Waiting

Lesson 2
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ELA

Unit 6

11th Grade

Lesson 2 of 30

Objective


Analyze how the author further develops the themes of fate and free will.

Readings and Materials


  • Short Story: “The Lady with the Pet Dog” by Anton Chekhov  — Section 3

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Target Task


Multiple Choice

Which choice best supports the idea that Gurov has come to believe that his love for Anna is the most valuable thing he has in his life?

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Sample Response

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Which best describes how love has changed Gurov and Anna?

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Sample Response

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Writing Prompt

Describe the author’s message about fate and free will in “Lady with the Pet Dog.” Use evidence from the story to support your answer.

Key Questions


  • Note the shift in setting on p. 10.
  • How does the narrator characterize Gurov’s shift once he returns home to Moscow?
  • Compare Gurov’s assumptions about what will happen to his feelings for Anna with the reality of what he experiences according to the narrator’s descriptions on pp. 11 and 12.
  • Track how the narrator develops the idea that Gurov is in love with Anna. Do you think she feels the same?
  • How have Gurov’s feelings about people in Moscow shifted throughout the story?
  • Where does he decide to go? Once there, what plan does he make to see Anna? (13)
  • How does she respond when he first approaches on p. 15? What do we learn on p. 16 that helps us understand her motivation for reacting in such a way?
  • What does she ask of Gurov? 
  • What does he mean that he had two lives on p. 18? How does having “two lives” impact the way he sees others?
  • What does the metaphor of the birds of passage reveal about the lovers’ fate?
  • Is their love truly a result of “fate” or did their own “free will” and selfish decision-making lead the two to fall in love?
  • Is the end of the story hopeful? Why or why not?

Notes


If time, students should read the first two paragraphs of the prologue to Waiting and draw connections between the short story and the novel. However, these comparisons can also be made in lesson 3 if time does not permit today.

Next

Identify and infer information about the characters, themes, and conflict of the novel.

Lesson 3
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Lesson Map

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