Middlemarch Lesson Plan

Did Mary do the right thing by refusing to burn the will? Why or why not?

This question doesn't have a right answer. Some students may think Mary should have burned the will because it was obviously what Featherstone wanted, and shouldn't we do what we can to respect the wishes of the dying? But Featherstone may have been delirious with fever, how could Mary know? Is she right to avoid colluding in something which she believes to be scandalous and dishonest? This question is interesting to discuss at this point in the lesson plan because students do not know what will happen with the wills. They cannot judge Mary's actions based on the later information about what each...