Research Stems Chapters 1-3

General Character Inquiry

  1. What might we infer about a character’s values or beliefs based on their decisions or actions?

  2. How could the character’s motives explain their response to [a situation]?

  3. What can we hypothesize about a character’s inner conflict from their dialogue or actions?

Exploring Relationships and Perspectives

  1. How might comparing one character to another reveal their underlying traits or perspectives?

  2. What can we wonder about the relationship between a character’s background and their current choices?

  3. What alternative interpretations could explain why a character behaves as they do?

Conflict Analysis

  1. What tensions exist between the internal and external conflicts of a character, and how might these shape the narrative?

  2. How might the resolution (or lack of resolution) of a conflict reflect larger themes in the story?

  3. What can we anticipate about the resolution of the central conflict based on current events in the story?

Setting and Symbolism

  1. How might the physical or social setting contribute to a character’s mindset or decisions?

  2. What can we speculate about the symbolic meaning of a particular location or environment?

  3. How might the historical or cultural context influence the narrative’s conflicts or character interactions?

Structural and Thematic Exploration

  1. What could be the purpose of presenting events in this particular order?

  2. How might the narrative’s framing devices affect our understanding of the characters or themes?

  3. What connections might we draw between recurring imagery and the story’s main themes?