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Lesson 3

We will analyze Toni Morrison’s poem on page 310 and determine its meaning and significance. We will also analyze and critique pages 310–322 of Beloved as an ending for the characters. We will consider this analysis as we think about our Culminating Task narrative. We will continue to prepare for our Section Diagnostic by reviewing our materials regarding theme.

Lesson Goals

  • Can I discuss the explicit and implicit meanings of Beloved?

  • Can I evaluate how different literary elements shape Morrison’s portrayal of the plot in Beloved?

  • Can I analyze relationships among thematic development, characterization, point of view, significance of setting, and plot in Beloved?

  • Can I evaluate use of text structure by focusing on the poem Morrison includes on page 310 and how it is used to achieve her purpose?

Texts

Core

  • Tradebook
    • Beloved, Toni Morrison, Vintage Books, 2004

Materials

Tools

Reference Guides

Question Sets

Editable Google Docs

Activity 1: Write

We will respond to a quick-write prompt in which we evaluate the Socratic Seminar discussion from the previous lesson and our participation in it.

Think about the Socratic Seminar discussion on the question "How does Beloved work as a social critique?" Consider the following questions:

  1. What are your overall thoughts about the success of the discussion?

  2. What surprised you about the claims raised, the evidence presented, or the process of the seminar?

  3. What improvements could have been made in the process or the discussion?

  4. Did you participate in the discussion? If so, how do you feel you did? Do you feel that there is anything that you would do differently in the next Socratic Seminar?

  5. If you did not participate, why not? What can you or your teacher do ahead of time to better prepare you to participate?

Write your responses on Part 3 of your Discussion Tool and turn it in to your teacher.

Activity 2: Read – Discuss

We will discuss our homework questions with partners before we read the poem on page 310 and discuss its structure, significance, and meaning.

Step 1

With a partner, discuss your homework questions from pages 305-309 and update your Learning Log and Character Note-Taking Tools.

Step 2

Together, read the poem on page 310 and discuss the following:

  1. What does this poem seem to be about? Who seems to be the speaker?

  2. Explain the reference to "bare feet and chamomile sap."

  3. To whom could the lines, "Devil sneak up behind my back" and "Love that woman till you go stone blind" refer? Explain.

  4. How do repetition and rhyming schemes impact the meaning and tone of the poem?

  5. Which descriptive words or phrases help you create mental images? What images come to mind when reading this poem?

  6. Upon reading the last line, "Sweet Home gal make you lose your mind," do your responses to Questions 1-3 change? If so, how?

  7. What might be the purpose of including this poem in this part of the book? Use evidence to support your thinking.

Activity 3: Read – Write – Discuss

We will read pages 310–322 and respond to guiding questions.

Step 1

With a partner, small group, or individually, read pages 310-322 and respond to the following questions as you read:

  1. Who has left the house? Who has returned? Discuss a potential significance and connection between these two events.

  2. We are taken back to the day Edwin Bodwin went to 124. What do we learn on pages 311-313 about what transpired that day? Discuss the irony of the scene.

  3. Describe the interaction between Paul D. and Denver on page 314. What does this say about Denver’s ultimate transformation as a character?

  4. "When he looks at himself through Garner’s eyes, he sees one thing. Through Sixo’s, another. One makes him feel righteous. One makes him feel ashamed" (p. 315). Have you ever felt this way? Explain how this contradiction of the self serves as—or supports—a theme in the novel.

  5. What could be symbolic about the "coming is the reverse of his going"? Morrison mentions this twice (p. 310 and p. 318).

  6. Explain the state of Sethe.

  7. How does the chapter end?

Step 2

As a class, discuss your response to the questions above and respond to the following extension questions:

  1. Although you have additional pages to read, Morrison essentially wraps up the story for her main characters by page 322. Are you content with this ending for the characters? Why or why not?

  2. Would you have ended the story differently for Sethe, Beloved, Paul D. or Denver? If so, what would you have changed or added?

Step 3

  1. Think about your favorite novel, short story, or movie. How does it end? Would you consider its ending to be happy, sad, tragic, or a cliffhanger? Or something else? What effect did the ending have on you? Is the way in which your favorite novel, short story, or movie ended a main reason why you love the novel, short story, or movie? Explain.

  2. Now, relate Morrison’s ending for her characters to the ending of your selected novel, short story, or movie. Are they similar? If not, what is different?

  3. In your opinion, what is the best way to wrap up a novel, short story, or movie? Does the medium make a difference (e.g., should short stories end differently than novels or movies?). Or does the content make a difference? Explain.

Activity 4: Write

For homework, we will begin to prepare for the section 4 diagnostic by evaluating lesson materials, reference guides, and tools.

Step 1

Locate all materials referenced and completed in this unit. Specifically, gather your Analyzing Relationships, Character Note-Taking, and Extending Understanding Tools as well as your Learning Log. Read through these materials, highlighting items that you feel relate to various themes of the novel (we discussed several potential themes in class).

Step 2

Carefully review the Theme Reference Guide. Then, based on your analysis of your work, write down three potential thematic ideas for Beloved. Under each idea, brainstorm and note words, phrases, or direct citations from the novel that support your ideas. You will discuss these ideas in the next lesson as you continue to prepare for the Section 4 Diagnostic.