Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs provides the lens class members use to analyze and evaluate the motivations of the characters in Sylvia Plath's "Initiation" and scenes from Mean Girls. Readers then select a character from A Separate Peace, and chart the growth and change in that character who either does or does not follow Maslow's ideas.

Concepts

literary analysis, world war ii, identity, self identity, close reading

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Additional Tags

english language arts

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Instructional Ideas

• Have the group that researched the psychological approach to literary criticism share their findings with the class

Classroom Considerations

• The fifth lesson in a series of nine, designed for a gifted and talented English language arts class, that uses A Separate Peace as the anchor text
• The lesson presumes class members have an understanding of direct and indirect characterization as well as internal and external conflict

Pros

• The six-page resource includes the lesson, a link to background reading of Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs, and directions for the culminating presentation

Cons

• None

Common Core

RL.11-12.1 RL.11-12.3 RL.11-12.5 RL.11-12.10a RI.11-12.1 RI.11-12.7 RI.11-12.10a W.11-12.2.a W.11-12.2.b W.11-12.2.f W.11-12.9.a W.11-12.10 SL.11-12.1.a SL.11-12.1.b SL.11-12.1.c SL.11-12.1.d SL.11-12.2