"Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf?": A Comparison in American Culture

This lesson analyzes how contemporary values and attitudes are reflected in literature.

Standards & Objectives

Learning objectives: 

Students analyze an early 20th century version of the Three Little Pigs to determine how contemporary culture and values affect a story.

Essential and guiding questions: 

What does a book tell us about the people who wrote it and the people who read it?

Lesson Variations

Blooms taxonomy level: 
Applying
Extension suggestions: 
  • Give each group a copy of a contemporary version of The Three Little Pigs. Ask them to compare and contrast the values portrayed with those in L. Leslie Brooke’s version.
  • Show students The Children’s Object Book, published in the 1880s, available at http://read.gov/books/object-book.html. Discuss the changes in technology that have occurred in the past 130 years. Assign each student a page and challenge them to create a similar illustration for the objects of today.

Helpful Hints

Materials Used:
Library of Congress primary sources: