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.

“Presentation: Comparing Thurber’s Story and His Memoir”

In this activity, students select one of the other stories from My Life and Hard Times and share a summary, analysis, and visual representation with the class.

“The Night the Ghost Got In” is one of nine stories that make up the collection My Life and Hard Times, Thurber’s semi-autobiographical memoir. In this activity, you will share information on another story in the collection and draw conclusions based on what others share.

• Working in small groups, select one of the other stories in Thurber’s memoir to read and analyze.
• Present a summary, analysis, and visual representation of the story; address the way in which this story functions in relation to “The Night the Ghost Got In.”
• In your presentation, consider the ways in which your chosen story reveals key information about Thurber’s family, as well as how he integrates the themes of The Unknown and Meaningless, War’s Effect on the Social Conscience, and Truth Is Subjective in the collection as a whole. Use the medium of your choice or follow your teacher’s instructions.