Fences (2020)

Lesson 9
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ELA

Unit 9

8th Grade

Lesson 9 of 17

Objective


Explain August Wilson’s portrayal of father-son relationships.

Explain Troy's belief about his role as a father.

Readings and Materials


  • Book: Fences by August Wilson  pp. 48 – 58

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Target Task


Multiple Choice

Based on the conversation between Troy, Bono, and Lyons on pp. 50–51, which statement below best captures the theme of the passage?

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Which two details below best support the answer to Part A?

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Read the excerpt from p. 50 below.

Bono: …My daddy came on through…but I ain’t never knew him to see him…or what he had on his mind or where he went. Just moving on through. Searching out the New Land. That’s what the old folks used to call it. See a fellow moving around from place to place…woman to woman…called it searching out the New Land. I can’t say if he ever found it…

How does this excerpt establish the overall tone of the passage?

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Which other piece of evidence below supports the tone in Part A?

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Writing Prompt

According to Troy, what is the role of a father? Use textual evidence to support your answer.

Key Questions


  • Text-to-Self Connection: In your own opinion, define “father.” What is a father? What should a father be?
  • You have now learned quite a bit about Troy’s own father. Explain how Troy’s experiences with his own father made him the man he is today. Use evidence from the text to support your answer. If students are stuck, look at p. 52 when Troy says, “Right there is where I become a man.” According to Troy, what did he have to do to become a man? 
  • What does Troy feel is his central duty as a father?
  • Go back to the epigraph. How is Troy’s understanding of masculinity different than that of playwright August Wilson’s?
  • Take-home Writing Prompt: On pp. 50–51 of Fences by August Wilson, Troy, Bono, and Lyons discuss the topic of fatherhood. What message does Wilson convey about the impact of society on the individuals of the 1900s–1950s? Explain how specific word choices both create tone and contribute to the text’s meaning. Write a well-organized multi-paragraph essay answering the questions above. Support your answer with details from the text. In your essay be sure to:
      Provide a message about society’s effects on individuals at this time. Explain how specific word choices, or diction, create a tone in this passage. Analyze how those word choices affect the meaning of the text.
  • Provide a message about society’s effects on individuals at this time.
  • Explain how specific word choices, or diction, create a tone in this passage.
  • Analyze how those word choices affect the meaning of the text.
  • Provide a message about society’s effects on individuals at this time.
  • Explain how specific word choices, or diction, create a tone in this passage.
  • Analyze how those word choices affect the meaning of the text.

Notes


  • This lesson links to a unit essential question and the unit assessment.
  • Optional Writing Prompt: On pp. 50-51 of Fences by August Wilson, Troy, Bono, and Lyons discuss the topic of fatherhood. What message does Wilson convey about the impact of society on the individuals of the 1900s-1950s? Explain how specific word choices both create tone and contribute to the text's meaning.
    • Write a well-organized multi-paragraph essay answering the questions above. Support your answer with details from the text. In your essay be sure to:
    • Provide a message about society's effects on individuals at this time.
    • Explain how specific word choices, or diction, create a tone in this passage.
    • Analyze how those word choices affect the meaning of the text.

Common Core Standards


  • RL.8.3 — Analyze how particular lines of dialogue or incidents in a story or drama propel the action, reveal aspects of a character, or provoke a decision.
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Lesson 8

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Lesson 10

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