Ms. Swanson
English 11Honors, Per. 6
Spring 2014
UNIT IV: Loss of Innocence
Call of the Wild or White Fang/The Things They Carried/”Value of Life”
I. JOURNAL (The Things They carried):
A. Read the book.
B. As you read, keep a journal on the main characters listed below. Write down all information on each character that falls under the following categories. Label and make a separate section for each category: DUE: Mo 3/3
1. what s/he carries and the symbolic significance of each item
2. friends/enemies
3. cause of death or injury
4. greatest desires/fears
5. field specialty and associated gear
6. personality type
7. overall significance to the book
C. Also as you read, put Post-Its on any page that shows a loss of innocence experience clearly (i.e., any part of the book that explores what happens to people in war).
D. When you are finished reading, copy down 20-25 quotes that you think best address this problem from the pages you posted. Be sure to cite the quotes and explain their connection to loss of innocence in war.
II. SYMBOLIC ASSIGNMENT (The Things He Carried): Due: Mo 3/3
A. After you have read the novel, make a list of all the items that one character carries (not standard issue).
B. Find or create every item on the list and put them along with the list into a backpack.
C. Bring the backpack to class on the due date.
D. Share the contents with the class. Discuss the symbolic significance of the items—what do we learn about the character from this set of items? What type of person is s/he? How “innocent” is the character at first, and how does s/he change based on what is in the backpack?
E. Choice of CHARACTERS (The Things He Carried):
Norman Bowker
Lieutenant Jimmy Cross
Henry Dobbins
Dave Jensen
Rat Kiley
Kiowa
Mitchell Sanders
Lee Strunk
Maryanne
III. READ: The Call of the Wild or White Fang: DUE: Mo 3/24
A. Keep track of the main (animal) character’s loss of innocence. Write down as a timeline each event that contributes to the animal’s loss of innocence and the type of innocence that is lost.
IV. WRITE:
A. AP Prompt: TBA on loss of innocence (In-class): Mo 3/24
B. Answer the following five questions (one paragraph each, MLA format): Due: TBA
1. What are the different ways the soldiers lose their innocence in The Things They Carried?
2. Which character do you identify with most and why?
3. What kinds of literal categories do the “things they carried” fall into, and what might each of these categories symbolize about the character(s) who carry them (and try to connect to their loss of innocence)?
4. Why are war stories always really about something else—i.e., how is war a metaphor for the loss of innocence?
C. Write an essay on how and why people lose their innocence Due: TBA