Pre-AP English II: Socratic Seminar Question Types (Fahrenheit 451)

In class Tuesday, Oct. 9th, we began creating Socratic Seminar questions the class will respond to on Thursday, Oct. 11th. Students must create one original question of each of the following question types; students must also provide a plausible answer to their question.

All questions must come from the "Hearth and the Salamander" section of Fahrenheit 451.

WORLD CONNECTION QUESTION

Write a question connecting the text to the real world.

Example: Where do you draw the line between the needs of society and the rights of an individual?

CLOSE-ENDED QUESTION

Write a question about the text that will help everyone in the class come to an agreement about events or characters in the text. This question usually has a “correct” answer.

Example: Based on evidence in "The Hearth and the Salamander," how does the Mechanical Hound operate?

OPEN-ENDED QUESTION

Write an insightful question about the text that will require proof and group discussion and “construction of logic” to discover or explore the answer to the question.

Example: How does Clarisse's question "Are you happy?" effect Montag?

UNIVERSAL THEME/ CORE QUESTION

Write a question dealing with a theme(s) of the text that will encourage group discussion about the universality of the text.

Example: After reading "The Hearth and the Salamander" what likelihood do you feel there is that society will develop the way Bradbury imagines?

LITERARY ANALYSIS QUESTION

Write a question dealing with HOW an author chose to compose a literary piece. How did the author manipulate point of view, characterization, poetic form, archetypal hero patterns, for example?

Example: What does Bradbury accomplish by contrasting the sensually-charged opening scene with the sterility of Montag's arrival home and discovering Millie's suicide attempt?