The Chocolate War Lesson Plan

Consider the opening line of the novel:

“They murdered him.”

Despite the fact that no one was actually murdered, what kind of mood does this line set for the novel and why?

Strong responses should recognize that although no one was actually murdered, it takes a bit of time to realize what is going on. The statement “they murdered him” is a slang term used in sports to say he took a really bad hit or got clobbered, but the paragraph following that line is fairly ambiguous, describing a violent and painful scene. It slowly start to become clear that there’s a football game (practice) going on. However, that line is still haunting, suggestive of darkness and...