“Shame” by Dick Gregory“Oranges” by Gary Soto

Elbow partner- We all learn many things in school

beyond the lessons we study formally. What are some things you have learned in school that do not have anything to do with academics?

Define shame

Dick GregoryCivil Rights Activist & Comedian (1932-)

Synopsis Activist/comedian Dick Gregory was arrested

for civil disobedience several times, and his activism spurred him to run for mayor of Chicago in 1966 and for president in 1968. In the early 1970s Gregory abandoned comedy to focus on his political interests, which widened from race relations to include such issues as violence, world hunger, capital punishment, drug abuse and poor health care. http://www.biography.com/people/dick-gregory-9320102

Read “Shame” by Dick Gregory Literary Focus-

genre metaphors similes anaphora repetition parallel structure use of dialogue (when/ why?) irony

“Shame” by Dick Gregory 1. Write a summary of the essay. 2. Identify the thesis.

Small group discussion 1. What are Gregory’s feelings about his teacher? 2. What did he originally think as an innocent

child? 3. What did he learn about how the teacher saw

him? 4. What were your feelings about her as you read

this essay? 5. What could the teacher have done or said that

would not have made Gregory feel ashamed?

Reread this essay’s first and last paragraphs. Compare how much each one

emphasizes shame. What other feeling or character trait ties

together the first and last paragraph? Is the last paragraph an effective

ending? Explain.

“Oranges” by Gary Soto

Gary Soto was born in 1952 in Fresno, California. He bases much of his writing on issues and experiences he had growing up in the urban Mexican-American culture. He had a difficult childhood. His parents worked as farm laborers, and his father died when he was five years old. His mother struggled with poverty, and Soto and his siblings worked to help make ends meet. He worked as a farm worker and in factories. School was not a priority for Gary and his family. Still, Soto loved reading and read books by great authors like Ernest Hemingway and John Steinbeck. He was determined to go to college, and there he discovered poetry and decided to become a writer.

http://www.poets.org/poetsorg/poet/gary-soto

Free Verse Free verse poems do not follow a

particular pattern, rhyme scheme or stanza pattern. However, free verse poems are written with intention. Notice how the lines are written and where the poet chooses to break the poem into stanzas. Graphical elements sometimes create or emphasize meaning in a poem.

“Oranges” Reading Focus:

genre images of light and dark repeating symbols tone shift how the lines are written symbolism of the oranges

Discussion Questions What do you notice about how the orange

changes in the poem? What kind of person might be able to make

fire in his hands? Draw a conclusion about the orange and the

speaker at the end of the poem. What might it mean about the speaker if he

can make fire? What do you think the orange as a ball of fire

symbolizes at the end of the poem?

Double Bubble Map Compare(similarities) and Contrast

(differences) the poem and the narrative using a double bubble map.