal Poe is and how much of an impact he still has on
books and movies and TV shows today, here is a mashup of Edgar Allan Poe appearing
in a bunch of different shows and movies, set to Lady Gaga’s song “Bad Romance”—
which, if you listen closely, is a really good example of using Gothic elements in a song!
Listen carefully to the lyrics as we watch this video and see what elements of the Gothic
genre you can pick up on. How are the Gothic elements in the lyrics of the song reflected
in the images that you see on screen?
o On their whiteboards, have students write down 1 or 2 Gothic elements from the
song lyrics or video images as the video plays.
o Play “Bad Romance – Edgar Allan Poe” clip.
 In the time remaining, go through the list of Gothic elements one at a time, and ask
students to hold up their whiteboard if they wrote down something that fits in that
category; select a few students to share and explain their responses for each Gothic
element category.
 Discuss how the elements in the song lyrics lined up with the images that were being
shown alongside them: How did they work together to set up a Gothic mood/impact you
as a viewer?
Closure
 Give the students general feedback on how they did today as a class (for example, “You
worked really hard today and did a great job identifying and analyzing Gothic elements in
a lot of different media formats.”)
 Preview what we will be doing in our next class: reading and analyzing “The Tell-Tale
Heart,” a very creepy and disturbing short story by Poe.
 Students must turn in their Gothic elements guided notes as an exit slip as they go out the
door (these will be formatively assessed, checked for completion, and returned at the
beginning of class the next day).
Evaluation and Assessment
 Gothic Elements Guided Notes
 Poe Bio “Hold Your Thinking” Post-its
 Informal Assessments: Student responses to Gothic novel cover activity, class discussion
of Poe Bio, and whiteboard responses to the “Bad Romance – Edgar Allan Poe” clip.