
Mrs. French's English Class
Miller Place High School
Unit : Short Stories Fall 2020
Charles by Shirley Jackson
The Sniper by Liam O'Flaherty

Day 1: Literary Terms & Vocab
Vocabulary List (click here)
Copy & Paste to a word document
Use -> dictionary.com <-to define
**consider CONTEXT as you are choosing definitions
Day 2: Historic Background Research
The Irish War for Independence
...umm...did you even know Ireland HAD a War for Independance?
3. Who were the Irish Republican Brotherhood (IRB)?
4.Who were the Irish Republican Army (IRA)?
5. Who were the Irish Free Staters? (Free State)
6. Who is Michael Collins?
7. What was Bloody Sunday?
8. What treaty led to the fighting in the Irish Civil War?
9. What was England’s role in the treaty?
10. What is the 1916 Easter Rising?
11. Who are the “Black and Tans”?
The Sniper full text (Click here)
Click here for audiobook (from a website)
Click here for audiobook (wav file)
Study Guide (click here)




The Possibility of Evil by Shirley Jackson



What is evil?
What does it look like?
Do we all possess some level or form?
Are we all capable of evil acts?
Does it really exist? Or is it all in our minds...
Manipulation, lies, spite, intimidation, slander, passive aggression...is it evil?
The Possibility of Evil (Full Text)
The Possibility of Evil (Audio)
The Possibility of Evil (Study Guide)
The Scarlet Ibis by James Hurst


The Theme of Pride is confusing. We are supposed to take pride in the way we look and act. But, we're not supposed to be so proud that we look down at others, or refuse to do things that need to be done. Similarly, "The Scarlet Ibis" shows that it's nice to be proud of people we care about, but pride can be harmful to them if we push them into doing things that are not in their best interest. The story explores a variety of facets of pride from the perspective of Brother, a young man whose pride becomes a destructive force in his life. In his case, pride is closely linked with shame and embarrassment over his younger brother's physical limitations. This very normal emotion has tragic results, the memory of which will keep Brother on the alert for pride for the rest of his life.
Text Based Evidence of the Narrator's/Brother's excessive pride:
"I did not know then that pride is a wonderful, terrible thing, a seed that bears two vines, life and death. "
"They did not know that I did it for myself; that pride, whose slave I was, spoke to me louder than all their voices and that Doodle walked only because I was ashamed of having a crippled brother."
"I should have already admitted defeat but my pride wouldn't let me."
"They did not know that I did it for myself; that pride, whose slave I was, spoke to me louder than all their voices and that Doodle walked only because I was ashamed of having a crippled brother."
EXCELLENT Glossary of Literary Terms












The Most Dangerous Game by Richard Connell

The Most Dangerous Game (full text)
Game? What kind of Game?
How Many Ways Can
This Title Be Interpreted?
What DOES it mean??!!
Click here for the audiobook

The Necklace by Guy de Maupassant



The Gift of the Magi by O.Henry


Turn of the Century Greenwich Village, New York
The Gift of the Magi (full text)
Click here for the audiobook
Click here for a special narration with background music by actor Lorne Greene. This
recording was part of a special Holiday album of Christmas stories.
Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer

In the event that you are absent all of the worksheets you need for Into Thin Air.