The Dark Side of Industrialism Lesson Plan 4 Objectives After this lesson, students will understand: that technology has both positive and negative effects, whatever civilization or time period develops it. the relationship between the enslaved Britons of Twain's novel and nineteenth-century factory workers. Students will know: characteristics of working life in the late nineteenth century. the various strata of society in nineteenth-century America and in the novel. the negative effects of rapidly growing technology on a society unused to it, as reflected in the novel. Students will be able to: compare Hank's place in British society with that of the robber barons in America of Twain's time. use newspaper articles from the times to identify some negative uses of technology. represent Hank's effect on the Britons either visually or in creative writing. Materials Resource Page 3 Pencil/pen and paper Connecticut Yankee Art supplies, if necessary. Procedure Step 1: Introduction Ask students to reflect on how Hank introduces technology to the Britons. Do the students feel that, overall, its impact was good? bad? both? Why? Describe the rapid growth of technology during Twain's time and its effects. Have students follow along in Resource Page 3. The discussion should include the gap between the rich and poor, the economic depression, and the robber barons that ruled the working class. Step 2 Ask students to compare this view of society with the British society that Hank comments on in the novel. How are the two cultures similar or different? What is Twain trying to say about technology and its ability to make everyone equal? Can Hank's plans really do that? Will they just raise up a new kind of aristocracy? Ask students to make predictions about these issues. Step 3 Using the Resource Page and the students' comments on the novel, make two columns on the board where students compare traits of Hank and the robber barons. Direct students specifically to Hank's comments (on pages 74 and 399 of the 1983 University of California edition, respectively): "The first thing you want in a new country, is a patent office; then work up your school system; and after that, out with your paper," and, "Well, I may as well confess, though I do feel ashamed when I think of it: I was beginning to have a base hankering to be [the new republic's] first President myself. Yes, there was more or less human nature in me; I found that out." Describe how Hank wants to be known as a genius-inventor, a bringer of culture and enlightenment. Does he really play that role in British society? Step 4 On their own, students should choose one instance in the novel where Hank uses technology to destructive ends. Along with that exercise, all students should read the New York Times articles "Dynamite in Warfare," "Death by Electricity," and "Finishing a Torpedo." They should answer the following questions on paper: What does the presence of these items in nineteenth-century America and Hank's destructive use of technology say about how technology can benefit a society? Predict, based on what you know about Twain's times and the novel, how Hank's own experience might have turned out. Do you think he would have improved life on the whole for Britons, or would his experiment have deteriorated into American society as Mark Twain knew it? Support your argument with examples from the text. Step 5 Discuss the varying student answers to the questions above. Come to a consensus as a class: could Hank have implemented the utopia he desired? Step 6 As a final assignment, have students complete the following activity: If you were to build a statue of Hank to be displayed at Camelot, how would you depict him? positively? negatively? as an inventor? a robber baron? What would he be holding? What expression would be on his face? Either draw Hank or describe him on a sheet of paper. In either case, justify why you chose to depict him in this way. Remember, you're creating a statue to stand as a symbol of Hank's most representative act or contribution to the British people. How should they remember him? Follow-Up and Evaluation Students can be evaluated on their participation in class discussion, their answers to the in-class questions, and their drawing or creative description of Hank Morgan. CY and the Triumph of American Industrialism | Promoting the Fruits of Industrialism The Progress of Technology | The Dark Side of Industrialism Technology's Impact on Life and Culture | Science and Magic Student Home | Teacher Home | Related Links | Bibliography | "Mark Twain in His Times" Website This site is maintained by Kellan R. Harne.