Gabrielle Union discusses the role Alice Walker's Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, The Color Purple, plays in her life. She stresses the importance of readers being able to find reflections of themselves in literature.

Concepts

the color purple, alice walker, racism, african american culture, african american history, famous african americans, persuasive arguments

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Additional Tags

english language arts

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Instructional Ideas

• Use the video to introduce a unit study of The Color Purple
• Have groups create The Great American Read-style videos urging class mates to read one of their favorite novels

Classroom Considerations

• Comes with a warning about sensitive material; therefore, preview the video to determine if appropriate for your classes
• Presumes a protocol is in place for a safe, respectful discussion of the topics

Pros

• Gabrielle Union models how literature can be transformative
• Includes both pre- and post-viewing questions

Cons

• None

Common Core

RL.9-10.2 RL.9-10.3 RL.11-12.2 RL.11-12.3 RL.11-12.5 RL.11-12.6