To Kill a Mockingbird – Background Webquest NAMES/HOUR:________________________________
Introduction
You are about to read the novel, To Kill a Mockingbird. The story is set in the sleepy town of Maycomb, Alabama. Atticus Finch is asked to defend a black man charged with the rape of a white woman. Through the young eyes of his children, Scout and Jem Finch, Harper Lee explores the irrationality of adult attitudes toward race and class in the Deep South of the 1930’s. The consciousness of a town steeped in prejudice, violence, and hypocrisy is pricked by the quiet heroism of one man’s struggle for justice. To best understand the lessons of this great novel, you must first understand the author, the times, and the place in which the story is set.
Questions/Process
With a partner, complete all questions thoroughly using the any of the websites listed below. For time, it would be a good idea for one partner to search the web with the appropriate addresses and the other to type/record answers.
1) Jim Crow Laws: http://w w w.ferris.edu/JIMCROW/what.htm
1) What were the Jim Crow Laws? When were these laws in place?
2) A code of “etiquette” existed during the Jim Crow laws. Please list at least THREE “norms” that were to be followed in this time period. You can also write those that Stetson Kennedy offered.
3) What court case upheld the idea that blacks and white were separate but equal?
4) Jim Crow laws were “a way of life.” What were at least THREE daily institutions/places that were affected by Jim Crow?
5) What happened to those who attempted to rebel from or escape Jim Crow laws?
2) Black Thursday/Stock Market Crash of 1929 : .org/fmc/timeline/estockmktcrash.htm
1) What happened to stocks from 1920-1929?
2) By what percent did stocks decline in value by 1932-33?
3) Explain how the Crash led to The Great Depression.
3) American History 1930-1939 estar.edu/decade30.html
1) During the Great Depression, many Dust Bowl farmers packed their families into cars and headed where?
2) Why did the farmers go?
3) Who were the Presidents during the 1930’s?
4) Observe the painting, American Gothic (on the website). Describe Grant Wood’s famous work. What does it look like? What kind of life does it portray?
5) What was fashion like during the 1930’s? Observe the pictures on the site and read about the trends during the times.
6) Who were some of the prominent authors of the time? What famous works are they responsible for?
4) Harper Lee - www.Harperlee.com
1) What work is Harper Lee most famous for writing?
2) When did she win the Pulitzer Prize and for what piece of literature?
3) What famous Civil War general is Harper Lee related to?
4) Where and during what time is Lee’s novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, set?
5) The Emmett Till Case - oism.org/class/1950/heroes/till.htm
1) Who was Emmett Till and what happened to him?
2) When did this happen?
3) Why is this incident and subsequent case important?