This unit is primarily focused on the understanding and interpretation of democracy by various authors in the course of the centuries. It is appropriate for College English 3, College English 4, AP English Language and Composition, and AP English Literature. The unit will start with the following essential questions: What is your interpretation of democracy? What is the most important aspect of democracy? The unit will present various documents:
An Agent, a Green Card, and a Demand for Sex
by Nina Bernstein, excerpts from Aristotle’s
Politics
and
Julius Caesar
by W. Shakespeare, some election paintings by George Caleb Bingham -
The County Canvass
also known as
Stump Speaking
,
The Verdict of the People
, and
The County Election
,
America
and
Let America Be America Again
by Langston Hughes,
Waiting for Lefty
by Clifford Odets, one excerpt from
The Grapes of Wrath
by Steinbeck compared to some clips from Henry Fonda film, and the movie
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington
by F. Capra. The unit will analyze visual and written texts in order to understand, to compare and contrast, to synthesize, and to evaluate and discuss the concept of democracy, its causes and effects. It will also require various writing activities throughout the entire unit together with a final project that will be in the form of a documented essay and a presentation, or a simple documented visual for those students who have special needs.
