John Brown: Martyr or Madman? Author: Kathy Manley Course/Level: 8th Grade Materials: Document 1: Currier & Ives. John Brown. Meeting the Slave-mother and Her Child on the Steps of Charlestown Jail on His Way to Execution. 1863. Lithograph. Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. “From an original oil painting by Louis Ransom.” Document 2: Curry, John Steuart. Tragic Prelude. 1937-1942. Mural. Kansas State Capitol, Topeka. Graphic Organizers: Analyzing the Lithograph, Analyzing the Painting, Tombstone HCPSS Curriculum Connections This activity would be completed during Unit IV: A Union in Disunion. Learning Outcome: Students will be able to identify the symbolism and purpose in two conflicting visual representations of John Brown. Task Question: John Brown: Martyr or Madman? Historical Thinking Skills Assessed: Sourcing Close Reading Corroborating Background for the Teacher Printed on the back of Document 1: Raid on Harper’s Ferry John Brown was an intensely religious abolitionist who believed that the only way to end slavery in the United States was through violent means. He is best known for his raid on the federal arsenal at Harpers Ferry, Virginia in 1859. The plan was to seize the 100,000 muskets and rifles housed there and lead a revolution, freeing the slaves he believed would join him from all over the south. The band of 21 men that overpowered the single watchman on duty the evening of October 16th included three of Brown’s sons. Eight of the raiders died in a standoff with federal soldiers led by Robert E. Lee, two escaped, five were trapped inside the arsenal. Brown would survive to be tried for treason. He was hanged for his crimes on November 2, 1859. The oratory he gave from his jail cell made him a martyr for oppressed African Americans and sharply divided the country over the issue of slavery. The incident is widely believed to have been a contributing factor to the Civil War that erupted after years of rising tensions. Printed on the back of Document 2: “Bleeding Kansas” The passage of the Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854 allowed residents of the territories of Nebraska and Kansas to vote on whether slavery should be allowed to exist within their borders. The Kansas-Nebraska Act repealed the Missouri Compromise of 1820, which had prohibited slavery there. Both slavery and antislavery proponents rushed to populate the region in an attempt to sway the vote to one side or the other. The many violent altercations that occurred as a result came to be known as “Bleeding Kansas”. John Brown, who traveled to the area to join in the fight, led an assault on five proslavery men, dragging them from their homes in the middle of the night and hacking them to death in retaliation for several attacks of increasing violence on settlers who were anti-slavery. Brown and his men including four of his sons, washed the blood from their swords in nearby Pottawatomie Creek. The incident came to be known as the Pottawatomie Massacre. Context Setting - The Hook Display the first photograph of John Brown in PowerPoint as students are entering class. Begin by asking students: Who was John Brown and what did he do to make history remember him? Click through the four photographs of John Brown in different stages of his life. Explain to students that these are actual photograph of John Brown but they will be viewing artistic representations of him. Display Document 1 for students to see. Hand out the first document and direct students to read the brief description of John Brown’s Raid on Harper’s Ferry on the back. Discuss how well their prior knowledge compares to the facts in the passage they’ve just read. Have students turn the paper over and look at the lithograph, John Brown. Meeting the Slave-mother and Her Child on the Steps of Charlestown Jail on His Way to Execution. Discuss the sourcing of the document, noting the title and the year it was created. A First Look -- Examining, Sourcing, and Organizing Evidence Direct students to study the lithograph in pairs and answer the questions in the graphic organizer, Analyzing the Lithograph. Students will have 15 minutes to analyze each source and fill in the organizer. A Closer Look -- Close Reading and Contextualizing At the end of 15 minutes, hand out the second document. Direct students to read the brief description of John Brown’s role in “Bleeding Kansas” on the back of the document. Next, have students turn the paper over and view the image. Discuss the sourcing of the image, noting its title, the year it was created, and where it was created. Direct students to study the image in their same grouping and answer the guiding questions in the graphic organizer, Analyzing the Painting. Students will have 15 minutes to analyze the source and fill in the organizer. Close Analysis -- Corroborating Evidence and Constructing Interpretations After students have examined each document separately, discuss each image as a class. How do they differ in their portrayal of the character of John Brown? How have these artists used their images to persuade the viewer to their point of view? What beliefs would someone hold to view John Brown as a martyr? As a maniac? Documents Guiding Questions: John Brown. Meeting the Slave-mother and Her Child on the Steps of Charlestown Jail on His Way to Execution. Study the lithograph for 2 minutes. What is the general feeling of the event portrayed here? Who are the most important figures? Who are the least important? How is the artist influencing your view of John Brown? (Close Reading) What’s written on the flag? Where’s the flag in the picture? How is the artist persuading you to think a certain way? (Close Reading) Based on what you see in this picture, write down three character traits the artist would like you to believe of John Brown. (Sourcing) Why do you think the artist created this work? (Sourcing) Based on what you know about the event being portrayed, is the artist leaving out anything about how we should view John Brown? (Close Reading) Guiding Questions: Tragic Prelude. Study the painting for 2 minutes. What is the general feeling of the image you see? Who are the most important figures in the painting? How does the artist want you to see John Brown? (Close Reading) Look at the action in the scene. How is the artist persuading you to think about John Brown’s effect on Kansas? (Close Reading) Based on what you see in this picture, write down three character traits the artist would like you to believe of John Brown. (Sourcing) Why do you think the artist created this work? (Sourcing) Based on what you know about the event being portrayed, is the artist leaving out anything about how we should view John Brown? (Close Reading) Thoughtful Application Discuss the contrasting images of John Brown. Who would share these views of John Brown? Who would not? Give each student the tombstone handout. Have them circle Anti-Slavery or Pro-Slavery in the header and write an epitaph for John Brown based on the viewpoint they selected. If they need more background on epitaphs, show images of the epitaph on Abraham Lincoln’s grave and the epitaph on the gravestone of Jefferson Davis.