4H The Pedestrian Questions

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4H The Pedestrian Questions

Checking the answers for The Pedestrian

What is an external conflict?

Give an example of a conflict that is Person vs. Society.

Question 1

How does Bradbury create a sense of a future society that is strange and unsettling? Consider details about technology, social norms, and the environment. 

Answer 1

He creates a world where nobody goes outside in the evening and only watches TV. Police cars without people, nobody reads, sidewalks covered in flowers and grass. 

Answer 2

Bradbury makes the future society feel strange by showing a world where everyone stays inside watching TV and no one talks or walks outside anymore. The streets are empty and quiet, which feels creepy. 

Which answer would have more points on a test?

Answer 1

Answer 2

They would have the same amount of points.

Question 2

Mr. Leonard Mead is the central character. What motivates him to take walks at night? How does his love for walking reveal something about his personality and values. 

Answer 1

He doesn't have a television and the air had a good crystal frost. He is different because the other people watch TV (at night).

Answer 2

Leonard enjoys being outside. It's a distraction for him from the technology. Leonard is an independent person and he is curious. He chooses to go outside instead of watching TV at home. 

Which answer would have more points on a test?

Answer 1

Answer 2

They would have the same amount of points.

Question 3

Theme: What is the underlying message Bradbury conveys about conformity and individuality?

Conformity: Doing what everyone else does. 

Individuality: Making your own choices. 

Answer 1

That the more people start to pay attention to their screens the less is focussed on each other and we forget our own individuality. 

Answer 2

Bradbury warns us about the dangers of everyone being the same and not having their own ideas. He wants us to see that it's important to be and think for yourself. 

Which answer would have more points on a test?

Answer 1

Answer 2

They would have the same amount of points.

Answers:

1. Dystopian Setting: Bradbury creates a sense of a strange and unsettling future through details like:

a. Empty, dark houses: This suggests a lack of community and a

preference for isolation.

b. Mechanical "hounds" patrolling the streets: This emphasizes a reliance on technology for control and a lack of human interaction.

c. Mr. Mead's unusual behavior of walking: This highlights the strict

social norms and the strangeness of simple activities like walking at

night.

Answers:

2. Character Analysis: Mr. Mead is motivated to take walks at night by a desire

for connection with nature and a sense of individuality. He finds pleasure in

the simple act of walking, observing the world, and experiencing the elements.

This reveals him to be a person who values freedom, curiosity, and a

connection to something bigger than himself.

Answers:

3. Theme: A possible theme is the importance of individuality in a society that

values conformity. Mr. Mead's arrest for the harmless act of walking highlights the dangers of suppressing personal expression and the potential for a society to become sterile and lose its humanity.

4. Symbolism: The car is a symbol of technology, isolation, and a passive way

of life. It contrasts with Mr. Mead's walking, which represents freedom,

connection with nature, and active engagement with the world.

Answers:

7. The exposition introduces Mr. Mead and his unusual hobby of walking at

night. The rising action begins with the police car approaching him. The

climax is his arrest for walking. The falling action involves the police car taking him away, and the resolution (or lack thereof) leaves us with the unknown fate of Mr. Mead and the chilling reality of this society.

8. The main conflict is external. Mr. Mead faces the police who represent the oppressive rules and lack of understanding of his society.

Answers:

9. Foreshadowing might be present in the descriptions of the deserted houses and the suspicious behavior of the police car following Mr. Mead. These hints suggest a society that fears nonconformity.

10.Situational irony exists because Mr. Mead is arrested for something most

people would consider harmless. This adds to the story's impact by

highlighting the absurdity of the society's rules.

Work on the things on the board

First 15 minutes is in silence. 

Full points

Most points

Less than half the points

(Almost) no points