eng131: lesson plan for adichie's "the thing around your neck"
TRANSCRIPT
MATERIAL OBJECTS INCHIMAMANDA NGOZI
ADICHIE’S “THE THING AROUND YOUR
NECK”
Write a list of all the material objects you can think of in Adichie’s story “The Thing Around Your Neck,” especially the ones that seem to have specific significance.
Everyone share one object you noticed, creating a collective list on the board.
LITERARY STRATEGIES AND MATERIAL OBJECTS
ANALYZING ADICHIE’S USE OF MATERIAL OBJECTS
Work in groups of 5.Each group should choose one object
from the list on the board.Explore what significance that object
has to the story: why does Adichie include it? How does she describe it? (Try to include a quote.) What information does it give us about a character, or a situation? What literal and metaphorical associations does it carry? Think back to the first week of class and “twenty questions to ask an object,” to consider how we can read objects on a literal and metaphorical level.
Share your analysis with the class.
What is Adichie trying to say through this story? How do these objects help you better understand her overall point?
What is “the thing around your neck”? Why does she use this image? What are the different possible interpretations for this image?
Why does Adichie use second person in the story? What effect does this achieve, and how does it contribute to her overall point?
CONNECT OBJECTS TO LARGER PURPOSE OF THE STORY
Provides a strategy for developing your essays
Shows there are many ways of looking at a text
Illuminates relationship between people and things
Offers a method for active reading
WHY TRACE OBJECTS IN LITERATURE?
Barbara Kruger, “I Shop Therefore I Am,” 1987.
Track an object or series of objects in one of the texts we’ve read, using its literal and metaphorical associations to make a claim about the text. Consider how relationships between people, groups of people, or nations are formed and negotiated through objects, paying attention to the strategies authors use in describing and emphasizing certain objects. What can writers communicate through descriptions of material objects that they might not be able to express through other forms of description?
ONE POSSIBLE PROMPT FOR ESSAY TWO