My Brilliant Friend

Use this activity to engage all types of learners, while requiring that they refer to and incorporate details from the text over the course of the activity.

ACTIVITY 1: “Dissolving Margins Through Creation”

In this activity, students will create an original artistic depiction of a pair of shoes that represents one of the characters in the novel, demonstrating an understanding of characterization and core motifs and connecting to the novel’s theme of Men, Women, and Power.

Lila’s journey to craft an original pair of shoes is one way in which she challenges the traditional power structures of the neighborhood. In a world where women are not expected to interfere in the work of men, Lila’s designs are not taken seriously by her father. Over the course of the novel, the shoes become a symbol of female creative power, subversion, and attempted escape from oppressive systems. Meanwhile, Lila’s “dissolving margins” episodes represent a perception and power of another kind—a complementary destructive power, an awareness of the violent forces that govern her and others’ existences: Lila “dissolves” or transcends margins to challenge existing power structures and her perception of the world. In this activity, design a pair of shoes that “dissolves margins” to symbolize one of the characters from the novel and the ways in which they transcend limitations to claim power or escape in their world of patriarchal power, violence, socioeconomic impacts, and oppression.

• Select one of the characters from the novel. Options include but are not limited to Elena, Lila, Rino, Stefano, Alfonso, Nino, Melina, Pasquale, Antonio, or Enzo.
• Analyze your chosen character. Pay special attention to their personality traits, role in the novel, and relation to power systems. How do they enforce or defy stereotypes or expectations? In what ways do they challenge or uphold the traditional power structures governing them?
• Design a pair of shoes that you feel represents this character. Incorporate at least 3 symbols or motifs into your design that represent your character and the ways that they transcend their ascribed roles and margins.
• Incorporate at least 3 pieces of textual evidence in your final product.
• You may create your final product in a variety of formats: as a painting, poster, graphic rendering, sketch, 3-D model, picture collage, or other visual artwork.
• Prepare to present your design in a classroom “gallery” walkthrough.

Teaching Suggestion: This activity provides an opportunity for explicit connections to the theme Men, Women, and Power. As part of a closure or reflection activity, students might analyze the roles that both women and men occupy in the novel and how enforced gender roles contribute to structures that repress Elena and Lila’s attempts to follow non-traditional paths.

Differentiation Suggestion: Students with organizational or attentional learning differences may benefit from pre-writing worksheets or scaffolded tasks. Organizational worksheets prompting them to track important character traits and symbols for their chosen character, or for collecting evidence from the text, may help them organize their thinking before beginning their shoe design.

More advanced students may benefit from completion of a written defense wherein they justify their creative decisions and connect them to the character’s arc in the novel. Alternatively, students might complete an additional research component by researching fashion trends in Italy during the 1950s and ’60s to create a historically accurate shoe design. 

ACTIVITY 2: “A City Without Love”

In this activity, students will imagine a complete response to Lila’s claims about the sterilizing effect of a city without love. They will make connections between literary allusions and the novel’s themes on Money and Promotion, Education, and Men, Women, and Power.

When Elena begins to study Greek and Latin at her classical high school, Lila self-studies to keep up with her, even outpacing Elena in the texts that she is reading in class. Lila and Elena both read The Aeneid, an epic by Roman poet Virgil composed during the Roman Empire era that chronicles mythic hero Aeneas’s journey through the Trojan War to found the Roman Nation. In reaction to what she has read, Lila observes in Part 2, Chapter 18 that “When there is no love, not only the life of the people becomes sterile but the life of cities.” In this activity, build a structured essay response to Lila’s statement that analyzes her claim in context of the neighborhood in the novel. Your culminating product will be a presentation of your essay in a format of your choosing.

• Formulate a response to Lila’s statement. Do you agree or disagree with her statement? Why?
• Analyze Lila’s words in relation to the neighborhood in the novel. How is the neighborhood “a city without love”? What consequence does that have for the characters of the novel?
• Formulate a thesis that argues how the neighborhood is or is not a “city without love” that “sterilizes” the lives of its inhabitants. 
• If working in groups, each group member must determine a supporting point for the thesis backed by evidence from the text. Group members may work together to find supporting textual evidence.
• Conclude your argument by drawing a connection to one or more of the novel’s themes.
• You have several options for creating your essay. Each option should incorporate textual evidence throughout.
• Traditional essay. Follow the structure of a traditional essay (introduction with thesis statement, 3-5 body paragraphs with supporting evidence, and a concluding paragraph or paragraphs). If you are working in groups, each group member should be responsible for writing one body paragraph, while the introduction, thesis, and conclusion should be written collaboratively.
• Video essay. Create a video no more than 15 minutes in length that sufficiently argues your claim with supporting evidence. Be sure to maximize the potential this medium provides for facilitating visual engagement by combining text-based or auditory information with visuals and other media. Include at least 5 utilizations of music, imagery, or other media that supplement/enhance your points. Each group member should have an equal part in the video’s creation.
• Photo essay. Structure the writing of your essay around original photographs that illustrate or exemplify your points. Your photographs must be original and relevant to your topic and discussion, and effectively enhance your points. Construct your essay in a cohesive, orderly way so that the photographs facilitate a logical, well-structured analysis. Each group member must contribute equally to both photographs and writing; your photo essay should have a minimum of 5 photographs (although each paragraph does not have to include a photo) and should incorporate textual evidence throughout.
• Podcast. Present your essay via an audio podcast no more than 15 minutes in length. Since this medium lacks the visual component of a video essay, consider how you can make it aurally engaging without the benefit of visuals. While you should prepare your content in advance, your podcast should not be a verbatim recitation of a written essay. Consider how to keep the tone of your podcast conversational yet educational. Each group member should have equal speaking roles.
• Debate or group discussion. You may structure your presentation as a debate among your team members. Divide your group into two teams; the “topic” of the debate should reflect the thesis of your response. Each team should have an equal number of talking points and present a cogent argument that incorporates sufficient textual evidence. Your debate should be no more than 15 minutes; each group member should participate equally.
• Other format as approved by your instructor.
• Present your essay in its chosen form to the class.

Teaching Suggestion: While each essay format suggests group work, each can be completed individually instead. Alternative formats are acceptable as long as they incorporate the core components of the activity (cogent argument of defensible thesis with robust analysis and discussion well-supported by textual evidence, with logical conclusions reached).

To supplement understanding of this topic and to ensure engagement during other groups’ presentations, students may be supplied with a rubric and asked to assess how effectively each group constructs their argument based on the rubric’s criteria and their understanding of strong argumentative writing. 

Differentiation Suggestion: Students with organizational and analytical learning differences may benefit from additional support. For example, supplied worksheets for each step of the assignment may be helpful. Leading into the activity in a whole-group session may be helpful as well (e.g., a class-wide discussion on what it means to be a “city without love”).

Students who would benefit from an extra challenge might investigate the original literary allusion to The Aeneid. and the story of Aeneas and Dido, then analyze how the setting of a “city without love” in The Aeneid has consequences for the life of people and cities. Students may then be directed to include an overview of the relevant literary allusion in their essay and compare it to the neighborhood in the novel. In their conclusion, they might discuss the purpose of the allusion and how it serves the author’s depiction of the neighborhood and the novel’s thematic exploration of socioeconomic concerns and power.

Use these essay questions as writing and critical thinking exercises for all levels of writers, and to build their literary analysis skills by requiring textual references throughout the essay.

Differentiation Suggestion: For English learners or struggling writers, strategies that work well include graphic organizers, sentence frames or starters, group work, or oral responses.

Scaffolded Essay Questions

Student Prompt: Write a short (1-3 paragraph) response using one of the bulleted outlines below. Cite details from the text over the course of your response that serve as examples and support.

1. As girls, both Elena and Lila are captivated by learning and language. 

• How do Elena and Lila each attempt to escape the circumstances of their birth? (topic sentence)
• How do Elena and Lila differ in their approaches to evading poverty, violence, and oppression in the neighborhood? What systems of power hold them back? Analyze a variety of examples in your discussion.
• In your concluding sentence or sentences, connect each character’s journey of escape to one or more themes in the novel.

2. The concept of class features prominently in the novel. 

• Does Ferrante depict social status as fixed or mutable? (topic sentence)
• What do money and wealth mean to the characters of the novel? How do their conceptualizations of it change over the course of the novel? Select at least 3 characters to analyze and discuss in support of your topic sentence.
• In your concluding sentence or sentences, connect your analysis to a cogent statement of how social mobility as a fixed or mutable concept impacts the enforcement of systems of oppression.

3. Since Lila’s first literary success with The Blue Fairy, Elena has felt that Lila possesses an extraordinary power of expression that she lacks in her own writing. Yet even when Elena achieves impressive marks at school for her essays, she still feels insecure in her writing abilities.

• How does Elena evolve as a reader and storyteller throughout the novel? (topic sentence)
• Explore and analyze the impact of writing and expression with regard to Elena’s character arc. Choose details and examples in your discussion that support your topic sentence.
• In your concluding sentence or sentences, summarize the symbolism of writing and expression in the novel and evaluate their effectiveness in the evolution of Elena’s character.

Full Essay Assignments

Student Prompt: Write a structured and well-developed essay. Include a thesis statement, at least three main points supported by textual details, and a conclusion.

1. Consider the ways in which Ferrante depicts masculinity and the roles of males in the novel. Do they share predominant characteristics or traits, or do their personalities and inclinations vary? In contrast to the men, what roles do women occupy in the social structure of the neighborhood, and what expectations are placed upon them? In a 3- or 5-paragraph essay, discuss the depiction of gender roles, expectations, and stereotypes in the novel. Include in your discussion the ways in which gender roles and dynamics enforce systems of power in the novel.

2. What do dialect and standardized Italian symbolize, respectively, in the novel? How does language function as a mode of expression for Elena and Lila? How does language represent a means of escape the traditional power structures that hold Elena and Lila in place? In a 5-paragraph essay, analyze the intersections between language, class, and power in the novel. Include examples of characters’ language choices and instances of register-switching (changing from dialect to Italian or vice versa) in your discussion.

3. The novel is framed as a truthful, part-memoir account of Elena and Lila’s shared histories. Consider the notions of authorship and destiny in the novel. How does Elena claim a sort of “power” in transcribing her and Lila’s story? In what other ways is the power of storytelling present in the novel? What role do concepts of authorship and the power of female creation play in the novel? In a structured essay, explore the ways in which storytelling and creation act as driving forces for each character’s development, the development of their relationship, and the events and themes of the novel.

Multiple Choice and Long Answer Questions create ideal opportunities for whole-text review, exams, or summative assessments.

Multiple Choice

1. Against which historical backdrop is the novel set?

A) World War I Italy

B) Mussolini-era Italy

C) Post-World War II Italy

D) Contemporary Italy

2. Which of the following statements is the strongest interpretation of Elena’s motivation for recording her and Lila’s shared history?

A) Wrought with sorrow over Lila’s abrupt disappearance and desperate for her friend to return, Elena wants to memorialize their friendship.

B) Due to long-standing resentments and a persistent sense of competition, Elena wants to sabotage Lila’s attempts to erase herself.

C) Determined to reverse Lila’s disappearance and reconcile their estrangement, Elena wants to prove that Lila cannot erase her impact.

D) Wracked with remorse and feeling guilty for their past feuds, Elena wants to exonerate herself of any perceived wrongdoing.

3. Which of the following word groups least characterizes Lila?

A) Passionate, curious, perceptive

B) Capricious, manipulative, cunning

C) Creative, driven, defiant

D) Sensitive, altruistic, reserved  

4. Which two political forces conflict in the novel and structure the decades-long power dynamics in the neighborhood?

A) Camorrists and Fascists

B) Democrats and Camorrists

C) Fascists and Communists

D) Communists and Democrats

5. Which setting most contributes to Elena and Lila’s growth throughout the novel?

A) The neighborhood

B) The shoemaker’s shop

C) The elementary school

D) Piazza dei Martiri

6. Which of the following literary devices is most prominent in the author’s characterization techniques?

A) Stereotype

B) Imagery

C) Irony

D) Character foil

7. Which of the following details most strongly foreshadows the complex relationship that develops between Elena and Lila?

A) The dolls

B) Little Women

C) The story of Aeneas and Dido

D) Their collaborative religion essay

8. Which characteristics best describe Elena’s experience growing up in the neighborhood?

A) Middle-class, pedestrian, limited

B) Violent, chaotic, impoverished

C) Isolated, deprived, alienating

D) Privileged, secure, unstimulating

9. Which of the following items is the strongest example of a symbol that supports the theme of Men, Women, and Power?

A) The shoes Lila makes with Rino

B) Lila and Elena’s dolls

C) The exploding copper pot

D) The Blue Fairy

10. Which event most effectively catalyzes Elena and Lila’s friendship?

A) Throwing rocks at Enzo

B) Playing dolls in the courtyard

C) Confronting Don Achille

D) Walking to the sea

11. Which of the following is NOT a motif that supports the novel’s themes on social mobility?

A) Standardized Italian versus dialect

B) Literature, language, and education

C) Writing and entrepreneurship

D) Marriage, love, and sexual exploration

12. Which of these ideas best describes Elena’s general attitude toward Lila?

A) Enthusiastic and adoring

B) Reverent yet resentful

C) Insecure and timid

D) Tolerant yet irritated

13. What conclusion can be inferred about Lila’s reason for accepting Stefano’s proposal?

A) She knows that Stefano’s wealth will provide her a life of ease and comfort.

B) She truly loves him and wishes to spend the rest of her life with him.

C) She believes that his money and influence will help her affect change in the neighborhood.

D) She feels pressured into marriage by social expectations and impulsively agrees to marry.

14. Which of these statements is the most reasonable interpretation of Nino’s role in the rejection of Elena’s article?

A) He is jealous of her writing skills and withholds the article from submission.

B) He misplaces her article and misses the submission deadline.

C) He disagrees with the article’s main premise and refuses to publish it.

D) He worries that Elena will face retaliation and prevents the article’s publication to protect her.

15. Which of the following characters best represents Elena’s fear of becoming entrapped of the cycle of abuse and oppression within Men, Women, and Power in the neighborhood?

A) Melina Cappuccio

B) Lidia Sarratore

C) Elena’s mother

D) Maestra Oliviero

Long Answer

Compose a response of 2-3 sentences, incorporating textual details to support your response.

1. How does Elena’s attitude toward the people of the neighborhood and her place among them change by the novel’s final chapter?

2. How does Marcello Solara’s act of appearing at Lila’s wedding wearing the shoes that she made with Rino speak to the novel’s theme on Men, Women, and Power?