Use these questions and activities to help gauge students’ familiarity with and spark interest in the context of the work, giving them an entry point into the text itself.

Short Answer

1. Locate the country of Sudan on a world map and take note of its neighboring countries. What do you know about the culture of Sudan? Who are the Janjaweed, and what role have they played in the country’s history?

Teaching Suggestion: The Red Pencil takes place within the specific sociohistorical context of the Sudanese government-backed Janjaweed attacks on villages in Darfur. Establishing the location of Sudan on the world map will help students comprehend how the country is composed of people of both Arab and African ethnicities; this provides history context for the Janjaweed and why the group initially emerged.

• Consider introducing the Janjaweed using this Britannica article, which gives a succinct summary of how the militia formed and their impact on Darfur, until their activities were curtailed in 2008.
• Although the book is set in 2003 when the Janjaweed’s initial clashes took place, it may be relevant to explore their continuing influence in Sudan using this BBC News article; it reports on an attack that took place in April 2022, detailing why the Janjaweed are active again.