Questions for the character from Walter Dean Myers' short story, "The Baddest Dog in Harlem"
Questions for Mary
Q: Where are you going to stay now that your apartment is destroyed?
A: I am going to stay with my parents until my apartment is cleaned up.
Q: So you will come back to this apartment even after all that has happened?
A: Yes, but it will never be the same!
Q: What are your plans for the apartment? Are you going to sue?
A: Yes. I am sueing and I plan to start the remodel i've always wanted, but I am not paying a single cent!
Q: What was the first thought that went through your mind when you heard about the child?
A: When I first heard about the child, I couldn't believe it! You just can't imagine that sort of thing. He was just an innocent child that was at the wrong place at the wrong time.
Q: Did you know him?
A: Sadly, no. I almost wish I had, but if i had known him I probably would have been changed forever and I most definately would not be able to return to my apartment.
Myers' story, "The Baddest Dog", hits your heart like a brick through a stained-glass church window! At least that was how I felt during and after reading it.
ReplyDeleteJo was asked to interview any character from this story and she chose, Mary. This is a very safe choice and the answers she gave assuming Mary's persona, make me want to challenge Jo to go deeper--to question the situation--to explore the real underlying issues. It is not simply an issue of 'bad-timing' and 'being at the wrong place.'
As an extension, I would have Jo research. I myself would do research to answer questions that come to my mind, questions that would be beneficial for Jo to answer after her research.
I'd research statistics of bystander shootings by American police. What geographic areas are largely represented: rural, suburban, urban? What are the demographics of the innocent victims and of the neighborhoods?
I would then have Jo further question the characters in the story. I'd have her question: the police, the narrator, and Willie.
Next, Jo would reread the story and write a reflection about her understanding of "The Baddest Dog in Harlem".