Hamilton Lesson Plan

Why do you think Lin-Manuel Miranda chose this genre and form to portray this story? What impact does it have on the way you see Hamilton and Hamilton?

Some students may point to the contrast between form and content—this is "classic" American history about the Founding Fathers, but it's told through a much more contemporary and energized form. Some students may note the opportunity to use wordplay. They might consider how hip-hop is an art form that is deeply and inherently American, particularly originating in Black American communities, and using it to tell the story of a historical (and historically white) American figure might offer a new perspective on what "being...