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The Shaping Role of Place

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Chains and Wings: Limitations and Opportunities for African-Americans

From Emancipation to the Renaissance
A unit plan for grade 10 English
Emily Olds

These 10th grade units will be included in a year-long study of the Pledge of Allegiance and American literature. In September, students will write a response to their understanding of (or questions about) the pledge. Throughout the year, we will read novels, plays, poetry, speeches, and essays that reflect American history, literature, and philosophy, and then go back to the Pledge of Allegiance for new insights and reactions. At the end of the year, students will again react to the pledge, drawing on information and insights gained from our readings.

Two topics within this year-long plan relate to the African-American Biography Curriculum project. After reading Uncle Tom’s Cabin, students will move into a study of reconstruction and the varying philosophies regarding African-American advancement. This study is crucial to our understanding of the pledge, especially the phrase “one nation…indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.” We will read some historical background on the period of reconstruction, and then examine the philosophies of W.E.B. DuBois and Booker T. Washington.
Next, we will examine the Harlem Renaissance. We will read historical background, including information regarding the changing economic scene and the emergence of the spirit of the “New Negro.” Then we will focus on the arts of the time period, especially the poetry, fiction, essays, music, photography, and painting of Harlem artists. Students will be asked to compare and contrast these expressions of African-American culture with the philosophies of DuBois and Washington studied earlier. Keeping in mind the overarching idea of the pledge of allegiance, this study will illuminate the artistic advances made by African-Americans as well as the challenges they faced in obtaining “liberty and justice for all.”
The theme of the Pledge of Allegiance overarches all that we study this year. The connection between historical period and literature is also essential. Students will be asked to read analytically, examining the authors’ rhetorical techniques and word choice, and they will respond to readings through free writing or discussion. These discussions will be largely student led, with the teacher presenting a prompt or question to begin. There will be several objective assessments to ensure students’ understanding of the main ideas and supporting details of essays and historical background. Finally, students will synthesize their knowledge in a culminating artistic project.
Integration with the arts and history is essential to these units. As an interdisciplinary learner, I continually strive to find ways to connect the English curriculum to the arts and history. No less important is my passion for social justice, which is reflected in my choice of the Pledge of Allegiance as a guiding idea. The connection between the arts, history, and social justice is ideally suited for the African-American Biography Curriculum Project. The Berkshires are well known for their historical and artistic resources. Our place in African-American history, art, and social causes must be brought to the fore as well.
The Massachusetts Curriculum Frameworks specify that students will “Relate a literary work to primary source documents of its literary period or historical setting” (9.6) These units of study will certainly apply to that standard, as well as meeting expectations for discussion, reading, and writing. Additionally, the frameworks ask that students “Compare and contrast the presentation of a theme or topic across genres to explain how the selection of genre shapes the message” (10.5). Given the interdisciplinary nature of the Harlem Renaissance unit, this standard will also be attainable. Finally, in our close reading of the works discussed above, we will be meeting standard 15.7 which asks that students “Evaluate how an author’s choice of words advances the theme or purpose of a work.”