Ishmael Beah

PREDICTION
35+:
Conflicts

Setting prediction: 35+ Describe the setting you see in the pictures. What kinds of man v.
nature coflicts could exist in this setting?

• http://www.theguardian.com/globaldevelopment/video/2013/sep/11/sierraleone-child-soldier-video

• Write each word plus a context clue in an original sentence that fits with the context of the pictures you just saw.
1.
Refugee: one that flees; especially : a person who flees to a foreign country or power to escape danger or persecution
2.
Translucent: permitting light to pass through but diffusing it so that persons, objects, etc., on the opposite side are not clearly visible
3.
Resonated: the quality of a sound that stays loud, clear, and deep for a long time
4.
Fatigue: the state of being very tired : extreme weariness
5.
Evaded: to stay away from (someone or something) : to avoid (someone or something): to avoid dealing with or facing (something)
6.
Adage: a saying often in metaphorical form that embodies a common observation (i.e. the early bird gets the worm)
7.
Malnourishment: faulty nutrition due to inadequate or unbalanced intake of nutrients or their impaired assimilation or utilization
8.
Plagued: a large number of harmful or annoying things
9.
Embedded: a : to enclose closely in or as if in a matrix <fossils embedded in stone>b : to make something an integral part of <the prejudices embedded in our language> c. to surround closely
10. Verandah: a long, open structure on the outside of a building that has a roof

• Identify ten words or phrases that identify the setting of Beah’s homeland-Sierra Leone. They should include time, place, region, and atmosphere.
• Journal Response (25+): Noting your above setting references, answer this question,
“What aspects of this culture and setting will influence the characters, their behavior, and what might happen to them?”

1. How does Ishmael’s grandmother explain the local adage that “We must strive to be like the moon”?
Why has Ishmael remembered this? What does it mean to him?
2. What kinds of things console Ishmael in this chapter?
Explain.
3. Describe Ishmael and his friends-what kind of boys are they? What do they like to do?
– Gibrilla, Khalilou, Talloi, Kaloko
4. Describe Ishmael’s relationship with each member of his family (mom, dad, brothers, grandmother).
– Junior, Ibrahim, Mom, Dad, Grandmother

• Cassettes (one quote)
• Moon (one quote from pgs. 16-17)
• All aspects must be covered for chapter one.

• Read the lyrics to Bob Marley’s song.
• Beginning of Chapter One: How does this song represent
Ishmael’s initial feelings about the war? (35+)
• End of Chapter One: How is this song ironic by the end of chapter one? What are the lyrics saying? What is happening around Ishmael? How are they opposite? (50+)
• Locate and write one example of metaphor, simile, personification and/or alliteration from chapter one.

• Bring in the lyrics of your favorite song. They may be typed or handwritten but you must have a hard copy to receive credit (showing me your phone does not count).

1. What is in the wheelbarrow that is described?
Where is he pushing the wheelbarrow to?
2. What does Ishmael mean when he says “I am looking at my own” (p.19)?
3. Why do you think Ishmael’s memories are important? What good are the memories if they bring him so much pain?
4. What does Ishmael mean when he says, “being alive itself to be a burden?”
5. How does this dream compare to Bless Me
Ultima. Explain the similarities.

• Look at the song you chose and answer these questions:
– Why did you choose it?
– What lyrics do you particularly identify with?
– When did you first hear this song? Did you like it immediately or did it grow on you over time?
– Do you think you will still be listening to this song and identifying with it in 10 years? Why or why not?
– Locate and write any examples of metaphor, simile, personification and/or alliteration from your song.

• Copy the last sentence of chapter two on your paper.
• Underneath, divide the paper into three columns.
• Above each column label each “world” that
Ishmael lives in (dreams, new life, past life).
• For each column, write three words or phrases and the page number that describe each environment from chapter two.

• Complete the matrix for chapter two.
• No symbolism
• Yes for sensory language
• Community: other child soldiers
• Tone
• Internal Conflict: three worlds Ishmael lives in on a daily basis

• Look up the following words. Write each word in an original sentence that fits with how you think the author might use the word in the upcoming chapter.
1. Massacre
2. Bayonet
3. Subsequent
4. Mutilation

1. “That night for the first time in my life I realized that it’s the physical presence of people and their spirits that gives a town life.” What prompts Ishmael to observe this? Why is the town deserted? What has happened? Be specific.
2. Who are the five boys he flees with at the end of this chapter?
3. How will the RUF tattoo effect those who have it at the end of the war?

• Describe these contrasts as they relate to the chapter in complete sentences:
– Days of Peace vs. Days of War
– Living vs. Dying
– Sounds of Life vs Sounds of Death
• Describe each kind of conflict that exists in this chapter.
Explain (1) the source of the conflict, (2) the type of conflict and (3) the complications that might influence how the conflict may be resolved in complete sentences:
– Man vs. Man
– Man vs. Nature
– Man vs. Self

• Complete a matrix entry for chapter three.
• Moon pg. 22
• Personification pg. 22

• Write each word in an original sentence that fits with the context of the book (how you think the author might use the word in the upcoming chapter).
1. Residue
2. Predicament
3. Implement
4. Tactics

1. Why are people afraid of six boys traveling together?
2. How do the choices of the boys change in this chapter? What choices do they make that violate the law or morality?
Chapter 5
1. Describe whether Ishmael is saved by physical ability, wit or coincidence in this chapter. Use the book to justify your position.
2. Discuss the influence of American, Western culture in this chapter. Where do you see it referenced?
3. What decisions does Ishmael make to regain control over his situation?
4. How does Ishmael describe the rebel soldier treating the old man? How is this different than what would have been accepted before the war? Predict how this difference will manifest itself later in the book.

• Describe each kind of conflict that exists in this chapter. Explain (1) the source of the conflict, (2) the type of conflict and (3) the complications that might influence how the conflict may be resolved:
– Man vs. Man
– Man vs. Nature
– Man vs. Self

• Complete one matrix entry for the combination of chapters four and five.
– No moon or cassette references.
– Complete the rest of the categories.

1. What is Ishmael’s brother’s name?
2. Describe Ishmael’s parent’s relationship.
3. What are the initials for the rebel army?
4. How did Ishmael and his friends escape the rebel army?

1. What is Ishmael’s brother’s name? Junior (3)
2. Describe Ishmael’s parent’s relationship.
Divorced (3)
3. What are the initials for the rebel army? RUF (3)
4. How did Ishmael and his friends escape the rebel army? Fighting broke out, chaotic situation, they ran (3)

1. Explain how this quote relates to the story, “This is one of the consequences of the civil war. People stop trusting each other, and every stranger becomes an enemy.”
2. What is special about Ishmael’s memory of his older brother skipping rocks? Why does he remember it at this time specifically?
3. “I was a troublesome boy as well and always got into fights…Since we didn’t have a mother…” Why do you think Ishmael thought it was important to share this side of his pre-war personality? Why is it ironic?

• All parts
• Symbolism = cassette reference (O.P.P.)

• Look up the following words. Write each word, plus definition, and then an original sentence that fits with the context of the book (how you think the author might use the word in the upcoming chapter).
1. Oblivious
2. Vigorously
3. Skeptical

1. What question does Ishmael ask himself as he faces the horrors of war and is separated from his family?
2. Why do the two boys bring along brooms?
3. Why does Ishmael set out on his own?
4. Give one quote from the chapter that describes Ishmael’s emotional state and explain it.

Complete Matrix

• Look up the following words. Write each word, plus definition, and then an original sentence that fits with the context of the book (how you think the author might use the word in the upcoming chapter).
1. Indelibly

1.
What question does Ishmael ask himself as he faces the horrors of war and is separated from his family?
2.
Why do the two boys bring along brooms?
3.
Why does Ishmael set out on his own?
4.
Give one quote from the chapter that describes Ishmael’s emotional state and explain it.
1.
Who are the two groups of people Ishmael faces danger from? Explain each.
2.
What would scare Ishmael into running for miles? What does that reveal about his emotional state?
3.
List all of the things that Ishmael is afraid of (at least five).
4.
What does Ishmael tell us was “the most difficult part of being in the forest?”
5.
Who are the six boys he encounters after surviving in the forest? Where does he know some of them from?
6.
What is the story of the hunter and the pigs a metaphor of?
7.
What kinds of thoughts help Ishmael gain perspective on his situation? What ideas and philosophies give him strength?
8.
How does Ishmael see himself changing as a result of his struggles?
9.
How is Ishmael becoming a “monster?” Explain.

Complete Matrix

• Write the words into sentences you think Beah might use.
1. Deviated
2. Contorted
3. Disconsolate
4. Congealed
5. Inevitable

1. How does the cassette save their lives again?
Who is the rapper who is mentioned?
2. How are the boys charmed? (2) How are the boys cursed? (2)
3. Find the phrase “a long way gone” in this chapter. What is the context for this line? What is happening? Why do you think Ishmael chose this as the title of the book? Explain it.
4. Who is the anonymous man with the fishing hut? How does he help the boys feet heal?

Complete Matrix

• Read the lyrics to Cold Play’s song.
• Relate four of the lyrics with what is happening in
Ishmael’s life.
• How are these lyrics connected to Ishmaels experiences? Explain. (75+)
• Locate and write any examples of metaphor, simile, personification and/or alliteration.

• Write the words in an original sentence that fits with the context of the book (how you think the author might use the word in the upcoming chapter).
1. Obstructing
2. Penetrated
3. Disarray

9:
1.
How does the cassette save their lives again? Who is the rapper who is mentioned?
2.
How are the boys charmed? (2) How are the boys cursed? (2)
3.
Find the phrase “a long way gone” in this chapter. What is the context for this line? What is happening? Why do you think Ishmael chose this as the title of the book? Explain it.
4.
Who is the anonymous man with the fishing hut? How does he help the boys feet heal?
10:
1.
How does Saidu’s prediction come true?
2.
What is the bad omen? How does it foreshadow what happens in this chapter?

Complete Matrix

• Describe one specific way each of these are revealed in this chapter. Provide a quote and an explanation for each:
1. Control
2. Growth
3. Violence
4. Survival
5. Choice
6. Anger

9:
1.
How does the cassette save their lives again? Who is the rapper who is mentioned?
2.
How are the boys charmed? (2) How are the boys cursed? (2)
3.
Find the phrase “a long way gone” in this chapter. What is the context for this line? What is happening?
Why do you think Ishmael chose this as the title of the book? Explain it.
4.
Who is the anonymous man with the fishing hut? How does he help the boys feet heal?
10:
1.
How does Saidu’s prediction come true?
2.
What is the bad omen? How does it foreshadow what happens in this chapter?
11:
1.
Describe how Ishmael is “lucky” in this chapter.
2.
What is ironic about the situation with Ishmael’s family?
3.
Why do the words “None of this is anyone’s fault” make Ishmael angry?
4.
What leads Ishmael to violence? Predict how “violence” will change as far as Ishmael is concerned from this point in the novel forward.
5.
How does Ishmael change in this chapter?
6.
This is a “transition” chapter. The first part represents the concept of “flight,” and the second half is going to embody “fight.” Explain how this is possible.

Complete Matrix

1. Using the book to justify your response, do
Ishmael and his companions have any choice but to become perpetrators of violence rather than victims of it?
2. Why do you think Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar is mentioned? What is jarring or unusual about that reference in this context?
3. What melted in the fire that was precious to
Ishmael? What is this symbolic of?
4. What is foreshadowing about Ishmael’s childhood game? (bottom of p. 111)

Complete Matrix

William Shakespeare

• Rome was established in 753 B.C.
• For 200 years ruled by Tarquin kings who were tyrants
• The Tarquins were overthrown by Lucius Junius
Brutus in 510 B.C. – an ancestor of Brutus in the play.
• A democratic republic was then established which lasted until the death of Julius Caesar.
• The Romans were very proud of their democratic system and were repulsed by the thought of being ruled by a king.

• Gaius Julius Caesar was born in 100 B.C.
• He gained power and wealth due to a series of successful campaigns in which he conquered what is now Britain, France, much of central and eastern Europe, and parts of North Africa.

• He built roads.
• He developed irrigation systems.
• He financed public parks and buildings.
• He even made changes to the calendar.
• Indeed, he was well liked and very powerful.

• It appears he was much more interested in things other than military conquest.
• After a series of civil wars that lasted until
48 B.C., Caesar declared himself Rome’s dictator for life.
• Many people believed that Caesar wanted more than just power; he wanted a powerful title.

(Continued)
• Many Romans assumed that Caesar was ready to declare himself King of Rome and eliminate the five hundred year old republic of which the
Romans were so proud.
• Remember the Tarquins, the tyrant kings who ruled over Rome for 243 years? There was no way
Romans were going to return to that style of government. Someone had to put a stop to this pursuit of absolute power, and so enter the conspirators.
• ...Beware the Ides of March!

• Therefore, there is much historically accurate information, but a story to entertain the audience must also unfold.
• Yes! There is much to learn from the works of
William Shakespeare.
• As we study this play, remember Shakespeare wished not only to inform his audience about the history of Julius Caesar but also to entertain them.

• 15 events that precede and proceed Caesar’s murder.
• Caesar- dictator of Rome
• Calpurnia-Caesar’s wife
• Cassius- antagonist, jealous of Caesar’s power and convinces Brutus to commit murder
• Brutus- Caesar’s murderer, believes that he is doing good, logos
• Antony- like Caesar’s son, convince the general public to go after Brutus and Cassius, pathos

How people try to use logic to confuse and trick you!

• Logical Fallacies are considered propaganda.
• Propaganda is the manipulation and control of language.
• It transmits more than one message, depending on what the recipient wishes to hear or is told to hear.
• Some required elements for propaganda:
– Supporters: The masses must be behind the leader and feel that his or her new ideas will make a real difference in their lives.
– Ignorance of followers: It’s important that the followers and supporters of the leader not be too educated. They must follow blindly and without question.
– Scapegoat: There must be someone or something to blame for all of the bad conditions the leader wants to eradicate.
Usually, it is the leadership in current power. Later, any problems which arise can be blamed on the scapegoat.

COMMON LOGICAL FALLACIES
1. Hasty Generalization: The writer bases the argument on insufficient or unrepresentative evidence, or an isolated example.
– Example: You have owned two poodles, and they have both attacked you. If you declare that all poodles are vicious dogs, you are making a hasty generalization.
– Example: “My opponent seems to be an inconsiderate person.” Does the speaker offer examples or evidence to support this claim?
2. Non Sequitur (“it doesn’t follow”): The writer’s conclusion is not necessarily a logical result of the facts.
– Example: When you conclude “Tony Hawk is a great skateboarder, so he will be an excellent skateboard teacher” this is a non sequitur. Just because someone knows how to do something well does not automatically mean that he or she can teach it well.

COMMON LOGICAL FALLACIES
3. Begging the Question (also known as circular reasoning): The writer presents as truth what is supposed to be proven by the argument (assumes point is already accepted as a fact) .
– Example: In the statement “All useless laws such as Reform
Bill 13 should be repealed,” the writer has already pronounced the bill useless without assuming responsibility for proving that it is useless.
4. Red Herring: The writer introduces an irrelevant point to divert the readers’ attention from the main issue. This term originates from the old tactic used by escaped prisoners, of dragging a smoked herring, a strong-smelling fish, across their trail to confuse tracking dogs by making them follow the wrong scent.
– Example: Roommate A might be criticizing roommate B for his or her repeated failure to do the dishes when it was his or her turn. To escape facing the charges, roommate B brings up times in the past when roommate A failed to repay some money he or she borrowed. Even though this could be a problem, it is not relevant to the original argument.

COMMON LOGICAL FALLACIES
5. Argument Ad Hominem (“To the man”): The writer attacks the opponent’s character rather than the opponent’s argument.
– Example: The statement “Dr. Bloom can’t be a competent marriage counselor because she’s been divorced” may not be valid. Bloom’s advice to her clients may be excellent regardless of her own marital status.
– Example: calling members of the National Rifle Association “trigger happy,” drawing attention away from their concerns about the Second
Amendment Rights.
6. Argument Ad Populum (“To the people”): The writer evades the issues by appealing to reader’s emotional reactions to certain subjects. Instead of arguing the facts of an issue, the writer might play on the readers’ responses to certain ideas or words. The writer uses words such as
“communism,” “fascism,” or “radical” to get a negative response from a reader and use words such as “God,” “country,” or “liberty” to get a positive response from a reader. The idea being to compliment people, making them feel important , intelligent or good.
– Example: “If you are a true American, you will vote against the referendum on flag burning,” is a statement where the writer avoids discussion of the merits or weaknesses of the bill and merely substitutes an emotional appeal.

COMMON LOGICAL FALLACIES
7. Either/or: The writer tries to convince the readers that there are only two sides to an issue – one right, one wrong.
– Example: The classic 1960’s bumper sticker that was popular during the debate over the Vietnam War is an example of this: “America: Love It or Leave It.”
Obviously, there are other choices.
8. Hypostatization: The writer uses an abstract concept as if it were a concrete reality.
– Example: “History has always taught us . . .” or
“Science has proven . . .” or “Research has discovered .
. . .” The implication in each case is that history or science (or any other discipline) has only one opinion which is an incorrect assumption.

COMMON LOGICAL FALLACIES
9. Bandwagon Appeal: The writer tries to validate a point by intimating that “everyone else believes in this.” Such a tactic evades discussion of the issue itself.
– Example: Advertising often uses this technique: “Discriminating women use Smacky-Mouth lipstick.” A recent Colorado bumper sticker says “Eat lamb – could 1000’s of coyotes be wrong?”
– Example: “Join the rest of the nation in our goal to keep
America great, and vote for me.” Does joining everyone make it a good idea?
10. Card Stacking: This term comes from stacking a deck of cards in your favor. Card stacking is used to slant a message. Key words or unfavorable statistics may be omitted in an ad or commercial, leading to a series of half-truths.
– Example: “I introduced more bills into Congress than anyone else.” How successful were the bills? How many passed? The speaker might leave out failures.

COMMON LOGICAL FALLACIES
11. Faulty Analogy: The writer uses an extended comparison as proof of a point. Look closely at all extended comparisons and metaphors to see if the two things being compared are really similar. Although a compelling analogy might suggest similarities, it alone cannot prove anything.
– Example: In a recent editorial a woman bemoaned laws requiring small children to sit in car seats saying that lawmakers could just as easily require mothers to breastfeed instead of using formula. Are the two situations really alike?
12. Quick Fix: The writer leans too heavily on catchy phrases or empty slogans. A clever turn-of-phrase may grab one’s attention, but it may lose its persuasiveness when scrutinized closely.
– Example: A banner at a recent rally to protest a piece of antigun legislation read, “When guns are outlawed, only outlaws will have guns.” Although the sentence had nice balance, it oversimplified the issue.

13. Faulty Cause / Effect: A cause and effect relationship that might not be true.
– Example: “When I took office, the unemployment rate dropped to four percent.” Listeners should question whether the rate dropped because of the person in office or other factors beyond the person’s control. Did that person actually cause the rate to drop?

10 propaganda techniques to catch on the fly…look for these elements in advertisements!
1. Repetition: Repeat, repeat, repeat
2. Nostalgia: Forget the bad parts of the past; only remember the good.
3. Beautiful People: Use goodlooking models in ads to suggest that we’ll look like the models if we buy the product.
4. Bandwagon: Everybody is doing it!
5. Scientific Evidence: Use the paraphernalia of science
(charts, graphs, etc.) to “prove” something.
6. Maybe: Exaggerated or outrageous claims are commonly preceded by
“maybe,” “might,” or “could.”
7. Symbols: Designs, places, music, etc. , symbolizing tradition, nationalism, power, religion, sex, family, or any concept with emotional concept.
8. Testimonials: Use famous people to sell a product (voice-overs).
9. Humor: Make them laugh to persuade.
10. Name-calling: Direct or Indirect, audiences love it.

1. Self-preservation: desire to survive, need of food, clothing, shelter, oxygen, and rest. Security and safety… free from worries.
6. Adventure and Curiosity: need for exploration, reading, watching, daydreaming.
2. Pride: feeling of personal worth and accomplishment. Work hard, build morale and win approval.
7. Loyalty: faithfulness to nation
(patriotism), school (school spirit), city and friends and family.
3. Personal Enjoyment: desire for beauty, comfort, and recreation.
4. Love and Affection: need to give and receive love, to have friends, close family ties, to promote common good.
5. Acquisition and Saving: appeal to the pocketbook, to a desire for ownership.
8. Imitation: need to conform with dress, hair styles, slang, actions, motivated by imitation of hero or movie star.
9. Reverence: desire to “look up” to someone; hero worship, tradition, worship or supreme being.
10. Creating: urge to invent, build, make, plant, paint, organize, etc.

1. 1 example of ethos, logos, pathos (quote with short explanation) from Jabati’s speech
2. Three connections: Caesar connected to
ALWG:
– Ex. “Oh pardon me, thou bleeding piece of earth, That I am meek and gentle with these butchers.” (Caesar)
=
“I am sorry to show you these gruesome bodies, especially with your children present. But then again, all of us here have seen death or even shaken hands with it.” (ALWG)
– Both men are showing their audience the bloody corpses of the victims of the enemy.

Complete Matrix

1. What do you think the corporal means when he says, “…worship your Lord today, because you might not have another chance?”
2. How does the quote “My squad is my family, my gun is my provider, and protector, and my rule is to kill or be killed” indicative of how Ishmael has changed from the beginning of the book?
3. What saying does the boy’s Tupac shirt have on it? How is it ironic?

1. Who do the boys relate the people they kill to?
2. What do Ishmael and the other boy soldiers do when they are on a mission?
3. What movies do they like to watch and why?
4. What else do they do in their spare time?
5. The lieutenant tells them, “we are not like the rebels, those riffraff’s who kill people for no reason.” Is this true?
Use the text to justify your answer.
6. Why is Ishmael promoted to junior lieutenant? How did he achieve this new rank?
7. Why doesn’t shooting people make Ishmael feel better?

• Read the lyrics to Youth Gone Wild by Skid Row.
• Relate four of the lyrics to Ishmael’s life, both as a child, and as a boy fleeing the war.
• What lyrics match to what experience? Explain.
• SO…4 lyrics with a 25+ word explanation for each
• Locate and write any examples of metaphor, simile, personification and/or alliteration.

• Read the lyrics of “Ghetto Gospel” by Tupac.
• Write a 100 word journal entry relating the song to the novel. How does this song relate to chapters 13 and 14? What lyrics match which experience (identify at least three and match them with one of Ishmael’s experiences from the book).
– Lyric/Quote/Page/Explanation
– Lyric/Quote/Page/Explanation
– Lyric/Quote/Page/Explanation

• T: Two ways the song relates to the novel.
• B: Background
• E: Evidence (lyric + quote = similarity)
• A: Analysis: Explain exactly how the quotes are similar and deal with similar themes.
• B: Background
• E: Evidence (lyric + quote = similarity)
• A: Analysis: Explain exactly how the quotes are similar and deal with similar themes.
• R: Return to topic: Restate two similarities.

“I stood there holding my gun and felt special because I was part of something that took me seriously and I was not running from anyone anymore. I had my gun now, and as the corporal always said, ‘This gun is your source of power in these times. It will protect you and provide you all you need, if you know how to use it well.’”
• Compare and contrast this statement with children in inner-city gangs. How is this statement similar to how they might feel? (75+) How are the two situations different? (75+)

Complete Matrix

Chapter Fifteen
1.
Name three reasons that making the child-soldiers into normal boys again is going to be difficult.
2.
How long has Ishmael been a soldier? How many people can you estimate
Ishmael has killed?
3.
What happens to Ishmael and Alhaji, and a few other select boys, in the town of
Bauya?
4.
Where are they taken and by whom?
5.
Name the ways “family” is (1)configured,(2) re-configured, (3)challenged and
(4)re-affirmed in this book.
6.
What process does Ishmael need to go through in order to become “normal?”
What is “normal?”
Chapter Sixteen
1.
What blocked Ishmael’s memories of his childhood?
2.
What does Ishmael have a hard time with in this chapter?
3.
Identify two conflicts “Man vs. Man” and two conflicts “Man vs. Self” from this chapter.

• Choose three figures of speech (total) from these two chapters. (simile, metaphor, personification)
• Copy the examples and write the page numbers.
• Identify what type of figure of speech each is.

• Read the lyrics of Lauryn Hill’s song.
• What song lyrics could match how Ishmael is feeling? Use two examples of lyrics with an explanation for how they connect to ALWG
(75+).
• Locate and write any examples of metaphor, simile, personification and/or alliteration.

Complete Matrix

• Write each word, plus definition, and then an original sentence that fits with the context of the book (how you think the author might use the word in the upcoming chapter).
1. Indicating- to make known, to point out
2. Suspicious- something that causes distrust
3. Skepticism- marked by doubt
4. Repatriated- returning a person to their origin or place of citizenship
5. Jovial-joyous, jolly, merry

Chapter Seventeen
1.
Paraphrase Ishmael’s nightmare and explain how it differs from the other dreams
Ishmael has had.
2.
How does the dream illustrate Ishmael’s inner conflicts?
3.
What do many of the boy soldiers experience as they go through rehabilitation at night?
4.
What words do the staff members constantly repeat to the boys? Why?
5.
Why does the woman want Ishmael to state his name out loud? How does this relate to other areas in the novel where the people Ishmael encounters do not give him their names?
6.
What does Ishmael finally begin to believe? Why is this so?
7.
What does the “return” of the moon symbolize?
Chapter Eighteen
1.
What emotion does Ishmael now have that he didn’t have before? Explain.
2.
What evidence is there that Ishmael’s happiness will always be fragile?
3.
What evidence is there that Ishmael’s happiness may be able to become more permanent?

Complete Matrix

Chapter Nineteen
1.
Why couldn’t Ishmael salute Alhaji?
2.
What does Ishmael learn by asking “Why have I survived the war? Why was I the last person in my immediate family to be alive?”
3.
What does Ishmael’s uncle tell him to comfort him after he comes to live there? Why is this important?
Chapter Twenty
1.
What was Ishmael’s conception about New York? What did he expect it to be like? How was it different from what he expected?
2.
Why is Ishmael pleased to meet people outside of Sierra Leone? How does this relate to his experiences there?
Chapter Twenty-One
1.
What metaphorical journey does Ishmael take? Where does he come from? Where does he go to?
2.
What institution helped Ishmael regain control over his new life? What important things did it provide in his life?

• Connect this song to the book. You need at least one quote to match each stanza.
• Who is the “sun” in A Long Way Gone?
• Who is the “moon”?

Quote 1, Explanation of Quote, Picture
Childhood: Full Moon
Quote 4, Explanation of Quote,
Picture
Full: Redemption
Moon Quote + Symbol
Quote 2, Explanation of Quote,
Picture
Partial Moon, Hidden Slightly
(on the run)
Quote 3, Explanation of Quote, Picture
No Moon, Absent, Fighting

• You are going to write a song of Ishmael’s life to this point in the book. Your song must contain metaphors (2), similes (2) and personification (2).
Your song must rhyme (ABABAB, CDCDCD etc.) or
(AA BB CC DD etc.) and each stanza must contain at least six lines.
– The first stanza will speak of Ishmael’s childhood. (6+)
– Stanza two will center around his life as a child soldier.
(6+)
– Stanza three will be of redemption and healing. (6+)
– The chorus will center around a theme in the book. (4+)

• Choose a scene that you think is one of the most important in the novel.
• Make a comic strip of that scene.
• In 100 words, explain what is happening in the scene and why you chose it to represent the book. Staple to comic strip.

• Write lyrics in center of paper.
– Chorus
– Three Stanzas
– One element of: simile, metaphor & personification (IDENTIFIED AND UNDERLINED!)
• Around lyrics write at least three quotes and draw three illustrations that relate to the song you wrote.

• Read Natasha Bedingfield’s lyrics.
• For each “box” of lyrics, find a quote from the book that connects. Write the quote and the page number in each.
• Locate and write any examples of metaphor, simile, personification and/or alliteration.

• Find a quote that matches each of the following author’s stylistic choices. Write down the choice, quote and page number:
– Use of foreshadowing.
– Use of imagery.
– Use of motif (recurring element that helps develop theme).
– Use of metaphor.
– Use of symbolism.
– Use of irony.

• https://jeopardylabs.com/play/a-long-waygone14

• Moon as a Symbol:
– Outline
• 1: Hook
• 1:Background (general summary of what book is about in relation to the symbol that you choose)
• 1: Thesis
• 2-4/Beginning/Middle/End: Topic Sentence
• 2-4:Background before quote (what is happening in book at this point?):
• 2-4: Quote with page number
• 2-4: Analysis (at least FOUR sentences explaining significance of quote to your symbol, needs to evolve from beginning to end!)
• 2-4: Return to topic sentence w transition to next paragraph
• 5: Restate thesis
• 5: Lesson or moral about life that book and symbol can teach us, the reader.

• Pp. 102-106