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Lesson 1 (from Chapter 1, Land and Market)

Objective

Chapter 1, Land and Market

The first chapter introduces us to Sellers and also to his writing style. This lesson discusses Sellers's writing and how it reveals his strategies for using language to convey meaning.

Lesson

1. Close Reading: Read the first few paragraphs, and analyze the writing style. How does Sellers write? What kinds of words does he use? How are his sentences structured?

2. Group Discussion: Ask students to work together in groups to characterize Sellers's style. When or how does he vary from that cadence? What does he lay emphasis on when he varies from his typical sentences? Ask each group to report back to the class after some time for discussion.

3. Class Discussion: How would you characterize Sellers's values as a writer? What does he talk about? How does he use language to convey information about the Jacksonian era? Is he neutral, partisan, interested?

Homework...

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