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Ms. Gulitti Name_________________________

English I Period________________________

Background Preparation:

To Kill a Mockingbird

Directions: Known as one of the most powerful and moving novels of the 20th Century, Harper Lee’s To Kill A Mockingbird is a timeless novel about growing up in the South during the Great Depression. It is full of important messages about racism, fairness, friendship, and what it means to be a community. This research project has been designed to help you truly understand the historical and social context of this novel.

You will spend the next week or two in the library to research and gather information on your assigned topic. You will find the answers to all of the questions and complete the tasks listed below for your assigned topic. Though many of you will be researching the same topics and at times work together with the librarian, ALL written work (annotations and Works Cited page) is to be completed individually.

Research topics for To Kill a Mockingbird

Directions:

1. Read the questions for Part I and for the topic you were assigned in Part II, and circle the key words that will help you choose the best place to begin your research.

2. Based on Ms. Ryder’s instruction, and using the database page listed by subject, select at least 2 databases that you will use and write the names of those databases on the line following your assigned questions.

PART I: To be completed by everyone!

Author Biography

a. Who is Harper Lee? Where did she grow up, and what did her father do for a living?

b. List 3 important facts about Lee’s personal life, particularly focusing on her close childhood friend(s). How might such facts have influenced Lee in her writing? What famous author is portrayed through the character Dill?

I will start my research using: _______________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________

PART II: Individual Research Assigned by Topics

I am assigned topic #___________________.

Topic One: The Great Depression I

a. Who was FDR? How did the country’s economy influence his leadership?

b. What famous speech did FDR state that “we have nothing to fear but fear itself?” What was the purpose of that speech?

c. What was the WPA? Explain its purpose.

I will start my research using: _______________________________________________

Topic Two: The Great Depression II

a. What was the New Deal?

b. Explain two important components of tenets of the New Deal.

c. How was discrimination evident in the administration of New Deal relief measures?

I will start my research using: _______________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________

Topic Three: Jim Crow Laws I

a. What was the Supreme Court’s verdict in the 1896 case, Plessy vs. Ferguson. Why was that verdict significant?

b. Who was the fictional character Jim Crow? Why were the laws of segregation named after this character?

c. Listed below are specific civil rights that we Americans hold sacred, yet were denied many African Americans due to Jim Crow laws. These rights are: entertainment, freedom of speech, health care, housing, use of public libraries, marriage, transportation, employment. From this list choose two rights and for each one chosen, complete the following:

1. Identify the state and law created to deny such rights.

2. Explain how each law was dehumanizing and what possible suffering African Americans endured from such a law.

I will start my research using: _______________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________

Topic Four: Jim Crow Laws II

a. What was the KKK and on what principles was this organization formed?

b. Where and when did this organization originate?

c. What is the NAACP? Who founded this organization and what purpose did it serve?

I will start my research using: _______________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________

Topic Five: The Scottsboro Trials I

a. Where and when did this famous American trial take place?

b. How did the setting of this event and the economy affect the defendants of this particular case? Be specific.

c. Identify the two women who accused the “nine Negro brutes” of rape. List at least two significant details about these women which may include age, physical description, familiarity with one another, and their life circumstances.

I will start my research using: _______________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________

Topic Six: The Scottsboro Trials II

a. List at least three significant details about the “nine Negro brutes” accused of raping two white women. This may include age, physical conditions, and familiarity with one another.

b. According to the details of these men, would it be possible that they could be guilty of such crimes? Explain why or why not.

c. What was the sentence of a convicted rapist according to Alabama law? Why is this particularly significant?

I will start my research using: _______________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________

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To successfully complete this assignment you will:

❑ Locate at least five articles in at least two different databases (NO WEBSITES!)

❑ Read and highlight your printed sources to determine answers to questions.

❑ Compile a correct ANNOTATED Works Cited page using Noodle Bib, citing the sources used for answering questions in BOTH parts I and II. The answers to the questions should be included in this annotated page.

They must be paraphrased and written in complete sentences.

❑ All annotated answers must include BOTH parenthetical AND in text citations to avoid plagiarism.

❑ You are to use only ONE source per question. Do NOT use the same source more than once.

❑ Follow any recommendations that the librarian has.

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