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THE POWER OF LANGUAGE |
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Mrs. Hill North Syracuse Junior High School |
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Introduction:
Who are the major
figures throughout history whose words had the power to create change in
society? Have all of these people created positive change?
The most basic component of freedom of thought and
expression is the right to freedom of speech. The right to freedom of speech
allows individuals, including leaders, to express themselves without
interference or constraint. Leaders throughout history have used their
power and words to manipulate citizens’ thoughts and actions.
Speeches and one’s ability to give them freely
have changed millions of lives throughout history. Language can be used to promote good in
society or, as you have seen in the novel, Animal Farm by George Orwell,
language can be used to manipulate the thoughts and actions of others in a
negative manner.
Task:
Your task is to research the power of language,
specifically as used in speeches by leaders throughout history. You will evaluate the problem associated with
the power and manipulation of language (both positive and negative) used in the
speeches of leaders around the world throughout history. You must create an outline using the worksheets
provided and then use the outline and the following prompts to write an essay.
Your
essay should be written using the following format:
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Introduction |
Who? Historical
context of that time period? Thesis: Choose one of the following prompts to
write your thesis: *Why/how was this person
able to gain power? *How did this person use
language to gain power? *Did this person use
language in a positive or negative way? |
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Body 1 |
Historical
context and social problem going on during that time period. |
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Body 2 |
What
was this person’s speech about? |
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Body 3 |
Break
down the speech – What was the purpose of the speech? Use specific lines as support |
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Conclusion |
Restate
thesis What
was your opinion of the speech? How
would it impact you if you were living during this time period? |
Process/Resources:
You
will evaluate the power of language and apply the six steps of the Public
Policy Analysis (PPA). With your group,
follow each step of the PPA process and fill out each worksheet. You will then use the information from your
worksheets to individually write an essay.
1.
Identify the problem Leaders throughout history have used their
power and words to manipulate citizens’ thoughts and actions.
Choose one of the people from the list below to
focus on. Click on their name to read
their biography.
Osama Bid Laden Frederick Douglass
Joseph Stalin Lyndon B. Johnson
2.
Gather the evidence. Locate resources that provide evidence of the
problem. Use the speeches as a resource.
Use the following sources:
George W. Bush 9-11 Elie Wiesel
Susan B. Anthony Martin Luther King,
Jr.
Frederick Douglass Mother Theresa
Lyndon B. Johnson Ronald Reagan
3.
Determine Causes - Identify the
causes or factors that contribute to the problem. Use the resources below to find out what was
going on in history at the time of your leader’s speech.
George Bush Susan B. Anthony Elie Wiesel
Martin Luther King, Jr. Fidel Castro Osama Bid Laden
Frederick Douglass Mother Theresa Lyndon B. Johnson
Ronald
Reagan Adolf Hitler Joseph Stalin
4.
Examine and evaluate existing policy. What policies exist? When evaluating the policy, you want to
consider if the problem has been resolved. Use the resources below to
read about freedom of speech policies in your leader’s country at that time
period.
George Bush Susan B. Anthony Elie Wiesel
Martin Luther King, Jr. Fidel Castro Osama Bid Laden
Frederick Douglass Mother Theresa Lyndon B. Johnson
Ronald Reagan Adolf Hitler Joseph Stalin
5. Develop new
solutions for the problem.
6.
Select the best solution. Focus on feasibility and effectiveness.
7.
Review all of the information on your
worksheets and make sure it is accurate and complete.
8.
Using information from the completed PPA
worksheets, complete a graphic organizer or outline for your essay.
9.
Write
your rough draft.
10.
After
completing the rough draft, you will edit, revise, and type your final
copy. (12 point font, double spaced)
Evaluation:
Your worksheets and essay will be scored using the
following rubric.
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10 |
8 |
6 |
4 |
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Worksheets |
All 6 worksheets are
completely & accurately filled out |
Missing 1 worksheet or
worksheets are not completely filled out |
Missing 2 worksheets or
most worksheets are not completely filled out |
Missing 3-5 worksheets
or worksheets have been filled out with minimal effort |
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Thesis |
Clear, sophisticated
statement or great meaning |
Thesis is clear but
basic |
Thesis is unclear and
needs to be revised for clarity |
No thesis |
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Ideas/Content |
Thoughtful, original,
& complex. Thoroughly developed;
relevant details and evidence that connect to thesis |
Some strong ideas, but
some summarizing; some use of specific and relevant details with some
connection to thesis |
Content needs
articulation; some inaccuracies; thesis is not fully supported; more
summarizing than connecting |
Little or no ideas;
unclear support of thesis; little focus |
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Organization |
Logical, coherent and
effective sequence. Thoughtful
transitions connect ideas |
Logical sequence of
ideas; Some transitions connect ideas |
Confusing or unclear
sequence; few transitions |
Little sequence of
ideas; no transitions; very unorganized |
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Voice, Word Choice,
Fluency |
Effective, specific
language; varied sentence length; |
Accurate word choice;
some varying length in sentences |
Some misused words;
short/choppy sentences, or many run-ons |
Poor word choice; basic
or misused words; no variance in sentence length |
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Conventions |
Minimal errors in
punctuation, spelling, grammar.
Writing is formal |
Some errors in
punctuation, spelling, grammar.
Writing is formal |
Multiple errors in
punctuation, spelling, grammar that hinder comprehension. Writing is informal |
Serious grammatical or
mechanical errors that interfere with comprehension. Writing is too informal |
Conclusion:
As you continue to learn about different time
periods and countries throughout history, start focusing on how our leaders
today use language to manipulate, both in a positive and negative way. Think about how this affects your life and
the life of people around you. Should a
person’s right to freedom of speech, even a leader’s, have any restrictions?
Standards:
English Language Arts
Standard 1: Information and Understanding: Students will listen, speak, read, and write
for information and understanding.
Students will:
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collect data, facts, and ideas
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discover relationships, concepts,
and generalizations
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use knowledge generated from
written, and electronically produced texts
Standard 2: Literary Response and Expression: Students will listen, speak, read, and write
for literary response and expression.
Students will:
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develop an understanding of the
diverse social, historical, and cultural dimensions of the texts
Standard 3: Critical Analysis and Evaluation: Students will listen, speak, read, and write
for critical analysis and evaluation. Students will:
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analyze experiences, ideas, information, and issues presented by
others using a variety of established criteria.
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use written language that follows the accepted conventions of
the English language to present, from a variety of perspectives, their opinions
and judgments on experiences, ideas, information and issues.
Standard 4: Social
Interaction: Students will listen, speak, read, and write for social
interaction. Students will:
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use oral and written language that
follows the accepted conventions of the English language for effective social
communication
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use the social communications of others to enrich their
understanding of people and their views.
Social
Studies
Standard
5. Civics, Citizenship
and Government:
Students will use a
variety of intellectual skills to demonstrate their understanding of the
necessity for establishing governments; the governmental system of the United
States and other nations; the United States Constitution; the basic civic
values of American constitutional democracy; and the roles, rights, and
responsibilities of citizenship, including avenues of participation.
Mathematics,
Science, Technology
Standard
2 Information
Systems:. Students will access, generate, process, and transfer
information using appropriate technologies.
Standard 5. Technology: Students will apply
technological knowledge and skills to design, construct, use, and evaluate
products and systems to satisfy human and environmental needs.