AGENDA:
EQ: What are the major themes of El Akkad's novel American War ?
--an introduction to the novel and the master class
Period 3: Introduction to American War
Master class with Omar El Akkad on March 27
Master class with Omar El Akkad on March 27
Read excerpt, view Ted talk, interview. POST COMMENT ON BLOG ABOUT CH. 1 ON NPR EXCERPT.
audiobook--Ch. 1:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G_7Nt9I8tB4
audiobook--Ch. 1:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G_7Nt9I8tB4
NPR: HTTPS://WWW.NPR.ORG/BOOKS/TITLES/522230830/AMERICAN-WAR
HTTPS://CURIO.CA/EN/VIDEO/CANADA-READS-2018-OMAR-EL-AKKAD-ON-AMERICAN-WAR-16819/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ntq66ojdoh4
https://www.vox.com/conversations/2017/4/27/15420306/polarization-politics-american-war-omar-el-akkad
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/27/books/review-american-war-omar-el-akkad.html
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/20/books/review/american-war-omar-el-akkad.html
https://www.vox.com/conversations/2017/4/27/15420306/polarization-politics-american-war-omar-el-akkad
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/27/books/review-american-war-omar-el-akkad.html
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/20/books/review/american-war-omar-el-akkad.html
Period 4: WRITING: work on completing enchanted stories for workshop
AMERICAN-WAR READERS GUIDE:
The questions, discussion topics, and reading list that follow are intended to enhance your reading group’s discussion of American War, a darkly prescient tale of a country, and a world, torn apart by war in the late twenty-first century, and the young heroine whose commitment to her family takes on the epic proportions of the second installment of America’s battle against itself.Questions and Topics for Discussion
1. The novel’s epigraphs are taken from two classic texts, an ancient Arabic book of poems and the Bible. What do the quotes and their sources suggest about the conflict that will follow in the novel?
2. Were you surprised by the way the map of the United States has been altered—the states’ borders and the landmasses themselves—in the projections for 2075? What do you think caused those changes; was it solely politics or other forces as well?
3. What does the first-person narrator we meet in the prologue explain—and not explain—about how the country has changed, the timeline of the Second American Civil War itself, and the unnamed “she” who has stayed in his memory since his youth?
4. What is the significance of Sarat’s changing of her own name when she’s a girl? How does that sense of agency and identity develop as she gets older? How does her having a twin sister fit into your understanding of her independence and actions?
5. The novel presents many different laws, agencies, and other government entities for the future America. Which did you find to be most plausible, including as sources for political conflict that would escalate into war? Are any similar to real-life policies as you’re reading about them today?
6. Describe the dynamic of the Chestnut family, parents and children. What’s similar and what’s different about domestic life in their world versus today’s and during the time of the first Civil War?
7. How pervasive is the allegiance to the Free Southern State where the Chestnuts live and throughout the cordoned region? What threats do those who disagree with the cause face?
8. How closely do the events and details of the Second American Civil War follow those of the first and/or other historical events in American history? After you finished the novel, were you more or less likely to think another such conflict could happen again in this way, on a national or global scale?
9. How do the interludes of primary source texts—textbook excerpts, government reports, notebooks, letters, etc.—enhance the personal story of Sarat and her family, in terms of the motives for and timeline of the war on a micro and macro level?
10. What gender stereotypes persist in the future between the young girls and boys, especially once the family reaches Camp Patience? How does Sarat push back against expectations of what she can and cannot do, including in contrast to her sister and brother?
11. How does the novel complicate the meaning of “home,” in a personal and national level? Does where and how a character lives at any given point determine his or her sense of security or belonging, or does this feeling come from somewhere else?
12. Sarat sees on Albert Gaines’s, a northerner’s, map different kinds of borders and observes, “To the north the land looked the same but she knew there existed some invisible fissure in the earth where her people’s country ended and the enemy’s began.” (163) How did such fissures form, and what does the outcome of the war and novel suggest about their ability to be healed?
13. How does Sarat’s plight speak to Gaines’s statement that “the first thing they try to take from you is your history”? (150)
14. What defines one’s sense of “belief” in the novel? Are people more motivated by personal beliefs, or by more institutional ones like religion or politics?
15. How are certain characters in the novel mythologized? What does this do to their day-to-day existence and their legacy? How do the mythic characters in the book parallel historical figures in what they’re remembered for and how?
16. Discuss the sequence of events and outcomes of the plague. How does that kind of warfare reflect advancements in society as well as the sense of humanity’s worth?
17. What is the role of love in the novel? By the story’s conclusion, does the idea of love conquering all still apply, or does revenge supersede it?
18. Many historians consider the first Civil War to have been a battle of the past (the South) versus the future (the North). Do those distinctions apply to the Second American Civil War, and what does this say about the future—and present—of the country and those running it?
1) The quotes and their sources suggest that the novel will tell a story of both struggle and survival. The characters will most likely go through something horrible, but come back much stronger than ever.
ReplyDelete2) I was very surprised by the way the map of the U.S. had been altered. This was most likely because I was so used to what we have now. I believe that the change also had something to do with climate change and global warming. The entirety of Florida was gone.
3)The narrator has told us a little bit about the war and what happened during it, but they also did not go in-depth with it. They talked about major events but not how many people had died, or where major battles were. He never gave a name to the “she”, but we have suspected it to be Sarat.
4)Sarat’s name change had shown how strong she can be. This most likely grows and makes her strong and a good leader. Her sister is the opposite, and is used to show off Sarat’s strong personality.
Aryonna and Pia
Andrew Silas. Simone Walden
ReplyDelete1. The quotes from the beginning of the novel suggest that the conflict within the novel is bound to involve some sort of betrayal according to the quote from The Book of Songs. The quote from the bible says a single speckled bird is alone with all other birds against her and beasts are called upon to begin devouring which could metaphorically make Sarat and her family the speckled bird with the war itself being all the beast ready to devour them.
2. The changes to the map do seem extreme. Like with Florida completely disappearing and California along with other states or at least parts of them being taken over. In order for this to occur, we do believe politics did play a part but not solely that. Nature and the careless actions of reckless individuals must have played a part. The capital change was interesting though but somewhat foolish considering it would only but it closer to Mexican territory.
3. The narrator of prologue explained their information of the war, talking about how formal he was with a certain local with the U.S, and he talks about how he's dying from cancer. He doesn't explain why he decide to gets a better understanding of the war and he didn't say specifically who "she" was that he said he loved towards the end.
4. Sara's name being changed as a child shows how independent she was. It develops her as courageous compared to her sister who was dependent through her actions but trying extremely hard to be independent.
1. The quotes from the novel are foreshadowing a certain type of conflict that might include a type of betrayal for the characters. The quotes could also mean that the main protagonist might have to struggle a lot through out the novel and face incredible hardships involving the war.
ReplyDelete2. I was taken by surprise when I saw the map changes. The fact that all of Florida was covered with water was definitely the biggest eye opener. To have the world come to such a state is scary to think about simply because it could happen in the real world. The blame is placed on the people since they were the ones that brought that world to such a place.
3. The narrator in the beginning of the story explained how the war started and described briefly what happened during the start of it. He said he was familiar with the U.S. He also talks about the fact that he is dying of cancer. He didn't explain why he tried to figure out more about the war, and he didn't give a name to the mysterious "she" that he refers to.
4. When Sara allowed the mispronunciation of her name to become her new name, it showed that she was mature and independent. It gives her a sense of adulthood because she was more independent than her siblings, who were completely dependent on their own actions.
1. The quotes suggest that there may be a religious conflict. There could be a situation where a monotheistic, bible-based religion is persecuted in Arabia.
ReplyDelete2. I wasn't surprised at all. I think the way the water has taken over the land will most likely happen at some point. I was a little surprised that he split up the north and the south, but I think it was necessary to the plot points.
3. The narrator explains the physical changes of the country and some of the political changes that took place. He doesn't explain who won the war or the effects left on the people. He also doesn't explain who the "she" is, or why she knows him.
4. Sarat changing her name is important because it shows that she's independent. When Sarat changed her name she seemed older and more mature. Her new name has a fiery tone that gives her sense of self so she stands out against her twin.