Each group could then read their summative paragraph to you and key words/phrases could be collated on the board.

Transcription

1 Note to the teacher The following resource focuses on various points or arguments about Graham Greene s short story, The Destructors (of varying complexity/difficulty level). You can either follow the lesson outline below (groups provide arguments for or against each point, and then practise summarising the main points and feeding back), or you could use the points as the basis for end of reading essay tasks/quick discussion activities or class debate. Idea in detail Working in pairs or small groups, students read the various points and then expand on them, giving evidence in favour or disagreeing with them, justifying doing so. (Students can use the write on sheets for this.) This teaches them to engage with other opinions (i.e. critics opinions) without merely quoting them. Once students have spent, say five minutes on one point, they can then move on to another point and fill in the relevant part of a different sheet etc. You may like to set a time limit on this in order to avoid chaos and keep students on task the Teachit Timer is useful, or you could play some music so that there is a concentrated, focused atmosphere. Once the groups/pairs have put together their thoughts on three points, feedback can be taken. If you wanted, all the groups thoughts on one point could be given to one group and so on Each group can then work on linking all the contributions by using suitable connectives to formulate a paragraph. (Students can use the Putting it all together sheet that could be copied onto the back of each of the task sheets for this purpose). This teaches students to structure information, weaving amassed thoughts into a coherent argument in their own words. Each group could then read their summative paragraph to you and key words/phrases could be collated on the board. Finally, every student should then get their own summative sheet to fill in. This teaches them to sort information, put it into their own words using the key words as prompts and then to consider what this suggests about the author s purpose or intent in writing the story. To guide their thinking, remind students that these children were growing up with destruction all around them and scant parental control. Society was changing: the former social structure was being torn down both destructive and yet liberating and a new one not yet built. Like poems, stories can work on several levels, with the literal suggesting the metaphorical Page 1 of 15

2 Thinking points (cut-uppable strips) In this short story, Graham Greene portrays ordinary people who have the capacity for both good and evil. Graham Greene shows us flawed characters sympathetically, commenting on the degradation (ruin) of the individual in the modern world. Graham Greene portrays a world in transition, a society moving away from respect for culture toward a delight in chaos. This story can be interpreted as a parable (educational tale) about depravity (decadence, corruption, wickedness). The gang s assault on a beautiful old house possesses numerous and striking similarities to the Judeo-Christian story of Satan s rebellion against God and man s loss of Paradise. What is most perplexing about the story is its tone: the omniscient (all-knowing) narrator, curiously uninvolved in the tale he is telling, provides the reader with no clue as to how he should respond to the destruction of the house. This story is about the order/chaos conflict. The underlying theological explanation for this ever-present conflict is suggested by the obvious symbolism of the name: the Wormsley Common Gang. This suggests that the devil (the worm) lives even in the hearts of these boys who are, to all overt appearances, normal in every way. Trevor himself is not evil incarnate. The student of Greene s fiction knows the strong proclivity (tendency) of the author for the saint-sinner paradox Trevor s motivations might be different from the rest of the gang when it comes to destroying the house The Wormsley Common gang are rebelling against one generation and its values, but their rebellion is executed (carried out) in a way that precisely mirrors the destruction they have come to know growing up in the war. The author believes that with destruction comes creation. Something is destroyed, but from it comes something new Page 2 of 15

3 In this short story, Graham Greene portrays ordinary people who have the capacity for both good and evil Page 3 of 15

4 Graham Greene shows us flawed characters sympathetically, commenting on the degradation (ruin) of the individual in the modern world Page 4 of 15

5 Graham Greene portrays a world in transition (change), a society moving away from respect for culture toward a delight in chaos Page 5 of 15

6 This story can be interpreted as a parable (fable) on depravity (decadence; corruption; wickedness) Page 6 of 15

7 The gang s assault on a beautiful old house possesses numerous and striking similarities to the Judeo-Christian story of Satan s rebellion against God and man s loss of Paradise Page 7 of 15

8 What is most perplexing about the story is its tone: the omniscient narrator, curiously uninvolved in the tale he is telling, provides the reader with no clue as to how he should respond to the destruction of the house Page 8 of 15

9 This story is about the order/chaos conflict. The underlying (core) theological explanation for this ever-present conflict is suggested by the obvious symbolism of the name: the Wormsley Common Gang. This suggests that the devil (the worm) lives even in the hearts of these boys who are, to all overt (obvious) appearances, normal in every way Page 9 of 15

10 Trevor himself is quite definitely not evil incarnate. The student of Greene's fiction knows the strong proclivity (tendency) of the author for the saint/sinner paradox Page 10 of 15

11 Trevor s motivations might be different from the rest of the gang when it comes to destroying the house Page 11 of 15

12 The Wormsley Common gang are rebelling against one generation and its values, but their rebellion is executed (carried out) in a way that precisely mirrors the destruction they have come to know growing up in the war Page 12 of 15

13 The author believes with destruction comes creation. Something is destroyed, but from it comes something new Page 13 of 15

14 :... Putting it all together: Carefully consider all the information on the front of the sheet, including the original statement. Your task is to transform it all into a PEE paragraph. Remember to use connectives to link the bits of information, subordinators when adding detail to a main clause and modal verbs to suggest possibility. You will be asked to present your summative paragraph to the class Key words/phrases: Page 14 of 15

15 Name:... Summative notes: Jot down the main points made when the class gives feedback on their opinions, evidence and explanations. Use these to consider the author s purpose in writing this. Examples of good: Examples of chaos/destruction: Examples of evil: Examples of order/creativity: I think Graham Greene s purpose in writing this story was: Page 15 of 15