Cranston High School West Library: Ray - To Kill a Mockingbird

Areas of focus:

1. Controversy surrounding the novel

   1. Where does the novel appear on the 100 Most Frequently Challenged book list?

   2. A challenge occurs when someone attempts to remove a book from school curriculums and libraries. Why was the book controversial?

   3. Name two other titles from this list and why they were challenged.

   4. How is the book perceived and used now?

2. The Scottsboro Case:

   1. Explain and summarize the case (who was involved, what the charges were, when it occurred, and what the final decision was)

   2. Why was this case such a significant one in terms of its impact on capital punishment?

   3. What were the mistakes made in this case by prosecutors, defenders, and witnesses that indicate this may have not been a fair case?

   4. How does this case illustrate how race impacted the outcomes of many court cases?

3. Harper Lee’s Biography: How Her Life Connects to Story She Wrote

   1. Provide a clear biographical profile of Harper Lee both as a person and as a writer.

   2. How did her childhood and upbringing influence her writing of this novel? What major characters, elements of its setting, and plot emerge directly from real experiences in her childhood?

   3. What connections did Harper Lee have to the Civil Rights movement?

   4. Was she trying to make some political and social statements with this book? If so, what were those statements?

4. The Great Depression

   1. When did the Great Depression occur?

   2. Why did the Great Depression occur?

   3. Explain some of the effects of the Great Depression.

   4. Who was president when the Great Depression started, and who was president during the New Deal?

   5. What was the New Deal?

5. Jim Crow Laws/Segregation

   1. What was the purpose of Jim Crow laws?

   2. Put at least two of these laws into your own words and explain the implications these laws had.

   3. How did whites and states defend Jim Crow laws?

6. The Dust Bowl: The Impact on Economic Prosperity for Blacks and Whites

   1. What was the Dust Bowl?

   2. Where did it take place and when?

   3. Who was directly affected by it?

   4. What impact did the Dust Bowl have on life in America?

   5. How is it connected to the Great Depression?

   6. How did Herbert Hoover deal with this natural disaster and the people involved?

   7. What were Hoovervilles, and why were they called that?

7. The Civil Rights Movement

   1. Who were some of the key historical Civil Rights defenders during the real Civil Rights movement in America?

   2. What ideas were they trying to promote, and what support did they get

   3. What did white people who fought to defend the rights of blacks face in terms of hate and violence?

   4. Find historical accounts of white defenders of blacks who faced the hate and violence.

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