Use this activity to engage all types of learners, while requiring that they refer to and incorporate details from the text over the course of the activity.

ACTIVITY 1: “The Setting as a Character”

In this activity, students consider the impact of the jungle in “An Outpost of Progress” and write their own short narrative that features a setting that functions as a character.

The jungle in “An Outpost of Progress” acts both as a symbol and a character that slowly erodes Kayerts and Carlier’s civility.

• Share this passage with a classmate. Discuss how the jungle is described or how it impacts the characters. Be ready to share what you discussed with the whole class.
• Think about other settings that could act as a symbol and character in a story. For example, a school, a hospital, a haunted house, or the wilderness on a camping trip. Write a brief narrative that features characters in a setting that seems to interact with and affect them. Consider how you can write about the setting in a way that makes it seem more significant than just where the story takes place. In your narrative, setting should function as a character or symbol that influences plot developments and characters.