Disobedience and Dystopias

1. Disobedience and Dystopias Violence, rebellion, and civil disobedience in Kurt Vonnegut’s Harrison Bergeron. Day 1

2. Watch the following trailer: • Robin Hood Trailer • Is Robin Hood an example of someone who committed civil disobedience? • Why or why not?

3. Can civil disobedience be violent? • Does it become something else when violence is involved? • What does it become? ?

4. C.D. is usually non-violent C.D. involves one or more individuals Individuals practicing C.D. accept punishment to appeal to the conscience of the public Rebellion is usually violent Rebellions usually involve many people Rebels do not willingly accept punishment; their aim is the destruction of the government. Civil disobedience vs.. Rebellion

5. Commonalities… *Both civil disobedience and rebellion are a form of disobedience against a government or occupying power. *Both civil disobedience and rebellion have one or more political goals. *Both civil disobedience and rebellion involve breaking the law.

6. Today we’re going to read a story called Harrison Bergeron • It was written by Kurt Vonnegut Jr. But before we start . . .

7. We’re going to do an activity called a Problematic Situation

9. Try to answer the following questions: What are the problems you are facing? How will you respond? Will you respond alone or will you seek help? Who will you ask to help you? What risks are involved with the action you plan to take? What are your concerns? What are possible solutions?

10. Problems: _________________ _________________ _________________ Solutions/Concerns/?s _________________ _________________ _________________ What will you do? Write your ideas on your Problematic Situation worksheet.

11. Now, begin reading Harrison Bergeron . . . • As you read, keep your answers and ideas from the Problematic Situation activity in mind. • When you’re done reading, think about whether or not you would change anything about your responses. • Is what you decided to do different from or similar to what actually happens in the text?

12. Disobedience and Dystopias Day 2

13. Look at the following images: dan-dare.org spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk hark.com What do these three things have in common?

14. Answer: S A T I R E • John Stewart, Southpark, and Charlie Chaplin have all used satire. What is satire?

15. Watch the following educational video clip: • "What is Satire?” • As you watch, write down at least one key idea relating to satire.

16. Satire is a literary technique that aims to critique a subject by making it ridiculous through the use of humor and exaggeration. Satire derides in order to point out the problems with a given individual, class, institution, political system, element of society, or other entity. What are some examples? Pair share to come up with some ideas.

17. These are the four techniques that satirists often employ: • Exaggeration - representing something as bigger, larger, better, or worse than it really is. • Incongruity - when something is not in harmony or keeping with the other surroundings/aspects of something. • Reversal - a change to an opposite position, direction, action, or state. • Parody - an imitation of the style of a particular artist, writer, genre, or period.

18. Is Harrison Bergeron satirical? • Why or why not? • Use what you know about satire to explain your reasoning. • Go back to the text and underline any examples of the four techniques.

19. Watch the following trailer: 2081 This is a trailer for a film called 2081. It is an adaptation of the story, Harrison Bergeron. *As you watch, write down one key word that relates to the story.

20. How does the trailer compare to the story? • Based on the trailer, do you think the film is an accurate portrayal of the story? • What similarities or differences did you notice between the story and the trailer? • What key word did you write down? ACTIVITY: Write down a single word that you think bestdescribes what the story is about. Only write down ONE WORD!

21. Here’s another word that could be used to describe the story: • DYSTOPIA • What is a dystopia? • What are the characteristics of a dystopian society?

22. A dystopia is . . . “A very unpleasant imaginary world in which ominous tendencies of our present social, political, and technological order are projected into a disastrous future culmination”. Can you think of any examples?

23. How is Harrison Bergeron an example of a dystopia? • What characteristics of the society Vonnegut describes make it dystopian? • *Refer back to the text and cite specific examples. • Why might an author create a story about a dystopian society? To make what kinds of statements? About what? • What statement, if any, is the story making?

24. Now we’re going to do some creative writing! But first . . . • Let’s brainstorm and come up with a list of ideals/beliefs/things that our society (American society) values. • What is considered important in our culture? Pair share to come up with ideas.

25. Examples: Freedom Money Technology Power Security Privacy Independence Progress Intelligence Justice Youth Beauty

26. Your assignment: • You are going to create your own version of a dystopian society and describe it in writing. • Your description should be 1-2 pages, typed. • *One way to begin is to pick one of the values from the previous slide and think about how, if that value were to be taken to the extreme, it could become frightening and oppressive. • This assignment will be due at the beginning of the next class period. • Sentence Starter: “The year was ________ and the government had become obsessed with _____________.”

27. Resources: • A Glossary of Literary Terms(Eighth Edition, M.H. Abrams. Thomson Wadsworth, Boston, MA: 2005). • Harrison Bergeron, Kurt Vonnegut, 1961 (http://www.tnellen.com/cybereng/harrison.html). • Youtube: www.youtube.com • Learning Strategies (Lenski, Wham, Johns, and Caskey, Kendell Hunt, 2011, Fourth Edition). • www.readwritethink.org • www.wikipedia.com