UNIT:
Lesson: 8
Text Title
“Speak the Truth to the People, I am a Black Woman” by Mari Evans
Main Idea
In “Speak the Truth to the People”, Evans provides a road map to a liberated mind by suggesting African Americans change the focus from protesting against the oppressive system to the edification of self. Evans’ use of literary devices such as repetition, capitalization and bold text highlights what she values most and believes to be the tools for advancement.
Essential Question
The unit essential questions developed in this lesson are:
- How can poetry highlight a community’s strengths, challenges and ambitions?
Content Objective
By engaging in this lesson, students will know/understand that…
Theme is an underlying message an author has communicated through a text. It differs from the central idea. Multiple themes can be expressed in a text. In “Speak the Truth to the People”, explicit themes such as honesty are expressed through the title and its repetition throughout the poem. Another explicit theme is freedom as the speaker speaks repeatedly of a freed mind. Other themes that are implicit:
- Distractions… “Can be enslaved by his brother whom he loves.”
- Envy…”it is not necessary to green the heart.”
- Accomplishment…”To Build…”
- Unity…”move instead to BLACK ONENESS.”
- Social Justice…”A Black strength…dissembles the structure.”
Literacy Objective
By engaging in this lesson, students will strengthen their ability to…
- Identify theme within a poem using the central idea, word choice, structure and literary devices
Standards Alignment
- Analyze the development of a theme or central idea over the course of a work of literature, including its relationship to the characters, setting, and plot; provide a detailed summary that supports the analysis. (8.RL.2.2)
