A List of Cages

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

Short Answer

1. What is an abuse of power? What are some abuses of power you have heard about in the media? Do you think all people are capable of abuses of power?

Teaching Suggestion: A common theme throughout A List of Cages is authority figures abusing power. Ask students to describe situations in which authority figures have abused power, drawing their examples from history or current media stories. Before or during discussion of the above questions, you may want to have students watch the provided videos and discuss the findings of studies done on power.

• In this 2-minute video, a UC Berkeley psychology professor describes ways in which power changes people.
• This 4-minute video summarizes the findings of academic researchers who have studied the corrupting influence of power.

Short Activity

“Support systems” are people around you who help you deal with a variety of issues. Brainstorm different times people need support systems. Consider whom someone might call if their car does not start or if they do not have enough money to purchase something they need. Also, consider the people in a community or household who meet emotional needs. Then use online resources, including videos or talks on support systems, to address the questions below.

• What are some of the benefits of social support?
• What are some difficulties (or greater difficulties) that might be experienced by people who do not have social support systems?
• Describe a time when you noticed someone did not have any social support. What did you do?

Teaching Suggestion: With sensitivity to issues regarding friendships, lower socioeconomic status, and suicide, it may be beneficial to begin by watching the first two-minute video to help students gain an understanding of what social support is. Then students may begin brainstorming by working in small groups and discussing the importance of social support. Ask students to watch the second video and answer the bulleted questions. Social support is very important for Julian. His social network transforms him as the novel progresses. It is important to understand how a social network is beneficial to young adults.

• This 2-minute video gives a brief description of what social support is.
• This 3-minute video explains why social support is so important to young adults.

Differentiation Suggestion: Students who require an additional challenge might be offered the chance to research how people from different socioeconomic backgrounds struggle without social support. Students might consult this open-access scholarly research study.

Personal Connection Prompt

This prompt can be used for in-class discussion, exploratory free-writing, or reflection homework before reading the novel.

Describe a time when someone was unkind to you or you witnessed another person being unkind to someone else. Did you consider what motivated the unkind person to behave in the way they did? Is unkindness typical for this person, or was it unusual? What are some possible explanations for why someone might behave in an unkind way? Does your answer suggest any connections to the theme of Mean Versus Unhappy People? Do you believe there are some people whose unkindness results from a mean disposition and others whose unkindness results from their own unhappiness?

Teaching Suggestion: Throughout the novel, Julian operates from the belief that people are unkind because they are unhappy. Allow students, with sensitivity to their privacy, to write about experiences they have had and about what could have motivated people who treated them with unkindness.