Z For Zachariah Lesson Plan

Epitaph for the Race of Man

Kind of Activity:

Group Discussion

Objective:

Students will connect the themes and ideas in the poem with the novel.

Common Core Standards:

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.9-10.7, CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.9-10.8, CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.9-10.1, CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.L.9-10.3

Structure:

In this section of the reading, Ann mentions that she is fond of poetry, and mentions a couplet from one of her favorite sonnets:

Oh earth, unhappy planet born to die,
Might I your scribe or your confessor be…

These lines come from the series of 18 sonnets by Edna St. Vincent Millay, entitled "Epitaph for the Race of Man," a poem that is very relevant to the themes of the novel...