The Life of Rigoberta Menchu - Scholarship Essay Example

Curriculum: Two Readings and a Writing Exercise On I, Rigoberta Mench Pre-Reading Activity The life of Rigoberta Mench is a testimony of pride and struggle. She loves her village and its traditions, and is conscious of the fact that the indigeous workers are victims of many injustices committed by the owners of the land-not only in Guatemala but in all of Latin America. In 1992 Mench won the Nobel Peace Prize for her efforts to better the conditions of the life of her village. In the following selections, she speaks of the ethnic diversity of her village and of the difficult labor conditions on the farms. 1. Does it surprise you that injustices occur to Latin American indigenous workers Why or why not 2. What are some ways that Mench's activism could help the country I. Reading #1: The Family. I, Rigoberta Mench My name is Rigoberta Mench. I am 23 years old. I would like to give this testimony live that I have not learned from a book and neither have I learned alone yet that all this have I learned from my village. It cost me much to remember all the life that I have lived, so many times there are times very black and there are times that, yes, are enjoyable also but the most important is, I believe, that I want to emphasize that I am not the only one, so have lived many people and it is the life of all. The life of all the poor Guatemalans and I will try to give a bit of history. My personal situation includes all the reality of a village. In the first place, it still costs me much to speak Spanish since I didn't have university, I didn't have schooling. It has been three years since I learned Spanish and to speak it; it is difficult when it is learned only from memory and not learning in a book. In Guatemala there exist twenty-two indigenous ethnic groups. I belong to one of the ethnic groups that is the Quich ethnicity, I have my customs, indigenous Quich customs, but however I have lived very close to almost the major part of the other ethnicities during my organizing work with my village. I am from San Miguel/Uspantn, Quich Department. The Quich live in the northwest of the country. Precisely, my land is almost a paradise of all the beauty that is the nature in those places since there are not roads, there are not vehicles. Only people enter. VOCABULARY FOR COMPREHENSION Read the sentences and circle the synonym for the underlined word from the choices given. 1. The testimony given in court was very convincing. a. evidence b. report c. oral testification 2. No one knew that the village had been burned to the ground. a. city b. small town c. court 3. It was a black day when we had to have our dog euthanized. a. somber b. happy c. color 4. It was important that the judge know the girl's name. a. significant b. different c. okay 5. I can't emphasize enough the significance of those numbers. a. say b. underscore c. differentiate 6. The history of the world is captured in these two books. a. chatter b. background c. litany 7. The ethics of the situation call for drastic measures. a. moment b. times c. case 8. Her memory is excellent when it comes to facts. a. time b. recall c. note 9. These people exist on a diet that is barely 1,000 calories per day. a. subsist b. eat c. fluctuate 10. There are twenty-two indigenous ethnic groups in Guatemala. a. barbaric b. native c. vegetarian 11. Each ethnic group has unique characteristics which make it special. a. cultural b. people c. land 12. Examples of ethnicity include Lithuanian, Japanese, and Irish. a. pop stars b. a traditional cultural group c. variety 13. The customs of Guatemala are varied. a. traditions b. ways of doing things c. cans of soda pop 14. Rigoberta does organizing within her community. a. gathering the community b. joining forces with leadership c. cooking READING FOR DETAIL Think about what you just read. Can you think of which policies Rigoberta would likely be in favor of and which she would be against POLICY IN FAVOR (YES) OPPOSED (NO) 1. Land Rights for Indigenous 2. Abuse of Workers 3. Equal Pay for Farmers 4. Share-Cropping 5. Low Educational Level 6. Better Education for Indigenous Children 7. Higher Pay for Farmers 8. Genocide READING FOR MAIN IDEAS Summarize in one sentence each, the different issues covered in the passage. 1. Rigoberta's age. 2. Rigoberta's knowledge of Spanish. 3. What culture Rigoberta belongs to. 4. What part of the country Rigoberta is from. REACTING TO THE READING 1. Rigoberta tells her tale in somewhat unvarnished Spanish. How do you react to her story as she sees it 2.What do you think Rigoberta's life has been like, judging from her anecdote so far 3.How do you evaluate what you have already read Pre-Reading Activity. Rigoberta's father was a union organizer of farm workers. He died in 1980 during a demonstration in Guatemala City. Mench's brother was killed by security troops. Her mother was tortured and left to die.. Two of her sisters joined guerilla forces. Mench moved to Mexico in 1981, where she wrote her now-famous autobiography, I, Rigoberta Mench. This book, published in 11 languages, tells about native life and the Guatemalan government's oppression. 1. What do you think it has been like for Rigoberta to go through such struggles, to lose so many important people in her life 2. Why do you think it was important that this book be translated into 11 languages II. Reading #2. The Death of Her Little Brother On the Farm. Difficulties of Communication with the Rest of the Indigenous with Linguistic Diversity. Fifteen days we had been on the farm, when one of my brothers died of (a) malnutrition. Two of my little brothers died on the farm. The first, that was the older, was named Felipe, I never saw him. He died when my mother began to work. They had dusted the crops, with the airplane as they are (b) accustomed to do while we are working, when my little brother was (c) overcome by the smell of the (d) fumigation and he died (e) intoxicated. Of the second I saw his death. He was named Nicolas. He died when I was eight years old. He was the little brother smallest of all of us. He was the child that my mother carried in her arms. He was only two. When my little brother began to cry and cry and cry, my mother didn't know what to do with him. And we didn't know what to do because we were in groups, but with peoples of other (f) communities, but we couldn't talk, we were not speaking the same language. We were coming from different places. Neither did we know how to speak Spanish. Activity: Vocabulary After reading, match the definitions below with the italicized word of the reading. Write the letter of the correct definition in the parenthesis. 1. ( ) n. bad gases 2. ( ) n. groups of people 3. ( ) n. lack of nutrition 4. ( ) v. overwhelmed 5. ( ) v. familiarized 6. ( ) v. in systemic shock due to toxins in the body Reading Comprehension: Pair up with a partner from the other group and answer these True or False questions. You may refer back to your reading, but do not show the reading to your partner. 1. ( ) Rigoberta's two sisters died due to a lack of poor nutrition. 2. ( ) Rigoberta's brother Felipe died due to intoxicating fumes from crop-dusting. 3. ( ) The passage does not give a reason as to why Rigoberta's little brother Nicolas died. 4. ( ) Nicolas was five years old when he died. 5. ( ) Rigoberta was eight years old when Nicolas died. 6. ( ) Based on the information in this passage, one could infer that the infant mortality rate in Guatemala is probably very high. Post-reading Activity: Work with the same partner to complete the following graph. You may refer back to your reading, but do not show the reading to your partner. AGE How old is Rigoberta FULL NAME What is Rigoberta's first and last name OCCUPATION What does Rigoberta do for a living MOTHER Where is her mother FATHER Where is her father SISTERS Where are her sisters BROTHERS Where are her brothers Writing Exercise: I, Rigoberta Mench Now that you have read excerpts of Rigoberta Mench's book, consider writing your own personal piece of testimonial literature. You may want to get on the soapbox about something you don't think is fair-homework, life, unfair grading practices, or some issue or cause that really concerns you that you are passionate about but don't feel is being given a fair shake by the media. Begin your story like Rigoberta did. Your prompt is to start out by saying, "My name is _____________ . I am _______ years old. I want to give this live testimony because ________________ ." Then go from there. REFERENCES Beeghly, Dena G., et. al. Litlinks: Activities for Connected Learning in Elementary Classrooms. New York: McGraw-Hill Higher Education, 2002. Guatemala Video. Travelview International: Guatemala. USA: Travelview International, 1985. Courtesy NPU Media Services. Huck, Charlotte S., et. al. Children's Literature in the Elementary School, 7th Ed. New York: McGraw-Hill Higher Education, 2001. Hurst, Beth, et. al. Professionalism in Teaching. Columbus, Ohio: Prentice Hall, 2000. McMullan, John, et. al. Bravo! Anotated Teacher's Edition. USA: Houghton Mifflin Co., 1996. Pp. 238-240. McMullan, John, et. al. Bravo! Workbook: Writing and Reading Activities. USA: Houghton and Mifflin Co., 1996. Pp. 144-145. Tompkins, Gail E. Literacy for the 21st Century, 3rd Ed. Columbus, Ohio: Prentice Hall, 2003. Read More