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Lesson 1 (from Chapters 1-5)

Objective

Chapters 1-5

TORTILLA FLAT depicts life on skid row in Monterey, California. The objective of this lesson is to understand the concept of skid row.

Lesson

Lead the class in a discussion about skid rows. Start with a description and and ask students to interject their own ideas and opinions on the subject. Do they know of any skid row areas in their city? If not, have they seen any skid row areas portrayed in literature or in film? What is their perception of skid row residents? Is there some sense of pity or sympathy or do they feel that skid row residents could change their lives if they really wanted to do that?

Continue the discussion about skid row on another day and relate it to the characters in TORTILLA FLAT. Why would a veteran like Danny have to live on skid row? Is he...

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