1. AP Literature and Composition “It’s a ‘Make Your Presentation’ Monday!” September 19, 2011 Mr. Houghteling

2. Agenda Post five observations about The Giving Tree on chart paper. Report out on your group’s interpretation. Discussion of the text—Is there a best interpretation of The Giving Tree? College plans: Are you going? Where are going? How are you going to get there?

3. The Giving Tree – Gender Criticism The female tree can be interpreted as Mother Earth, or simply a mother, sustaining the dominant male first with enjoyment and food and later with the means to provide shelter and transportation.

4. The Giving Tree – Marxist Criticism When the boy is young, he is content simply to play with the tree: climbing up her trunk, gathering her apples, and sleeping in her shade. However, as he grows older, he becomes increasingly demanding of the tree’s resources. He is no longer content to enjoy the tree’s company, but rather he seeks the tree for financial and materialistic gain.

5. The Giving Tree – Eco-Criticism Man is dependent on nature for survival: the man systematically destroys the tree in order to get what he wants in order to be happy.

6. The Giving Tree – Archetypal Criticism The tree—with her branches, her trunk, and her apples—is the giver of life, reiterating the archetype of nature as provider for man.

7. Classwork / Homework Which school of criticism interests you the most?  Write a short personal reflection about how the criticism affected your interpretation of the story. Which school of criticism did you find most applicable to The Giving Tree?