Cherie Thompson

Cherie Thompson Senior English:

Curriculum & Methodology

Alison-Jane Hunter

Assignment 1 Stage 1

Unit plan & 5 lesson plans

A1630511

01/04/2016

Unit Plan Stage 1

English (20 credits)

Responding to texts (weight - 50%)

Text 1 To Kill a Mockingbird

Harper Lee

Text 2 I’ve been to the Mountaintop

Martin Luther King

Text 3 Hurricane Bob Dylan

To Kill a Mockingbird

Harper Lee

Hurricane

Bob Dylan

I’ve been to the Mountaintop

Martin Luther King

Stage 1 English, (20 credits)

Unit plan

Assessment

Type and

Weighting

Name and details of assessment

Assessment Design

Criteria Assessment conditions

K&U AN AP

Assessment

Type 1

Responding to

Texts

Weighting

50 %

Students read novel, To Kill a

Mockingbird by Harper Lee. They

produce a comprehensive written

response focusing on particular

themes, literary devices and

techniques, and character analysis

studied during the unit. Focal

themes include: courage,

compassion, racism, prejudice,

heroism, protest, and violence.

1, 2 2 1, 3

Students produce an

argumentative essay.

Students will need to

show analysis of and

connections between

literary devices and

techniques, characters,

and the studied key

themes.

Strictly 800 words 30%,

lesson 15, week 4.

Students complete a shared reading

and classroom analysis of Martin

Luther King’s speech, Mountaintop

and Bob Dylan’s protest song,

Hurricane. Students will explore

literary devices and techniques,

target audience, and expand on the

focal themes mentioned above.

3 1, 2 1, 3

Student choose between a.

Class Debate, or

b. Individual Oral

Presentation.

Students argue: Do the

author’s literary devices

and techniques within the

set texts cater to the target

audience and promote

themes: (a) & (b) (themes

will be negotiated for the

Class Debate and chosen

independently for

Individual Oral

Presentation). It is

expected that students

incorporate the use of

visual aids.

KU1 KU2 KU3 AN1 AN2 AP1 AP3

Assessment

Type and

Weighting

Name and details of assessment

Assessment Design

Criteria Assessment conditions

K&U AN AP

Strictly 5 minutes per

presentation, 20%, due

lesson 11, week 3.

(Modified pre-approved Learning and Assessment Plan [LAP] taken from SACE website, March

2016, https://www.sace.sa.edu.au/documents/652891/297a3fc2-8f15-40aa-9702-0940b9f3ec2d)

Stage 1

Responding to Texts

In this fast paced unit, students will focus on similar key ideas of three main texts:

1. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

2. Mountaintop’ speech by Martin Luther King

3. ‘Hurricane’ protest song by Bob Dylan

Students will be encouraged to consider ways in which the authors, readers, and viewers of the set

texts use language, and stylistic features to make meaning and influence opinions. They will

develop an understanding of ways in which texts are composed for a range of purposes and

audiences. Their skills will be developed in supporting conclusions with direct reference to

evidence taken from the set texts.

(SACE, Stage 1 Course Outline 2016, p.8-9,

https://www.sace.sa.edu.au/web/english/stage-1/planning-to-teach/subject-outline).

Essential questions

- What are the key perspectives and themes of the texts?

- How do language features, stylistic features and conventions make meaning in the texts?

- In what ways are texts able to target a range of purposes and audiences?

- What is the relationship between the purpose, audience, and context of a text?

- How does the purpose, audience, and context shape meaning within a text?

- How do readers interpret language features, stylistic features, and conventions?

- How do I write and speak precisely, fluently and coherently?

- Have I drawn evidence from the text to support my conclusions?

Student knowledge and skills outcomes

Students will provide indication of their learning in relation to the following assessment criteria:

1. Knowledge and understanding

2. Analysis

3. Application

By the end of this unit: Student knowledge…

- Know and understand ideas and perspectives explored in the texts [KU1].

- Know and understand how language features, stylistic features, and conventions are used to

make meaning [KU2].

- Know and understand ways in which texts are created for a wide range of purposes and

audiences [KU3].

By the end of this unit: Student skills…

- Analyse the relationships between purpose, audience, and context, and how they shape

meaning [AN1].

- Analyse how language features, stylistic features, and conventions are interpreted by readers

[AN2].

- Apply precision, fluency, and coherence of writing and speaking [AP1].

- Apply the use of evidence from the texts to support conclusions, with textual references

incorporated in responses [AP3].

Activities Assessments

- Small group discovery time

- Independent study

- Quiz

- Essay workshops

- Class discussions

- Brainstorming

- Chapter questions

- Worksheets

- Critical readings

- Note taking

Formative:

- Recap quiz

- Discussion groups

- Chapter questions

- Participation

- Small group exercises

- Draft of debate / oral

- Dot point template of essay

- Draft of essay

Summative:

- Argumentative essay

- Class Debate or Individual Oral Presentation

Unit Structure

(Two 45-minute lessons and one 90-minute lesson per week over five weeks)

Lesson Objectives

Week 1

Lesson 1

Single

Introduction to the topic…

Discuss the targeted student learning outcomes.

Go over requirements of both assessment tasks (essay and debate/

individual oral).

Explain the context of the texts – short history of the American civil rights

movement.

Test students for prior knowledge of literary types and techniques.

Warn students about touchy themes and invite to discuss privately if they

feel uncomfortable and provide school counsellor information. Emphasis

on the learning environment being a safe place.

Hand out assessment sheets.

Begin to form personal understandings around focal themes…

Group work: discuss individualistic views and examples relating to

courage, compassion, racism, prejudice, heroism, protest, and violence.

Class discussion about findings using whiteboard – what feelings do these

themes evoke? – similarities/differences.

Week 1

Lesson 2

Double

Introduction to literary types, devices and techniques relating to all texts…

Discussion of a Bildungsroman, protest songs, and political speeches.

Recap of language, features, stylistic features and conventions – include

handout about literary devices and techniques relevant to this unit.

Work through portions of text within the novel and other texts to detect

these devices.

Individual reflection and class brainstorm discussion on how these devices

and techniques enhance the ideas and the portrayal of focal themes.

Listen to 10 minutes of King’s Mountaintop speech and listen to Dylan’s

Hurricane…

Students given handout of written speech and lyrics to take notes on whilst

watching & listening.

Small group discovery time (SGDT) – which techniques were observed in

these texts? Who was the target audience? How did the techniques assist in

depicting the focal themes?

Deconstruct the texts and apply the literary devices we have learnt about.

Explain how these are centrally linked to the oral presentation.

Week 1

Lesson 3

Single

Review chapters (1 - 10)…

Provide chapter summary handouts, ensuring those who have not been

reading the novel are aware of the storyline.

Discuss chapter questions and encourage students to suggest relevant

examples within the text.

Use snippets of the film to assist with class discussion of the focal themes

and any other themes that the text represents.

Explain how this will be linking to the essay.

Listen to 10 more minutes of Mountaintop speech (20 mins into speech)…


this text? Who was the target audience? How did the techniques assist in


Deconstruct the text and apply the literary devices we have learnt about.

Week 2

Lesson 4

Single






Analyse similarities and differences between all texts…

Evaluate whether all focal themes are connected to each text.

Discussion around the importance of focal themes in current times.

SGDT – analyse the voice and stylistics of speech texts.

Change in perspective game using examples of places and characters from

the texts (Hunter, Approaches, 2013).

Week 2

Lesson 5

Double






Introduction to essay writing…

Introduce the basics of essay writing – including handout.

Explain and discuss the making of an essay.

SGDT - what makes a good argument? – Handouts on short essays that

students need to identify strengths and weaknesses.

Argument Exercise…

Small group exercise after watching Thankyou for Smoking segment

regarding “ice-cream” argument (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zLS-

npemQYQ, accessed March, 2016).

Explain and discuss different types of argument relevant to the essay.

Introduction to debates and oral presentations…

Establish two groups – students who chose the individual oral and those

who chose the class debate (at least 6 needed for debate).

Individual Oral Presentation students decide whether they will present in

front of class or submit recording.

Separate group discussions on chosen assessment tasks – using a work

sheet as a guide.

Spend some time in both groups to discover students’ prior knowledge.

Interactively explain to each group the structure of this assessment task and

expectations around it.

Week 2

Lesson 6

Single

Review chapters (10-20)…





Dot-Point Essay Plan

Handout a template of dot-point essay.

Clarify what is required of students.

Emphasise the importance of essay planning.

Begin to make connections between literary devices and techniques,

characters and then focal themes.

Students begin working on their essay plan.

Week 3

Lesson 7

Single

Analysis of quotes and situations within all texts…

Handouts for key quotes and relevant snippets of text derived for all texts.

Allow students to attempt to analyse on their own – then in small groups.

Class discussion on what students found.

Planning debate and oral presentation…

Handout of debate/oral template for students to begin brainstorming and

piecing together.

Working in groups and individually to gather evidence to support

arguments and analysis.

Week 3

Lesson 8

Double

Discuss the ideas of Point of View and narration…

Evaluate if Scout’s point of view and narration are accurate or distorted?

What makes an effective narrator?

What could be affecting her ability to narrate?

Do we get to see anyone else’s point of view?

What evidence of this is there?

How does the point of view emphasise Harper’s ideas?

Activity – group competition – which group can come up with the most

different points of view within all texts, including examples.

Discussion of vocabulary and language…

Identify and discuss the dated vocabulary encountered in the novel.

Brainstorm the affect these have on the reader.

Handout with those words and meanings.

Submission of Dot-Point Essay Plans…

Individually work on dot point essay plans.

Answer any questions the essay plan may have raised.

Week 3

Lesson 9

Single

Review chapters (20-31)…





Character Analysis…

Discuss the roles of the individual characters and what they represent.

Class game – ‘Who Am I?’ (Hunter, Ideas for English, 2015).

Debate and oral presentation work…

Submission of debate/oral draft.

Individual work and one-on-one guidance.

Week 4

Lesson 10

Single

Fine tuning of debate and oral presentation…

Feedback on student drafts.

Query any questions that students may have.

Refining their work individually (and group time for debate students).

Announce a short recap quiz will be held next week…

Content of quiz: relevant literary devices and techniques, focal themes

requiring examples, and character questions.

Week 4

Lesson 11

Double

Debate & oral presentations due…

Students present debate in class.

Students present oral presentation in class and some submit recording

before 10pm as previously negotiated.

Week 4

Lesson 12

Single

Essay Workshop…

Students to work on essays in class.

Provide assistance where needed.

Draft essay is due next week…

Individual work on draft essay.

Week 5

Lesson 13

Single

Recap quiz…

Short quiz focusing on the novel as discussed in the previous lesson.

Discuss answers and how they can be used in the essay.

Essay Workshop…

Students to work on essays in class.


Submission of essay draft…

Ensure all drafts have been submitted

Week 5

Lesson 14

Double

Essay Workshop…

Ensure all drafts have already been submitted and returned.

Provide students with feedback on drafts.

Students to work on essays in class and fine-tune them.


Week 5

Lesson 15

Single

Essay is due today…

Ensure all students hand up essays.

Reflection of unit…

Encourage students to discuss what they have learnt as a part of this topic.

How have these texts shaped our world?

What were the most enjoyable parts of the course?

Prompt student feedback on what they enjoyed and what they disliked.

Resources required:

- Online platform for students, such as ‘edmodo’

- Up-to-date uploads to this platform, including what was done during each lesson and any

appropriate/useful links

- Students are all expected to bring their own/use school laptops to each class

- Each student needs a copy of the novel, To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

- 28 X handout of Martin Luther King’s Mountaintop speech

- 28 X handout of lyrics to Bob Dylan’s Hurricane

- 28 X scaffolded assignment handout with relevant rubric included

- 28 X literacy devices handout

- 28 X dot point essay plan

- 28 X dot point debate/individual oral plan

Text justification

The three texts work nicely together as they represent similar themes to each other. All of the texts

were produced during the American Civil Rights Movement and raise ideas around themes of

racism and prejudice. Each text promotes integrity and questions values whilst pushing certain

ideas of morality. The combination of these texts encourages deep discussion and critical analysis.

Plot summaries

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

Jean Louise ‘Scout’ Finch, a young girl during the Depression in Alabama, narrates the story. She

recalls a key trial that takes place in her community, which brings forward issues around race

relations in the Deep South reminiscent of the period. Her father, Atticus Finch stands as an

attorney in the trial for an African-American man and in doing so, he demonstrates the importance

of good moral values, integrity, and bravery. The novel portrays dilemmas associated with

morality and the true meaning of doing what is right. All the while, the young narrator, Scout

grapples to understand and relay the events going on around her.

I’ve been to the Mountaintop speech by Martin Luther King

The last speech delivered by civil rights activist and pastor, Martin Luther King, Jr, in 1968. The

emphasis of the speech is on the Memphis Sanitation Strike. King calls for unity, boycotts,

nonviolent protest, and economic actions as a means of standing up against injustice and

systematic racism. He challenges the United States to live by its ideals.

Hurricane by Bob Dylan

A protest song written by popular artist Bob Dylan in 1974 regarding Rubin Carter, a boxer

believed to be falsely tried on racial grounds for a triple murder case. The song ultimately led to a

new trial for Carter.

Core themes

The following core themes can be derived from all three texts:

- Courage – a desirable human quality. Questioning what real courage truly is.

- Compassion – contrasting evil and injustice, the beneficial factors of understanding others’

perspectives.

- Racism – the negative effect on society and the individual.

- Prejudice – targeting distinctive aspects of society. The detrimental effects of intolerant, narrow,

and rigid codes of behaviour.

- Heroism – standing up for one’s beliefs and the personal cost involved.

- Protest – the worthiness of a cause and the ripple effect it causes within a community.

- Violence – tension between certain groups and the impacts of racial hostility.

(Ideas derived and adapted from website, https://www.resources.mhs.vic.edu.au/mockingbird/,

accessed March 2016).

Class details

There are 28 students in this class, which is why I have used a great deal of small group discovery

time and individual learning time. Two students have Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD), so the

teaching methods and techniques will be adapted to cater for them.

Although the classes generally include a great deal to get through, it will be fairly fast paced,

jumping into new activities quickly as a strategy to engage students and hold attention for as long

as possible. The chosen texts that will be studied are in various forms – including a novel, speech

and a song, which will promote attentiveness. The activities within the lessons are multimodal,

therefore catering to students’ different learning styles. Class activities are flexible and can be

shortened or extended as required to meet unexpected factors, such as missed lessons due to

student free days, sports days etc. There will be ICT integration, discussion, small groups,

individual work, games, research task, small quizzes, and so on. I will invite students to negotiate

with me any adaptions they would like to make with the assessment tasks to make it more

engaging for them and to ensure that a wide range of students are catered for. This will also allow

the students to be involved in decision-making relating to their learning, which promotes effective

learning. The two formative assessment tasks are varied and the second task provides students

with different choices around how they present (Class Debate/Individual Oral Presentation in

class or privately recorded). Martin Sleigman’s theory of PERMA will be adopted to optimise

student engagement and the meaning they derive from the unit.

I will also ensure that all students are provided with copies of any worksheets or instructions via

email and/or on the school’s chosen online learning platform in a timely fashion. This means they

can be viewed in the students’ own time if they were unable to attend the class or focus during it.

When documents are uploaded, they will be streamlined into simple order so that students are able

to find them quickly and without any hassle.

There is an Indigenous male student in the class, who is notorious for violence within the school

grounds and outside of school. The themes presented and studied may evoke uncomfortable or

isolating feelings for this student particularly. In the first lesson, I will express firm instruction

that this class is to be a safe place, free from judgement. Being polite and avoiding offensive

views or comments will be conveyed.

(http://www.helpguide.org/articles/add-adhd/teaching-students-with-adhd-attention-deficit-

disorder.htm, accessed March, 2016).

Lesson Plans Stage 1

English (20 credits)

Responding to texts (weight - 50%)

Lesson 1

Lesson 2 & 3 (double)

Plot Summaries:

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

Jean Louise ‘Scout’ Finch, a young girl during the Depression in Alabama, narrates the

story. She recalls a key trial that takes place in her community, which brings forward

issues around race relations in the Deep South reminiscent of the period. Her father,

Atticus Finch stands as an attorney in the trial for an African-American man and in doing

so, he demonstrates the importance of good moral values, integrity, and bravery. The

novel portrays dilemmas associated with morality and the true meaning of doing what is

right. All the while, the young narrator, Scout grapples to understand and relay the events

going on around her.

I’ve been to the Mountaintop speech by Martin Luther King

The last speech delivered by civil rights activist and pastor, Martin Luther King, Jr, in

1968. The emphasis of the speech is on the Memphis Sanitation Strike. King calls for

unity, boycotts, nonviolent protest, and economic actions as a means of standing up

against injustice and systematic racism. He challenges the United States to live by its

ideals.

Hurricane by Bob Dylan

A protest song written by popular artist Bob Dylan in 1974 regarding Rubin Carter, a

boxer believed to be falsely tried on racial grounds for a triple murder case. The song

ultimately led to a new trial for Carter.

STAGE 1 ENGLISH WEEK 1 – LESSON 1 (45

mins)

TO KILL A

MOCKINGBIRD

Harper Lee

I’VE BEEN TO THE MOUNTAINTOP

Martin Luther King, Jr

HURRICANE

Bob Dylan


Core themes

Courage

Compassion

Racism

Prejudice

Heroism

Protest

Violence

What make these great class texts?

Classic and historical texts

Inquiry into morality

Promotes the importance of personal growth

Deals with difficult topics that are relevant to young adults

Reflects an important time in American history

Exposes practices that young people may not be familiar with

Overview:

This lesson will be an introduction to the topic, in which the learning outcomes and the

requirements of the two assessment tasks will be explained to students.

It will be clarified that some of the themes, such as racism, prejudice and violence may cause

discomfort and a reminder that this classroom is a safe and accepting space.

Assignment sheets will be provided to students, as well as a week-by-week outline of the unit

including due dates for formative and summative tasks.

A short explanation of the historical context behind the texts will be undertaken through class

discussion, therefore building upon what students already know.

The students’ prior knowledge of literary devices and techniques will be questioned.

We will have an informal discussion around the students’ personal understanding of the core

themes that will be focused on within the unit.

Progression of the main text, To Kill a Mockingbird, will be determined and expected

progression will be stipulated and included in the unit outline handout.

The lesson will aim to address differing ideas of the core themes and emphasise difference in

perceptions and stereotypes.

This lesson will introduce the students to the topic and the core themes. This sets a

foundation (a.) of basic knowledge for students to build upon during the unit, and (b.) for the

texts to be analysed with an open mind.

All handouts, links, and relevant information will be uploaded onto an online platform for

students to access.

A simple homework task will be set and it will be due next lesson.

Homework task: Each student is allocated a literary device or term relevant to the texts and must

find out what it is and explain it to the class next lesson. This website will be provided to them on

the online platform: http://literarydevices.net

Student Outcomes

Recall of prior knowledge relevant to the

topic

Basic understanding of the historical context

of the texts

Understanding of expectation regarding

assessments

Provide a broad understanding of core themes

Understanding of differing perceptions

Performance tasks

Involvement in group and class discussions

Work sheet

Focus Questions

What are the requirements of this unit?

What do we already know about the

historical context of the text and literary

devices?

Why do people have differing

perceptions of basic ideas?

How does stereotyping shape our

perceptions?

Resources and materials

Assessment sheets X 28

Week by week guide to the unit X 28

Homework task Literary devices handout X 28

Whiteboard markers

Activities

Part 1:

Introduction to unit - 10 minutes

I will begin the first lesson by introducing the unit and explaining some basic key facts about the

texts, including the historical context and short introduction to the authors. Students will be made

aware of the sensitive nature of some of the themes that will come up during the unit and a

reminder to students that the classroom is a safe place in which respect is expected. An invitation

for anyone who feels uncomfortable at any point to feel welcome to approach me privately and

the school counsellor’s details will be provided as well. Once this is dealt with, I will open a short

class discussion by asking questions of the class, such as “Has anyone read or heard any of the

texts before? What can you tell us about what you know about them? Has anyone heard of the

authors?” and so on.

I will handout the assessment sheets and we will run through what is expected from students in

completing both of the tasks. Any questions will be answered. The online platform for students

will be mentioned and explained.

The week-by-week unit outline handout will be provided to students. It will be determined where

all students are up to in the novel and the expected progression of reading will be stipulated and

pointed out in the unit outline handout.

Part 2: Literary devices and terms

Partnered task – 5 Minutes

The literary devices and terms handout will be provided to students and they will be paired with

the person next to them as they attempt to fill out as much as they already know – without looking

the terms up.

Class discussion – 5 Minutes

The class will be drawn into a guided discussion of what they already know and students will be

able to fill in any empty spaces they have on their worksheets. I will correct any mistakes that

students have made in defining the terms.

Part 3:

Student perception on core themes – 20 Minutes

We will begin a short exercise individually and then move into groups to determine the students’

perceptions of the core themes before we discuss them in the context of the texts. Students will be

asked to take a look at the core themes (courage, compassion, racism, prejudice, heroism, protest,

and violence) and think about what each of these themes mean to them individually and write

down a sentence for each in their books, along with an experience that they feel comfortable

sharing from their own life relating to each of these themes. (5 minutes)

After five minutes, students will be asked to get into groups of their choice, however no group is

to exceed five students. In these groups, students will discuss their own take on each of these

themes and discuss their experiences. Encouraging independent thought around the themes

without first applying it to the texts is an effective way to get students to being thinking about

matters without any preconceptions. Providing individual examples from their own lives and

sharing with their groups is engaging for students as they enjoy talking about their own

experiences. (5 or so minutes)

After around five minutes, depending how the discussion is going, I will draw them back into a

class discussion. An elected person from each group will report on whether or not the students in

their groups had differing perceptions on the themes. As a class, using the whiteboard, we will

discuss the different meanings students drew from the themes. We will talk about why perceptions

are different – each person is unique, we have different experiences, differing values and attitudes,

and so on. We will brainstorm and build on this. Once the idea of differing perception is

established, I will then explain how authors use literary devices to amplify the meanings portrayed

in the texts and to draw in their target audience. (10 minutes)

The purpose of this exercise was to provoke student thought and open-mindedness by

emphasising that no person’s perception is incorrect – rather, just different. It is also intended to

introduce the texts and the idea of literary devices by promoting thought around what the author’s

intentions are – what meanings are they attempting to portray, who is the text aimed at and why

have the texts been written? It is important to lay this basic groundwork for students, as they will

then be able to begin to adopt a mind of analysis and questioning, which are key skills for the

progression of grades and advancement to stage 2.

Part 4:

Student questions and homework outline – 5 Minutes

Briefly summarise what was covered today and answer any questions regarding the texts, themes,

or assessment tasks that students may have. Remind students of the expected reading progression

and reassure them that all handouts will be available online.

Homework is to choose two of the literary devices and/or terms, which will be uploaded to the

online platform. First in, best dressed – once students assign themselves to two terms, no one else

can choose those terms (a list of 56 available online). They will be required to bring in the

definition of each of these terms to the next class. The website they can find the definitions is:

http://literarydevices.net/, and will be provided online. Some of the terms will not be on this site

and students who want more of a challenge can pick these ones – they will be labelled.

STAGE 1 ENGLISH WEEK 1 – LESSON 2 & 3

(90 mins)

TO KILL A

MOCKINGBIRD

Harper Lee

I’VE BEEN TO THE MOUNTAINTOP

Martin Luther King, Jr

HURRICANE

Bob Dylan

Overview:

In this double lesson we will spend the first half as an introduction to literary types,

devices, and techniques.

Go through the definitions that students were required to find for last lesson’s homework

and type the definitions into the online platform, so they can use this as a resource.

They will be introduced to the idea of Bildungsroman, protest songs, and political

speeches.

Students will be given a modern text – lyrics to a popular song – to begin applying their

new knowledge.

We will first go through this song text as a class, analysing it and connecting literary

devices to meaning and target audience.

Students will then have to complete a critical reading individually – I will give them the

lyrics to Hurricane by Bob Dylan.

We will discuss the analysis as a class and students will later hand up their critical

readings. I will be able to have a look at the different levels of knowledge I am dealing

with in the class and provide feed back to the students through marking.

Class brainstorm – how can literary devices connect with the portrayal of meaning in a

text as well as deliver to the target audience.

We will be listening to 10 minutes of King’s Mountaintop speech and Dylan’s Hurricane.

Students will be given a handout of speech transcript and song lyrics to follow along with

and write notes on as they listen.

Small group discovery time – what was observed? Target audience? Devices?

Techniques? Focal themes? Connections between these?

Explain how these are centrally linked to the oral presentation.

Student Outcomes

Understanding of a wide range of literary

devices

Understanding of how to identify these within

a text

Basic ability to analyse and deconstruct texts

An understanding about how connections are

made from literary devices to meaning and

Focus Questions

What are the requirements of this unit?

What do we already know about the

historical context of the text and literary

devices?

Why do people have differing

perceptions of basic ideas?

How does stereotyping shape our


targeted audience

Deeper understanding of expectations

regarding assessments 2

Provide a broader understanding of core

themes

Performance tasks

Home work tasks presented

Involvement in group and class discussions

Class analysis of text

Critical reading of Hurricane

Beginning analysis of Mountaintop speech

and Hurricane

Note taking

Critical reading

perceptions?

Resources and materials

Literary devices definitions handout –

students to put together online

Modern song lyrics X 28

Hurricane lyrics X 28

Mountaintop speech X 28

Whiteboard markers

Laptops

Activities

Part 1: Introduction to literary devices and terms

Class work and brainstorming- 30 minutes

We will put the desks together and students will sit around them like in a conference room.

Students will then be required to explain to the class the two literary devices/terms that they

chose. It will be an open forum where students can add information and I will guide the class,

picking up on any mistakes and expanding on the major terms. Students will be asked to get their

laptops out and the student sitting on the left side of the student explaining the definition will be

expected to write this definition into the online platform. Once we have finished this task, there

will be an online resource for students to refer to or print out regarding the relevant literary

devices and terms for this unit. I have decided to do it this way rather than simply providing a

definitions handout so that everyone is involved and the repetition and drilling will assist in

broadening student knowledge.

I will explain to the students the three different text types that we will be studying:

Bildungsroman, a political speech and a protest song. We will use the white board to brainstorm

any other texts they know of which could fit into these categories.

Part 2:

Analysing a modern song with this new knowledge - 10 minutes

This is a short task to apply the knowledge we have just learnt. I will give students a hand out with

Hilltop Hood’s song, 1955. We will first listen to the song and watch the music video. I will ask

the class what they think the song was about. What is the author’s intent? What message are they

trying to convey through this song? Can we find any literary devices in this song? Rhyme,

repetition, historical reference, language, alliteration, imagery, allusion, and analogy – what else

can students find?

I have chosen this activity as a fun but also stimulating exercise. Students will be interested as the

song is popular and most students will have already heard it and enjoy it. Sparking interest in this

way promotes engagement.

Part 3:

Critical reading of Hurricane - 30 minutes

I will explain how a critical reading work and what I am expecting from it. The handouts an the

critical readying will be given out and students will have 5 minutes to read the text and then 20

minutes to answer the questions. These will be handed up to me so that I can read through and

mark. As a class, we will have a 5-minute discussion around the critical reading and the

connections that students made. Using the white board again, we will discuss how literary devices

connect to meaning and target audience.

Part 4:

Texts for Assessment 2 – 20 minutes

Students will be given a transcript of the Mountaintop speech and use the handout with Hurricane

lyrics from the critical reading. They will be asked to follow along with the text as they hear it and

take notes on anything that they notice regarding language, tone, target audiences, and literary

devices. We will watch the first 10 minutes of the speech and listen to Hurricane. In the last 5

minutes, we will have a quick discussion around the ideas that students came up with.

[Attachment 1 for lesson 1]

To Kill a Mockingbird

Harper Lee

Hurricane

Bob Dylan


Martin Luther King

Stage 1 English, (20 credits)

Assessment tasks

Assessment

Type and

Weighting

Name and details of

assessment

Assessment

Design Criteria Assessment conditions

K&U AN AP

Assessment

Type 1

Responding

to Texts

Weighting

50 %

You will read and study the novel,

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper

Lee. In responding to the text, you

will produce a comprehensive

written response in the forma of

an argumentative essay. It will

focus on particular themes,

literary devices and techniques,

and character analysis studied

during the unit. Focal themes

include: courage, compassion,

racism, prejudice, heroism,

protest, and violence.

See the following essay statement:

“Lee Harper’s novel, To Kill a

Mockingbird, portrays [choose 1-

3 of the focal themes] eg.

Heroism effectively.”

If you are interested in a different

essay question or focusing on a

theme other than our focal theme,

please approach me about it.

1, 2 2 1, 3

You will produce an

argumentative essay. You

will need to show analysis

of and connections between

literary devices and

techniques, characters, and

the studied key themes.

Strictly 800 words 30%,

due lesson 15, week 4.

You will take part in a shared

reading and classroom analysis of

Martin Luther King’s speech,

Mountaintop and Bob Dylan’s

protest song, Hurricane. We will

explore literary devices and

3 1, 2 1, 3

For this assessment, you

will need to choose

between a. Class Debate, or

b. Individual Oral

Presentation.

Strictly 5 minutes per


Assessment

Type and

Weighting

Name and details of

assessment

Assessment

Design Criteria Assessment conditions

K&U AN AP

techniques, target audience, and

expand on the focal themes

mentioned above.

You will argue: Do the author’s

literary devices and techniques

within the set texts cater to the

target audience and promote

themes: (a) & (b)

Themes (a) & (b) will be

negotiated for the Class Debate

and chosen independently for

Individual Oral Presentations. It is

expected that students incorporate

the use of visual aids. Those who

choose the Individual Oral

Presentation will have the option

to present in front of the class or

record it privately and upload it to

the online platform and email it to

me.

presentation, 20%, due

lesson 11, week 3.

(Modified pre-approved Learning and Assessment Plan [LAP] taken from SACE website,

March 2016, https://www.sace.sa.edu.au/documents/652891/297a3fc2-8f15-40aa-9702-

0940b9f3ec2d)

Performance Standards for Stage 1 English

‘To Kill a Mockingbird’ essay rubric

- Knowledge and Understanding Analysis Application

A Detailed knowledge and understanding of

ideas and perspectives explored in a

diverse range of texts.

Extensive knowledge and understanding

of the variety of language features,

stylistic features, and conventions authors

use to make meaning.

Insightful analysis of how

language features, stylistic

features, and conventions

combine to influence readers in

various text types.

Fluent and precise writing and

speaking.

Detailed and appropriate use of

evidence from texts to support

conclusions, with textual

references integrated into

responses.

B Knowledge and understanding of ideas

and perspectives explored in a range of

texts.

Knowledge and understanding of a range

of language features, stylistic features,

and conventions authors use to make

meaning.

Analysis of how language

features, stylistic features, and

conventions influence readers in

various text types.

Mostly fluent and precise writing

and speaking.

Accurate use of evidence from

texts to support conclusions, with

textual references incorporated

fluently in responses.

C Knowledge and understanding of ideas

and some perspectives explored in a

range of texts.

Knowledge and understanding of some

language features, stylistic features, and

conventions authors use to make

meaning.

Description, with some analysis,

of how language features,

stylistic features, and conventions

influence readers in some text

types.

Generally fluent and accurate

writing and speaking.

Use of evidence from texts to

support conclusions, with some

textual references incorporated in

responses.

D Reference to simple ideas explored in

texts.

Knowledge and understanding of a

narrow range of language features and

conventions authors use to make

meaning.

Reference to some ways in which

conventions and language

features influence readers in

some text types.

Some control and fluency of

expression.

Limited use of evidence from

texts to support conclusions, with

limited textual references to

support responses.

E Identification of an idea in a text.

Recognition of a restricted range of

language features used by authors.

Recognition of a way in which

language features influence

readers in a text type.

Emerging development of control

of expression.

(SACE, Stage 1 Course Outline 2016, p.12, https://www.sace.sa.edu.au/web/english/stage-1/planning-to-teach/subject-outline)

Performance Standards for Stage 1 English

Debate / Individual Oral Presentation rubric

- Knowledge and Understanding Analysis Application

A Comprehensive knowledge and understanding

of ways in which texts are created for a range

of purposes and audiences.

Perceptive evaluation of the complex

relationship between purpose,

audience, and context and how they

shape meaning.

Insightful analysis of how language

features, stylistic features, and

conventions combine to influence

readers in various text types.

Fluent and precise writing and

speaking.

B Knowledge and understanding of ways in

which texts are created for a range of purposes

and audiences.

Effective analysis of the relationship

between purpose, audience, and

context and how they shape meaning.

Analysis of how language features,

stylistic features, and conventions

influence readers in various text

types.

Mostly fluent and precise writing and

speaking.

C Knowledge and understanding of ways in

which texts are created for familiar purposes

and audiences.

Description, with some analysis of

purpose, audience, and context and

how they shape meaning.

Description, with some analysis, of

how language features, stylistic

features, and conventions influence

readers in some text types.

Generally fluent and accurate writing

and speaking.

.

D Knowledge and understanding of a restricted

range of ways in which texts are created for

limited purposes and audiences.

Identification of the purpose,

audience, and context of texts.

Reference to some ways in which

conventions and language features

influence readers in some text types.

Some control and fluency of

expression.

E Acknowledgment of one or more ways in

which texts are created for a purpose or an

audience.

Reference to the purpose and

audience of a text.

Recognition of a way in which

language features influence readers in

a text type.

Emerging development of control of

expression.

(SACE, Stage 1 Course Outline 2016, p.12, https://www.sace.sa.edu.au/web/english/stage-1/planning-to-teach/subject-outline)


Unit Outline Lesson Objectives

Week 1

Lesson 1

Single

Introduction to the topic…

- Three texts

- 1. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

- 2. I’ve Been to the Mountaintop by Martin Luther King

- 3. Hurricane by Bob Dylan

YOU ARE REQUIRED TO BRING YOUR NOVEL TO EACH LESSON!

Core themes…

Courage

Compassion

Racism

Prejudice

Heroism

Protest

Violence

Homework Task…

Go to the online platform and choose two literary devices and/or terms. Use the link

to find their meaning. Some of the terms cannot be found via this link and you will

need to search elsewhere. By next lesson, you will need to be able to explain to the

class the definition of the two that you have chosen.

Week 1

Lesson 2

Double

Literary types, devices and techniques relating to all texts…

You will be given a handout defining all of the following literary devices

and terms.

This will also be available on the online platform.

(http://literarydevices.net)

1. Allegory

2. Alliteration

3. Alliteration

4. Allusion

5. Ambiguity

6. Anaphora

7. Antagonist

8. Antithesis

9. Assonance

10. Bildungsroman

11. Colloquialism

12. Comparisons

13. Conflict (internal/external)

14. Connotation

15. Connotation

16. Contrast

17. Couplet

18. Denotation

19. Denouement

20. Dialect

21. Diction

22. Epigraph

23. Epistrophe

24. Ethos

25. Euphemism

26. Flashback

27. Foreshadow

28. Glittering generality (not on site)

29. Gothic (not on site)

30. Historical reference

31. Hyperbole

32. Idiom

33. Imagery

34. Inference

35. Irony

36. Language (not on site)

37. Logos

38. Metaphor

39. Mood

40. Motif

41. Narrative

42. Pathos

43. Personification

44. Perspective

45. Persuasion

46. Plain folk (not on site)

47. Point of view

48. Protagonist

49. Repetition

50. Rhetoric

51. Rhyme

52. Setting

53. Simile

54. Style

55. Tone

56. Voice

Listen to 10 minutes of King’s Mountaintop speech and listen to Dylan’s

Hurricane.

You will be given a handout, which will contain the speech and lyrics of

the song.


Use the literary devices handout guide as you follow along with the speech

and the song and take notes of any literary devices or relevant information

that you pick up on whilst listening.

Week 1

Lesson 3

Single

You will need to be up to chapter 10 of the novel

As you read the novel, keep a journal and note any literary devices you

observe or anything that you find meaningful.

We will be focusing on chapter questions in the first half of our lesson and

it is essential that you have read up to chapter 10.

Chapter questions will be available on the online platform.


You are required to bring the handout of the speech today, as well as your

handout for the literary devices.

Which literary devices and/or terms did you notice in the speech today?

Week 2

Lesson 4

Single





Analyse similarities and differences between all texts…

Are all of the core themes we are studying connected to each text?

Why are the core themes important?

Homework task…

Decide before next lesson which oral response for the second assessment

you would prefer.

Week 2

Lesson 5

Double





Introduction to essay writing…

You will learn how to write an argumentative essay.

Introduction to debates and oral presentations…

You will need to decide during this lesson whether you would like to do the

Class Debate or Individual Oral Presentation. If you choose the latter,

would you prefer to do it in front of the class or record it and hand it up?

Week 2

Lesson 6

Single

You will need to be up to chapter 20 of the novel






Dot-Point Essay Plan

You will receive a handout of a dot-point essay template.


Submission date of these plans is lesson 8.

Week 3

Lesson 7

Single

Analysis of quotes and situations within all texts…

You will receive a handout for key quotes and relevant snippets of each of

the texts.


Planning debate and oral presentation…

Handout of debate/oral template for you to begin brainstorming and

piecing together the assessment task together.

These handouts will also be available on the online platform.

Week 3

Lesson 8

Double

Discuss the ideas of Point of View and narration…

Before class today, think about these questions…

Evaluate if Scout’s point of view and narration are accurate or distorted?

What makes an effective narrator?

What could be affecting her ability to narrate?

Do we get to see anyone else’s point of view?

What evidence of this is there?

How does the point of view emphasise Harper’s ideas?

Activity – group competition – which group can come up with the most

different points of view within all texts, including examples.

Discussion of vocabulary and language…

We will discuss the dated vocabulary in the novel.

You will receive a handout with those words and meanings.


Submission of Dot-Point Essay Plans…

Your dot point essay plan is due for submission today.

Week 3

Lesson 9

Single

You will need to be up to chapter 31 of the novel - FINISHED!






Character Analysis…

Before class today, think about the roles of the individual characters and what they

represent in the novel.

Debate and oral presentation work…

A submission of your debate or oral presentation draft is due today.

Week 4

Lesson 10

Single

Fine tuning of debate and oral presentation…

Feedback on your drafts.

Think of any questions you may have, as I will answer them today.

Short recap quiz to be held next week…

Content of quiz: relevant literary devices and terms, focal themes requiring

examples, and character questions.

Week 4

Lesson 11

Debate & oral presentations due…

Double Presentations due today! You will be presenting today and if you have

chosen to record your presentation, it will need to be uploaded on the

online platform and emailed to me by 4pm.

Week 4

Lesson 12

Single

Essay Workshop…

You will be working on your essays in class.

Draft essay is due next week…

Week 5

Lesson 13

Single

Recap quiz…

Short quiz today! Be prepared.

Essay Workshop…

You will be working on your essays in class.

Submission of essay draft…

Your essay drafts are due by the end of this lesson.

Week 5

Lesson 14

Double

Essay Workshop…

Your drafts will be returned today.

You need to work fine-tuning your essays.

Reminder: Essays are due next lesson!

Week 5

Lesson 15

Single

Essays are due today!

You need to hand your essay up in class today.

Reflection of unit…

Before you get to class, think about the following questions…

What have you learnt in this unit?

How have these texts shaped our world?

Can literary devices be used in any texts?

What are the author’s intentions in relying on literary devices and

techniques?

What did you like and what didn’t you like about the unit?

What were the most enjoyable parts of the unit?


Literary devices and terms

(http://literarydevices.net) Allegory

Alliteration

Alliteration

Allusion

Ambiguity

Anaphora

Antagonist

Antithesis

Assonance

Bildungsroman

Gothic (not on site)

Historical reference

Hyperbole

Idiom

Imagery

Inference

Irony

Language (not on site)

Logos

Metaphor

Colloquialism

Comparisons

Conflict (internal/external)

Connotation

Connotation

Contrast

Couplet

Denotation

Denouement

Dialect

Mood

Motif

Narrative

Pathos

Personification

Perspective

Persuasion

Plain folk (not on site)

Point of view

Protagonist

Diction

Epigraph

Epistrophe

Ethos

Euphemism

Flashback

Foreshadow

Glittering generality (not on site)

Repetition

Rhetoric

Rhyme

Setting

Simile

Style

Tone

Voice

[Attachment 4 for lesson 2 & 3]

"1955"

Hilltop Hoods

(feat. Montaigne & Tom Thum)

[Tom Thum:]

"If you're feeling low then give it a go! Try Lambert's Sniffing Salts today"

[Suffa:]

You know when you're doing a song about a small town

You gotta start it with a cliché, you know what I'm sayin'

Time moves a little slower here

The paint peels 'cause the summers here are so severe

And we're nowhere near no where you would know of

Locals here pride, they show up just to show off

Four men take a load off, just to watch the day go by

Philosophizing with their friends like they're Plato

They prophesize on the bench by the main road, right

They got advice; I'm like 'Ayo, if you say so guys'

But what do they know; Fox News got 'em lit

They're shockers, fundamentalists, the new communists

A girl with a shopping list, clutch her handbag close

I'm like "damn man" then it's all backhands, jokes

'Cause I'm a gentlemen, but then again most of are

First name basis in the bank, the post-office, the bar

The grocery, parks, hey lady I ain't tryna grab your pension

The old men on the bench hum

[Tom Thum:]

"Direct from the transistor radio in your lounge room. It's the entertainment that the whole

family can enjoy."

"Well I say looking slick will do the trick so try Barry's Brylcreem cream today!"

[Montaigne & Suffa:]

Well let’s go, lets go

We're living in the days when everybody sayin'

"What a time to be alive"

But I'm feeling out of place like I live in outer space

'Cause it seems I'm stuck in time

It's like we ride through life

Right in the shadow of the cold war

It gets so quiet at night

Like martial law took a hold of '55.

[Suffa:]

Time moves a little slower here

A day feels like a week, a weekend feels like it could go a year

And we're nowhere near nothing, man it's so true

I don't tell 'em where I'm from, I tell 'em where I'm close to

And I can go through an Atlas and show you on a map but

You'd still look me sideways and treat me like I'm backwards

But that's just fine, it so happens I'm

Happy living in a city that is trapped in time

While you're lined up in traffic I'm

Not panicked 'bout transit, I'm back in time

For a TV dinner and an early night

'Cause we get dressed to travel, got an early flight

Been doing laps of the earth while doing laps of the sun

Tryna put where I'm at on the map 'cause where I'm from

Would never get a mention, but all that and then some

Once again the old men on the bench hum

[Tom Thum:]

"And across the country they came in waves. Thousands upon thousands of flying discs

descending from the planet Mars."

"For the closest shave try a Wilson's razor today."


Well let’s go, let’s go








Like martial law took a hold of '55

[Montaigne:]

Where I go, where I go

This will always be home, no matter






This will always be home

[Tom Thum:]

"If you can't beat the summer heat then what you need is a Wordell's. Wordell

Refrigerators: the cooler choice."

"The dieting revolution taking the world by storm."


Well Montaigne lets go








Like martial law took a hold of '55

Premiering on Triple j breakfast this morning, MC Suffa says ‘1955’s about living in a

small town, a place where things don’t change too much. I called it 1955 because

sometimes living in a small town is like living in a different era. I actually love small town

life, obviously it has its drawbacks, but I really enjoy the simplicity and being part of a

community.’

(https://allaussiehiphop.com/2016/02/08/hilltop-hoods-1955-feat-montaigne-tom-thum/,

viewed March 2016).


Critical Reading

Hurricane

Bob Dylan

Pistol shots ring out in the barroom night

Enter Patty Valentine from the upper hall.

She sees the bartender in a pool of blood,

Cries out, "My God, they killed them all!"

Here comes the story of the Hurricane,

The man the authorities came to blame

For somethin' that he never done.

Put in a prison cell, but one time he could-a been

The champion of the moon.

Three bodies lyin' there does Patty see

And another man named Bello, movin' around mysteriously.

"I didn't do it," he says, and he throws up his hands

"I was only robbin' the register, I hope you understand.

I saw them leavin'," he says, and he stops

"One of us had better call up the cops."

And so Patty calls the cops

And they arrive on the scene with their red lights flashin'

In the hot New Jersey night.

Meanwhile, far away in another part of town

Rubin Carter and a couple of friends are drivin' around.

Number one contender for the middleweight crown

Had no idea what kinda shit was about to go down

When a cop pulled him over to the side of the road

Just like the time before and the time before that.

In Paterson that's just the way things go.

If you're black you might as well not show up on the street

'Less you want to draw the heat.

Alfred Bello had a partner and he had a rap for the cops.

Him and Arthur Dexter Bradley were just out prowlin' around

He said, "I saw two men runnin' out, they looked like middleweights

They jumped into a white car with out-of-state plates."

And Miss Patty Valentine just nodded her head.

Cop said, "Wait a minute, boys, this one's not dead"

So they took him to the infirmary

And though this man could hardly see

They told him that he could identify the guilty men.

Four in the mornin' and they haul Rubin in,

Take him to the hospital and they bring him upstairs.

The wounded man looks up through his one dyin' eye

Says, "Wha'd you bring him in here for? He ain't the guy!"

Yes, here's the story of the Hurricane,

The man the authorities came to blame

For somethin' that he never done.


The champion of the world.

Four months later, the ghettos are in flame,

Rubin's in South America, fightin' for his name

While Arthur Dexter Bradley's still in the robbery game

And the cops are puttin' the screws to him, lookin' for somebody to blame.

"Remember that murder that happened in a bar?"

"Remember you said you saw the getaway car?"

"You think you'd like to play ball with the law?"

"Think it might-a been that fighter that you saw runnin' that night?"

"Don't forget that you are white."

Arthur Dexter Bradley said, "I'm really not sure."

Cops said, "A poor boy like you could use a break

We got you for the motel job and we're talkin' to your friend Bello

Now you don't wanta have to go back to jail, be a nice fellow.

You'll be doin' society a favor.

That sonofabitch is brave and gettin' braver.

We want to put his ass in stir

We want to pin this triple murder on him

He ain't no Gentleman Jim."

Rubin could take a man out with just one punch

But he never did like to talk about it all that much.

It's my work, he'd say, and I do it for pay

And when it's over I'd just as soon go on my way

Up to some paradise

Where the trout streams flow and the air is nice

And ride a horse along a trail.

But then they took him to the jailhouse

Where they trialed a man into a mouse.

All of Rubin's cards were marked in advance

The trial was a pig-circus, he never had a chance.

The judge made Rubin's witnesses drunkards from the slums

To the white folks who watched he was a revolutionary bum

And to the black folks he was just a crazy nigger.

No one doubted that he pulled the trigger.

And though they could not produce the gun,

The D.A. said he was the one who did the deed

And the all-white jury agreed.

Rubin Carter was falsely tried.

The crime was murder "one," guess who testified?

Bello and Bradley and they both baldly lied

And the newspapers, they all went along for the ride.

How can the life of such a man

Be in the palm of some fool's hand?

To see him obviously framed

Couldn't help but make me feel ashamed to live in a land

Where justice is a game.

Now all the criminals in their coats and their ties

Are free to drink martinis and watch the sun rise

While Rubin sits like Buddha in a ten-foot cell

An innocent man in a living hell.

That's the story of the Hurricane,

But it won't be over till they clear his name

And give him back the time he's done.


The champion of the world.

Critical Reading Questions:

Provide evidence from the text for each question

1. What messages are being conveyed in this text – what is the authors intent?

2. Who is the target audience?

3. What has the author assumed to be true?

4. What are the author’s attitudes?

5. How does is make the reader feel?

6. Does the author achieve an emotional reaction from reader, if so how?

7. Are the messages of this text true or bias?

8. What was the purpose of this text?


3 April 1968


Martin Luther King, Jr.

Thank you very kindly, my friends. As I listened to Ralph Abernathy and his eloquent and

generous introduction and then thought about myself, I wondered who he was talking

about. [Laughter] It's always good to have your closest friend and associate to say

something good about you, and Ralph Abernathy is the best friend that I have in the

world.

I'm delighted to see each of you here tonight in spite of a storm warning. You reveal that

you are determined [Audience:] (Right) to go on anyhow. (Yeah, All right) Something is

happening in Memphis, something is happening in our world. And you know, if I were

standing at the beginning of time with the possibility of taking a kind of general and

panoramic view of the whole of human history up to now, and the Almighty said to me,

"Martin Luther King, which age would you like to live in?" I would take my mental flight

by Egypt (Yeah), and I would watch God's children in their magnificent trek from the dark

dungeons of Egypt through, or rather, across the Red Sea, through the wilderness, on

toward the Promised Land. And in spite of its magnificence, I wouldn't stop there. (All

right)

I would move on by Greece, and take my mind to Mount Olympus. And I would see

Plato, Aristotle, Socrates, Euripides, and Aristophanes assembled around the Parthenon

[Applause], and I would watch them around the Parthenon as they discussed the great and

eternal issues of reality. But I wouldn't stop there. (Oh yeah)

I would go on even to the great heyday of the Roman Empire (Yes), and I would see

developments around there, through various emperors and leaders. But I wouldn't stop

there. (Keep on)

I would even come up to the day of the Renaissance and get a quick picture of all that the

Renaissance did for the cultural and aesthetic life of man. But I wouldn't stop there.

(Yeah)

I would even go by the way that the man for whom I'm named had his habitat, and I

would watch Martin Luther as he tacks his ninety-five theses on the door at the church of

Wittenberg. But I wouldn't stop there. (All right) But I wouldn't stop there. (Yeah)

[Applause]

I would come on up even to 1863 and watch a vacillating president by the name of

Abraham Lincoln finally come to the conclusion that he had to sign the Emancipation

Proclamation. But I wouldn't stop there. (Yeah) [Applause]

I would even come up to the early thirties and see a man grappling with the problems of

the bankruptcy of his nation, and come with an eloquent cry that "we have nothing to fear

but fear itself." But I wouldn't stop there. (All right)

Strangely enough, I would turn to the Almighty and say, "If you allow me to live just a

few years in the second half of the twentieth century, I will be happy." [Applause]

Now that's a strange statement to make because the world is all messed up. The nation is

sick, trouble is in the land, confusion all around. That's a strange statement. But I know,

somehow, that only when it is dark enough can you see the stars. (All right, Yes) And I see

God working in this period of the twentieth century in a way that men in some strange

way are responding. Something is happening in our world. (Yeah) The masses of people

are rising up. And wherever they are assembled today, whether they are in Johannesburg,

South Africa; Nairobi, Kenya; Accra, Ghana; New York City; Atlanta, Georgia; Jackson,

Mississippi; or Memphis, Tennessee, the cry is always the same: "We want to be free."

[Applause]

And another reason I'm happy to live in this period is that we have been forced to a point

where we are going to have to grapple with the problems that men have been trying to

grapple with through history, but the demands didn't force them to do it. Survival

demands that we grapple with them. (Yes) Men for years now have been talking about war

and peace. But now no longer can they just talk about it. It is no longer a choice between

violence and nonviolence in this world; it's nonviolence or nonexistence. That is where

we are today. [Applause]

And also, in the human rights revolution, if something isn't done and done in a hurry to

bring the colored peoples of the world out of their long years of poverty; their long years

of hurt and neglect, the whole world is doomed. (All right) [Applause] Now I'm just

happy that God has allowed me to live in this period, to see what is unfolding. And I'm

happy that he's allowed me to be in Memphis. (Oh yeah)

I can remember [Applause], I can remember when Negroes were just going around, as

Ralph has said so often, scratching where they didn't itch and laughing when they were

not tickled. [Laughter, applause] But that day is all over. (Yeah) [Applause] We mean

business now and we are determined to gain our rightful place in God's world. (Yeah)

[Applause] And that's all this whole thing is about. We aren't engaged in any negative

protest and in any negative arguments with anybody. We are saying that we are

determined to be men. We are determined to be people. (Yeah) We are saying [Applause],

we are saying that we are God's children. (Yeah) [Applause] And if we are God's children,

we don't have to live like we are forced to live.

Now what does all this mean in this great period of history? It means that we've got to

stay together. (Yeah) We've got to stay together and maintain unity. You know, whenever

Pharaoh wanted to prolong the period of slavery in Egypt, he had a favorite, favorite

formula of doing it. What was that? He kept the slaves fighting among themselves.

[Applause] But whenever the slaves get together, something happens in Pharaoh's court,

and he cannot hold the slaves in slavery. When the slaves get together, that's the

beginning of getting out of slavery. [Applause] Now let us maintain unity.

Secondly, let us keep the issues where they are. (Right) The issue is injustice. The issue is

the refusal of Memphis to be fair and honest in its dealings with its public servants, who

happen to be sanitation workers. [Applause] Now we've got to keep attention on that.

(That's right) That's always the problem with a little violence. You know what happened

the other day, and the press dealt only with the window breaking. (That's right) I read the

articles. They very seldom got around to mentioning the fact that 1,300 sanitation workers

are on strike, and that Memphis is not being fair to them, and that Mayor Loeb is in dire

need of a doctor. They didn't get around to that. (Yeah) [Applause]

Now we're going to march again, and we've got to march again (Yeah), in order to put the

issue where it is supposed to be (Yeah) [Applause] and force everybody to see that there

are thirteen hundred of God's children here suffering (That's right), sometimes going

hungry, going through dark and dreary nights wondering how this thing is going to come

out. That's the issue. (That's right) And we've got to say to the nation, we know how it's

coming out. For when people get caught up with that which is right and they are willing to

sacrifice for it, there is no stopping point short of victory. [Applause]

We aren't going to let any mace stop us. We are masters in our nonviolent movement in

disarming police forces. They don't know what to do. I've seen them so often. I remember

in Birmingham, Alabama, when we were in that majestic struggle there, we would move

out of the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church day after day. By the hundreds we would move

out, and Bull Connor would tell them to send the dogs forth, and they did come. But we

just went before the dogs singing, "Ain't gonna let nobody turn me around." [Applause]

Bull Connor next would say, "Turn the fire hoses on." (Yeah) And as I said to you the

other night, Bull Connor didn't know history. He knew a kind of physics that somehow

didn't relate to the trans-physics that we knew about. And that was the fact that there was

a certain kind of fire that no water could put out. [Applause] And we went before the fire

hoses. (Yeah) We had known water. (All right) If we were Baptist or some other

denominations, we had been immersed. If we were Methodist or some others, we had

been sprinkled. But we knew water. That couldn't stop us. [Applause]

And we just went on before the dogs and we would look at them, and we'd go on before

the water hoses and we would look at it. And we'd just go on singing, "Over my head, I

see freedom in the air." (Yeah) [Applause] And then we would be thrown into paddy

wagons, and sometimes we were stacked in there like sardines in a can. (All right) And

they would throw us in, and old Bull would say, "Take 'em off." And they did, and we

would just go on in the paddy wagon singing, "We Shall Overcome." (Yeah) And every

now and then we'd get in jail, and we'd see the jailers looking through the windows being

moved by our prayers (Yes) and being moved by our words and our songs. (Yes) And

there was a power there which Bull Connor couldn't adjust to (All right), and so we ended

up transforming Bull into a steer, and we on our struggle in Birmingham. [Applause]

Now we've got to go on in Memphis just like that. I call upon you to be with us when we

go out Monday. (Yes) Now about injunctions. We have an injunction and we're going into

court tomorrow morning (Go ahead) to fight this illegal, unconstitutional injunction. All

we say to America is to be true to what you said on paper. [Applause] If I lived in China

or even Russia, or any totalitarian country, maybe I could understand some of these illegal

injunctions. Maybe I could understand the denial of certain basic First Amendment

privileges, because they haven't committed themselves to that over there. But somewhere

I read of the freedom of assembly. Somewhere I read (Yes) of the freedom of speech.

(Yes) Somewhere I read (All right) of the freedom of press. (Yes) Somewhere I read (Yes)

that the greatness of America is the right to protest for right. [Applause] And so just as I

say we aren't going to let any dogs or water hoses turn us around, we aren't going to let

any injunction turn us around. [Applause] We are going on. We need all of you.

You know, what's beautiful to me is to see all of these ministers of the Gospel. (Amen) It's

a marvelous picture. (Yes) Who is it that is supposed to articulate the longings and

aspirations of the people more than the preacher? Somewhere the preacher must have a

kind of fire shut up in his bones (Yes), and whenever injustice is around he must tell it.

(Yes) Somehow the preacher must be an Amos, who said, "When God Speaks, who can

but prophesy?" (Yes) Again with Amos, "Let justice roll down like waters and

righteousness like a mighty stream." (Yes) Somehow the preacher must say with Jesus,

"The spirit of the Lord is upon me (Yes), because He hath anointed me (Yes), and He's

anointed me to deal with the problems of the poor." (Go ahead)

And I want to commend the preachers, under the leadership of these noble men: James

Lawson, one who has been in this struggle for many years. He's been to jail for struggling;

he's been kicked out of Vanderbilt University for this struggling; but he's still going on,

fighting for the rights of his people. [Applause] Reverend Ralph Jackson, Billy Kyles; I

could just go right on down the list, but time will not permit. But I want to thank all of

them, and I want you to thank them because so often preachers aren't concerned about

anything but themselves. [Applause] And I'm always happy to see a relevant ministry. It's

all right to talk about long white robes over yonder, in all of its symbolism, but ultimately

people want some suits and dresses and shoes to wear down here. [Applause] It's all right

to talk about streets flowing with milk and honey, but God has commanded us to be

concerned about the slums down here and His children who can't eat three square meals a

day. [Applause] It's all right to talk about the new Jerusalem, but one day God's preacher

must talk about the new New York, the new Atlanta, the new Philadelphia, the new Los

Angeles, the new Memphis, Tennessee. [Applause] This is what we have to do.

Now the other thing we'll have to do is this: always anchor our external direct action with

the power of economic withdrawal. Now we are poor people, individually we are poor

when you compare us with white society in America. We are poor. Never stop and forget

that collectively, that means all of us together, collectively we are richer than all the

nations in the world, with the exception of nine. Did you ever think about that? After you

leave the United States, Soviet Russia, Great Britain, West Germany, France, and I could

name the others, the American Negro collectively is richer than most nations of the world.

We have an annual income of more than thirty billion dollars a year, which is more than

all of the exports of the United States and more than the national budget of Canada. Did

you know that? That's power right there, if we know how to pool it. (Yeah) [Applause]

We don't have to argue with anybody. We don't have to curse and go around acting bad

with our words. We don't need any bricks and bottles; we don't need any Molotov

cocktails. (Yes) We just need to go around to these stores (Yes sir), and to these massive

industries in our country (Amen), and say, "God sent us by here (All right) to say to you

that you're not treating His children right. (That's right) And we've come by here to ask

you to make the first item on your agenda fair treatment where God's children are

concerned. Now if you are not prepared to do that, we do have an agenda that we must

follow. And our agenda calls for withdrawing economic support from you." [Applause]

And so, as a result of this, we are asking you tonight (Amen) to go out and tell your

neighbors not to buy Coca-Cola in Memphis. (Yeah) [Applause] Go by and tell them not

to buy Sealtest milk. (Yeah)[Applause] Tell them not to buy–what is the other bread?–

Wonder Bread. [Applause] And what is the other bread company, Jesse? Tell them not to

buy Hart's bread. [Applause] As Jesse Jackson has said, up to now only the garbage men

have been feeling pain. Now we must kind of redistribute that pain. [Applause] We are

choosing these companies because they haven't been fair in their hiring policies, and we

are choosing them because they can begin the process of saying they are going to support

the needs and the rights of these men who are on strike. And then they can move on

downtown and tell Mayor Loeb to do what is right. (That's right, Speak) [Applause]

Now not only that, we've got to strengthen black institutions. (That's right, Yeah) I call

upon you to take your money out of the banks downtown and deposit your money in Tri-

State Bank. (Yeah) [Applause] We want a "bank-in" movement in Memphis. (Yes) Go by

the savings and loan association. I'm not asking you something that we don't do ourselves

in SCLC. Judge Hooks and others will tell you that we have an account here in the

savings and loan association from the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. We are

telling you to follow what we're doing, put your money there. [Applause] You have six or

seven black insurance companies here in the city of Memphis. Take out your insurance

there. We want to have an "insurance-in." [Applause] Now these are some practical things

that we can do. We begin the process of building a greater economic base, and at the same

time, we are putting pressure where it really hurts. (There you go) And I ask you to follow

through here. [Applause]

Now let me say as I move to my conclusion that we've got to give ourselves to this

struggle until the end. (Amen) Nothing would be more tragic than to stop at this point in

Memphis. We've got to see it through. [Applause] And when we have our march, you

need to be there. If it means leaving work, if it means leaving school, be there. [Applause]

Be concerned about your brother. You may not be on strike (Yeah), but either we go up

together or we go down together. [Applause] Let us develop a kind of dangerous

unselfishness.

One day a man came to Jesus and he wanted to raise some questions about some vital

matters of life. At points he wanted to trick Jesus (That's right), and show him that he

knew a little more than Jesus knew and throw him off base. [Recording interrupted] Now

that question could have easily ended up in a philosophical and theological debate. But

Jesus immediately pulled that question from midair and placed it on a dangerous curve

between Jerusalem and Jericho. (Yeah) And he talked about a certain man who fell among

thieves. (Sure) You remember that a Levite (Sure) and a priest passed by on the other

side; they didn't stop to help him. Finally, a man of another race came by. (Yes sir) He got

down from his beast, decided not to be compassionate by proxy. But he got down with

him, administered first aid, and helped the man in need. Jesus ended up saying this was

the good man, this was the great man because he had the capacity to project the "I" into

the "thou," and to be concerned about his brother.

Now, you know, we use our imagination a great deal to try to determine why the priest

and the Levite didn't stop. At times we say they were busy going to a church meeting, an

ecclesiastical gathering, and they had to get on down to Jerusalem so they wouldn't be late

for their meeting. (Yeah) At other times we would speculate that there was a religious law

that one who was engaged in religious ceremonials was not to touch a human body

twenty-four hours before the ceremony. (All right) And every now and then we begin to

wonder whether maybe they were not going down to Jerusalem, or down to Jericho,

rather, to organize a Jericho Road Improvement Association. [Laughter] That's a

possibility. Maybe they felt it was better to deal with the problem from the causal root,

rather than to get bogged down with an individual effect. [Laughter]

But I'm going to tell you what my imagination tells me. It's possible that those men were

afraid. You see, the Jericho Road is a dangerous road. (That's right) I remember when

Mrs. King and I were first in Jerusalem. We rented a car and drove from Jerusalem down

to Jericho. (Yeah) And as soon as we got on that road I said to my wife, "I can see why

Jesus used this as the setting for his parable." It's a winding, meandering road. (Yes) It's

really conducive for ambushing. You start out in Jerusalem, which is about twelve

hundred miles, or rather, twelve hundred feet above sea level. And by the time you get

down to Jericho fifteen or twenty minutes later, you're about twenty-two feet below sea

level. That's a dangerous road. (Yes) In the days of Jesus it came to be known as the

"Bloody Pass." And you know, it's possible that the priest and the Levite looked over that

man on the ground and wondered if the robbers were still around. (Go ahead) Or it's

possible that they felt that the man on the ground was merely faking (Yeah), and he was

acting like he had been robbed and hurt in order to seize them over there, lure them there

for quick and easy seizure. (Oh yeah) And so the first question that the priest asked, the

first question that the Levite asked was, "If I stop to help this man, what will happen to

me?" (All right)

But then the Good Samaritan came by, and he reversed the question: "If I do not stop to

help this man, what will happen to him?" That's the question before you tonight. (Yes)

Not, "If I stop to help the sanitation workers, what will happen to my job?" Not, "If I stop

to help the sanitation workers, what will happen to all of the hours that I usually spend in

my office every day and every week as a pastor?" (Yes) The question is not, "If I stop to

help this man in need, what will happen to me?" The question is, "If I do not stop to help

the sanitation workers, what will happen to them?" That's the question. [Applause]

Let us rise up tonight with a greater readiness. Let us stand with a greater determination.

And let us move on in these powerful days, these days of challenge, to make America

what it ought to be. We have an opportunity to make America a better nation. (Amen)

And I want to thank God, once more, for allowing me to be here with you. (Yes sir) You

know, several years ago I was in New York City autographing the first book that I had

written. And while sitting there autographing books, a demented black woman came up.

The only question I heard from her was, "Are you Martin Luther King?" And I was

looking down writing and I said, "Yes."

The next minute I felt something beating on my chest. Before I knew it I had been stabbed

by this demented woman. I was rushed to Harlem Hospital. It was a dark Saturday

afternoon. And that blade had gone through, and the X rays revealed that the tip of the

blade was on the edge of my aorta, the main artery. And once that's punctured you're

drowned in your own blood, that's the end of you. (Yes sir) It came out in the New York

Times the next morning that if I had merely sneezed, I would have died.

Well, about four days later, they allowed me, after the operation, after my chest had been

opened and the blade had been taken out, to move around in the wheelchair of the

hospital. They allowed me to read some of the mail that came in, and from all over the

states and the world kind letters came in. I read a few, but one of them I will never forget.

I had received one from the president and the vice president; I've forgotten what those

telegrams said. I'd received a visit and a letter from the governor of New York, but I've

forgotten what that letter said. (Yes)

But there was another letter (All right) that came from a little girl, a young girl who was a

student at the White Plains High School. And I looked at that letter and I'll never forget it.

It said simply, "Dear Dr. King: I am a ninth-grade student at the White Plains High

School." She said, "While it should not matter, I would like to mention that I'm a white

girl. I read in the paper of your misfortune and of your suffering. And I read that if you

had sneezed, you would have died. And I'm simply writing you to say that I'm so happy

that you didn't sneeze." (Yes) [Applause]

And I want to say tonight [Applause], I want to say tonight that I, too, am happy that I

didn't sneeze. Because if I had sneezed (All right), I wouldn't have been around here in

1960 (Well), when students all over the South started sitting-in at lunch counters. And I

knew that as they were sitting in, they were really standing up (Yes sir) for the best in the

American dream and taking the whole nation back to those great wells of democracy,

which were dug deep by the founding fathers in the Declaration of Independence and the

Constitution.

If I had sneezed (Yes), I wouldn't have been around here in 1961, when we decided to take

a ride for freedom and ended segregation in interstate travel. (All right)

If I had sneezed (Yes), I wouldn't have been around here in 1962, when Negroes in

Albany, Georgia, decided to straighten their backs up. And whenever men and women

straighten their backs up, they are going somewhere, because a man can't ride your back

unless it is bent.

If I had sneezed [Applause], if I had sneezed, I wouldn't have been here in 1963 (All

right), when the black people of Birmingham, Alabama, aroused the conscience of this

nation and brought into being the Civil Rights Bill.

If I had sneezed, I wouldn't have had a chance later that year, in August, to try to tell

America about a dream that I had had. (Yes)

If I had sneezed [Applause], I wouldn't have been down in Selma, Alabama, to see the

great movement there.

If I had sneezed, I wouldn't have been in Memphis to see a community rally around those

brothers and sisters who are suffering. (Yes) I'm so happy that I didn't sneeze.

And they were telling me. [Applause] Now it doesn't matter now. (Go ahead) It really

doesn't matter what happens now. I left Atlanta this morning, and as we got started on the

plane–there were six of us–the pilot said over the public address system: "We are sorry

for the delay, but we have Dr. Martin Luther King on the plane. And to be sure that all of

the bags were checked, and to be sure that nothing would be wrong on the plane, we had

to check out everything carefully. And we've had the plane protected and guarded all

night."

And then I got into Memphis. And some began to say the threats, or talk about the threats

that were out (Yeah), or what would happen to me from some of our sick white brothers.

Well, I don't know what will happen now; we've got some difficult days ahead. (Amen)

But it really doesn't matter to with me now, because I've been to the mountaintop. (Yeah)

[Applause] And I don't mind. [Applause continues] Like anybody, I would like to live a

long life–longevity has its place. But I'm not concerned about that now. I just want to do

God's will. (Yeah) And He's allowed me to go up to the mountain. (Go ahead) And I've

looked over (Yes sir), and I've seen the Promised Land. (Go ahead) I may not get there

with you. (Go ahead) But I want you to know tonight (Yes), that we, as a people, will get

to the Promised Land. [Applause] (Go ahead, Go ahead) And so I'm happy tonight; I'm

not worried about anything; I'm not fearing any man. Mine eyes have seen the glory of the

coming of the Lord. [Applause]

Delivered at Bishop Charles Mason Temple.

(http://kingencyclopedia.stanford.edu/encyclopedia/documentsentry/ive_been_to_the_mo

untaintop/, viewed March, 2016)

Cherie Thompson

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