Collections Grade 9 Guiding Questions: 'Nobody Turn Me Around'

Collections Grade 9 Guiding Questions
Collection 2

“from Nobody Turn Me Around: A People’s History of the 1963 March on Washington” by Charles Euchner

Read the selection from the history writing Nobody Turn Me Around: A People’s History of the 1963 March on Washington by Charles Euchner. Then, reread the lines indicated with each question below. Answer each question, citing text evidence.

1. Lines 1–22: Notice the details about King’s accent and how he pronounced specific words. Explain what Euchner accomplishes by providing these details.
2. Lines 1–2: Explain the meaning of the simile in these lines.
3. Lines 33–40: In analyzing King’s use of anaphora, Euchner himself uses this rhetorical device. In which lines does Euchner use anaphora?
4. Lines 41–57: What main primary source does Euchner use for his analysis? Do you think Euchner used other primary sources? How do you know?
5. Lines 62–80: Which text does Euchner use to support his analysis of the bad check metaphor? How does providing this excerpt after his analysis help readers understand his point?
6. Lines 62–80: Where does Euchner describe the audience’s reaction to King’s idea of the “bad check”? What is the effect of providing the audience’s reaction?
7. Lines 81–83: Which word appears in italics? Why?
8. Lines 95–99: Explain why Euchner chose the verb ripples. What does he mean when he says King’s line “releases some toxin from the body”?
9. Lines 114–118: Describe the mood that Euchner creates in this paragraph, citing specific words that help create the mood.
10. Lines 138–143: What details does Euchner use to support his idea that King conjures images of apocalypse in his speech?
11. Lines 144–147: How does mentioning Malcolm X help underscore Euchner’s point that King was warning people to reject violence?
12. Lines 152–158: What instance of call and response is in these lines? What is the effect of including this call and response in the text?
13. Lines 179–186: What primary source does Euchner use to support his contention that not everyone could hear King’s words? Explain the effect of including Ms. Rael’s words.
14. Lines 211–217: Explain how these lines provide clues to the author’s perspective on Martin Luther King Jr. How does knowing the author’s perspective help you evaluate his analysis?
15. Lines 212–214: Why did Euchner include these sentences? How do the repetition of the word I and the parallel construction in these sentences help make Euchner’s point?
16. Lines 228–233: What two similes are in these lines? What do the similes mean and why does Euchner include them in the text? Explain the effect of referring to Harold Bragg as Harold, rather than Mr. Bragg or Bragg.
17. Lines 268–277: Explain what you learn about the origin of the “I have a dream” lines. Why does Euchner provide these specific details about the “I have a dream” lines in the speech?
18. Lines 278–284: Explain what Jones may have meant by the statement in lines 279–281.
19. Lines 297–301: Explain how Pritchard is different from the other people whose stories and reactions Euchner has featured, namely Harold Bragg and Mahalia Jackson. Why may Euchner have made a point of mentioning people’s race? Where did Euchner likely get the details about Pritchard that he relays in these lines?
20. Lines 302–304: Explain the meaning of “lightning shoots through his body.” In line 303 Euchner adds the word feels in italics and set off by dashes. Why does he do this? How does the addition of the italicized word change the meaning of the sentence?
21. Lines 313–324: What central word or idea does Euchner use to connect Pritchard to King’s speech? What is the significance of Euchner’s statement “King’s dream is his dream”?
22. Lines 344: What does Euchner mean by the statement in this line? How does it help readers understand the effect King’s words had on people?
23. Lines 351–369: What tone does Euchner use in these lines and which words help create that tone?
24. Lines 361–369: Which lines help you “hear” people’s exclamations and feel as if you, too, are witness to the event? What print cues best convey the way people spoke?
25. Lines 401–421: Explain how Euchner’s division of the passage helps clarify the passage’s meaning.
26. Lines 427–431: Which words help you visualize each scene?
27. Lines 427–431: What is the significance of referring to King as “their King”?
28. Lines 442–444: What figurative language is used in these lines? Think about King’s background as a minister. What does Euchner mean by this description?
29. Lines 445–447: Why might Euchner have concluded with King’s words rather than his own?