English 10 2-2

​English 10 Unit 2-2

The Story

​Character

2-1 Due Dates - -​ 2/12

2-2 Due Dates - - 2/20

2-3 Due Dates - - 2/26

2.4.3 CST Due 2/27

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Open Ended

What do you think? Is the antagonist always a villain?

Is the protagonist always the good guy?

​Let's look at this story from 2.2.1 page 6

at the bottom

​My neighbors are the Robles family, I'm friends with Ivan, who has a little brother, Charlie. Ivan's a sophomore like me, but Charlie is only in second grade, so he can be annoying. He asks a lot of questions and bothers us when we're playing video games or skateboarding. He also wants to talk about snakes--his favorite animal--when we want to do other stuff. Still, Ivan likes to play with Charlie sometimes. He'll take him to the park down the street when it's sunny, or he'll buy him a special toy when he has money.

​Ivan even puts up with Charlie breaking his stuff. One time, we were planning a special gaming session after school. But when we went into Ivan's room, we found the computer keyboard soaked with milk. It was completely ruined. Charlie had snuck into Ivan's room to get on the computer, and then spilled his milk.

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I could tell Ivan was angry. But when he found Charlie hiding in his closet crying​, his expression changed. Instead of yelling at him, he picked Charlie up and hugged him. Then he told him to never go into his room again.

Open Ended

Ivan is the main character here. Charlie's the foil. How does Charlie fit the description of a foil? How does he let us know more about Ivan?

​More about round and flat characters

2.2.1 page 10

​Round characters are meant to pull us into the story. We connect with round characters, often on an emotional level. A flat character, on the other hand, is there simply to move the story along.

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You can think of protagonists, antagonists, and foils — who might be flat or round — in the same way. They're tools writers use to build a good story.

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​2.2.3 Read

​Finish the Graphic Novel American Born Chinese

Multiple Choice

You love going to soccer practice every Friday night. However, last week you had to go to dinner with your family instead, and this week a friend has invited you to the movies.

• Internal Conflict

• External Conflict

Multiple Choice

At a party, you spent a lot of time talking to a friend from your math class—just chatting. Now another classmate has spread rumors around school about the two of you.

• Internal Conflict

• External Conflict

Multiple Choice

Although your friends say that you’re very attractive, you think just the opposite. You are overly critical about physical appearance.

• Internal Conflict

• External Conflict

Multiple Choice

Your dad is driving you and your friends to a big football game in town. Although you left in plenty of time, he seems to have lost his way. You think you saw the football field a couple of blocks back. When you tell your dad, he says, “Who’s driving—you or me?”

• Internal Conflict

• External Conflict

​Getting the Big Idea 2.2.8 Write page 8

​Complex characters can advance the plot of a narrative, and their struggles and victories can also develop the major theme of a work. American Born Chinese is unusual because it has three main story lines, with three different character arcs.

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The arcs are similar, though, especially when you consider where they end and what each character learns along the way. The three character arcs work together to shape a central theme for the book as a whole.

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​2.2.8 and 2.2.9

​Answer a series of questions about the characters in Gene Luen Yang's American Born Chinese. Reference the graphic novel directly to describe how the work's complex characters develop, interact with other characters, and influence its plot and themes.

This writing assignment will focus on the following skills:

• Analyzing character motivations, conflict, and development

• Examining characters' effect on plot and themes

• Citing strong textual evidence to support analysis

​2.2.8 p. 9

​Your answers for this assignment should be written in complete sentences, and they should offer real analysis of character development in American Born Chinese — not just state the obvious. Also, you should use evidence, or refer to specific examples in the text to support your responses.

​Please respond to ME in the CHAT:


Identify the conflict... internal or external.


A man wants to go to medical school but fears he's not smart enough.