WebQuest
Social Context of A Doll's House
Process
1. You will begin thisWebQuest by forming groups of three to four students. Your partners will assist you with you research, analysis of the play and editing your letter to the editor.
2. Each group member selects a different one of the generic Victorian characters from the following list.
- An upper-middle class man
- An upper-middle class woman
- A working class woman
- A working class man
- A suffragette
3. Download the "Developing Character Profile" organizer from the link at the bottom of the page. You may print it out and fill it in by hand or type in your answers and print it out when you are finished.
4. Research your chosen character. Use the links listed below and complete your "Developing Character Profile." You must read from sources addressing all of the topics below to get a clear picture of Victorian society. Don't focus just on one category.
Society in general Interesting site devoted to fashion, but containing solid overviews on a number of topics http://www.fashion-era.com/victorians.htm Has great overview of entire period divided into short topics, easy to search http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/trail/victorian_britain/ Excellent site focus on gender issues, articles a bit long http://www.fathom.com/course/10701039/sessions.html Excellent site concise overviews. Be sure to search topics in menu on the left http://www.wwnorton.com/college/english/nael/victorian/welcome.htm Huge site, great material, maybe too much
Women
http://www.cwrl.utexas.edu/~ulrich/femhist/marriage.shtml
http://crayzray.tripod.com/clpage/writtings/other/victorian_women.htm
http://www.wwnorton.com/college/english/nael/victorian/topic_2/welcome.htm
http://www.womeninworldhistory.com/lesson7.html
Suffragettes
http://teacher.scholastic.com/activities/suffrage/history.htm
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/3153388.stm
http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/suffragettes.htm
http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/historic_figures/pankhurst_emmeline.shtml
Men
http://www.lahacal.org/gentleman/behavior.html
5. After completing character profiles, group members should share and discuss their results. Group members should offer suggestions for refining and improving each others work.
6. Now that you know something about Victorian society and its norms, working together, each group compiles a list of characters, events and actions from the play that deviate from the Victorian ideal.
7. Open and read the review of the play from the link at the bottom of the page. This review was written in 1889. Compare the reviewer's complaints to the list you generated in #6.
8. You are almost ready to begin composing your letter to the editor. Before you start writing, visit the sites linked below to learn about correct business letter format and tips for writing letters to the editor. You will be using the Full Block style. Your letter will be graded on format and style as well as content. Carefully read the Letter to the Editor Rubric linked at the bottom of the page.
Business Letter Format
http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/653/01/#resourcenav
http://teacher.scholastic.com/lessonplans/Format.pdf
Letter to the Editor
http://www.ncte.org/about/issues/action/resources/122268.htm
http://www.mapinc.org/resource/how2lte.htm
http://letterstoeditors.net/about/tips.html
9. You may now compose your letter to the editor of the London Times. Remember you are composing this letter from the point of view of your character. In this letter you state your opinion on the play A Doll's House. Your letter should accurately reflect Victorian attitudes by making specific social and cultural references as well as refer to specific parts of the play.
10. Once all group members have completed the 1st drafts of their letters, you should peer evaluate each others' work using the Letter to Editor Rubric linked at the bottom of the page. Print out the rubric and complete it for your group members' letters. Mark up and make suggestions directly on each others' 1st drafts. Help each other compose the best letter possible
11. Make revisions to your paper and submit it to the teacher along with your 1st draft and your "Developing Character Profile" organizer.
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