American Literature, 8/15/13
Opening
 “She was wearing her usual at-home vesture…it consisted mostly of a hoary
midnight blue Japanese kimono. She almost invariably wore it through the
apartment during the day. With its many occultish-looking folds, it also
served as the repository for the paraphernalia of a very heavy cigarette
smoker and an amateur handyman; two oversized pockets had been added
at the hips, and they usually contained two or three packs of cigarettes,
several match folders, a screwdriver, a claw-end hammer, a Boy Scout knife
that had once belonged to one of her sons, and an enamel faucet handle or
two, plus an assortment of screws, nails, hinges, and ball-bearing casters –
all of which tended to make Mrs. Glass chink faintly as she moved about in
her apartment.” – J.D. Salinger, Franny and Zooey
1.
What does the passage reveal about Mrs. Glass’ character? How are we
given insight into her character?
2.
Sketch a quick picture of Mrs. Glass. Include the details from the passage
that you feel are most expressive of the author’s attitude toward Mrs.
Glass.
Opening
 “Whenever he was so fortunate as to have near him a
hare that had been kept too long, or a meat pie with
rancid butter, he gorged himself with such violence that
his veins swelled, and the moisture broke out on his
forehead.”
- Thomas Babington Macaulay, “Samuel Johnson”
1. What effect do the details (the spoiled hare, the rancid
butter, the swollen veins, the sweaty forehead) have on
the reader? What do these details make you feel about
the character being described?
2. How would the effect of the sentence be different if it
ended after the word “himself”? Would it be more or
less effective?
Opening
 “Shug came over and she and Sofia hug.
Shug say, ‘Girl, you look like a good time, you do.’
That when I notice that Shug talk and act
sometimes like a man.
Men say stuff like that to women, ‘Girl you look like a good time.’ Women
always talk bout hair and health. How many babies living or dead, or got
teef. Not bout how some woman they hugging on look like a good time.”
1.
2.
What does the author’s use of dialect accomplish in this excerpt?
What traits of the speaker’s can you infer from the way she speaks?
What is the speaker’s attitude toward Shug? Does the speaker like
Shug or not? How does the speaker feel about women? What does the
speaker’s attitude toward Shug and women tell you about her?
Essential Question
 “How do authors provide us the means by
which we ‘know’ characters? How does
characterization work?”
Characterization Notes
 Character – The people in a story.
 Characterization – How the author portrays his/her
characters.
 Direct Characterization – Clear, explicit statements
an author makes about who a character is. When the
author is telling us about a character.
 Indirect Characterization – When an author implies
things about a character through their dress,
behavior, or speech. When the author is showing us
something about a character.
Film Clips
 Clip #1 – Collateral. 2004, Michael Mann
 Clip #2 – Pirates of the Caribbean. 2003, Gore
Verbinski
 Clip #3 – Star Wars. 1977, George Lucas
F. Scott Fitzgerald’s “Winter Dreams,” pg. 742
 As we read the story, draw a chart with two
categories.
 On the left side, write down moments of
characterization in the short story.
 One the right side, write down what the moments
convey to us. What do we learn from the
characterization?
 Look for at least five examples.
Eugenia W. Collier’s “Marigolds,” pg. 1012
 As we read the story, draw a chart with two
categories.
 On the left side, write down moments of
characterization in the short story.
 One the right side, write down what the moments
convey to us. What do we learn from the
characterization?
 Look for at least five examples.
Opening
 “Most men wear their belts low here, there being so many
outstanding bellies, some big enough to have names of
their own and be formally introduced. Those men don’t
suck them in or hide them in loose shirts; they let them
hang free, they pat them, they stroke them as they stand
around and talk.”
- Garrison Keillor, “Home”
1. What can you infer from the speaker’s description of
the men in his hometown? Where do you think the
speaker is from? How do you know?
2. What does the speaker’s attitude appear to be toward
the people in his hometown? Does he like them? Dislike
them? Where does the humor come from in this piece?
Closing
“Why does Lizabeth say at
the end of the story that she
‘too has planted marigold’?”
Write your response on the
stick note.
Essential Questions
 “How does the perspective from
which a story is told affect the
story’s overall meaning?”
 How would a story differ, it was
told by you, me, or someone else?
Why is it important to know who
the narrator is in a story?
Key Vocabulary
 Narrator: The person telling the story. Interchangeable with





‘speaker.’
Point-of-view: The perspective from which a story is told.
First-person P.O.V.: When the narrator is a character in the
story. Pronouns: ‘I,’ ‘we,’ ‘us.’
Second-person P.O.V.: When the speaker addresses the
reader. Not very common in lit. Pronouns: ‘you.’
Third-person omniscient: When the narrator is not a
character in the story, but knows everything about the
characters (even what they think!). Pronouns: ‘He,’ ‘she,’
‘they.’
Third-person limited: When the narrator knows only as much
as one particular character in a story. Pronouns: ‘He,’ ‘she,’
‘they.’
“Marigolds” Reading Quiz
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Why does Miss Lottie’s house stand out in
Lizabeth’s neighborhood?
To what does the narrator compare poverty at one
point in the story?
With whom does Miss Lottie reside?
Why do the children hate the marigolds?
What event upsets Lizabeth in the night?
Leveled Questioning
 Level 1 = “What” questions. Basic comprehension
questions that cover the “who,” “what,” and “when”
of a story. Easy if you read, nothing to discuss. Factbased.
 Example of a Level 1 Q = “Who was the main
character in the story?
Leveled Questioning
 Level 2 = “Why” questions that concern the story and
the author’s purpose. Questions about why the story
is written the way that it is, why the author used lit.
devices in the way that he/she did, etc. Based on a
close reading of the text. Discussion/interpretation
necessary, though there are better and worse
answers.
 Level 2 example Q = “Why did the author compare
the evening to the sea in this passage?”
Leveled Questioning
 Level 3 = “How” and “why” questions, but very big-
picture questions this time. Questions regarding
theme and cultural implications of a work. Questions
about the overall importance of a work. Does not
necessarily rely on a close reading, but does require
some sophisticated thought regarding the text. Many
different answers possible, depending on student
dispositions.
 Level 3 example Q = “How does this story reflect
American culture?”
Texts
 Story #1: Katharine Brush’s “Birthday Party”
 Story #2: Tim O’Brien’s “Ambush”
1.
2.
3.
a)
b)
How does first-person narration in “Birthday Party” affect the
story itself? Does the story change perspective at any point?
When? Why?
How does the first-person perspective in “Ambush” affect the
story? Why does O’Brien’s narrator tell two different versions of
his story?
Rewrite one of the two stories from one of the following
perspectives:
“Birthday Party” from the perspective of the man or woman in the
story.
“Ambush” from the perspective of the speaker’s daughter or the
solider who is killed.