The Living

Much of the action in the book takes place on various boats. Which character would serve as the best captain? (In this scenario, assume all characters have passed a sailing class.) Consider these points as you reflect on the text to answer the question.

• What makes a good leader?
• What criteria are most important in a good captain?
• Where do different characters demonstrate or not demonstrate the criteria you’ve decided on?
• Are there any characters who are poor leaders but would make good captains?
• Are they any characters who are good leaders but would make poor captains?

Teaching Suggestion: One way to approach this discussion is to allow students to freewrite, re-read, and have small-group discussions beforehand. It may help to brainstorm leadership criteria together, assigning weights to each criterion so that students can consider those with higher weights in their decisions. After the discussion, having a class vote for the captain might be interesting. Another option for wrapping up the discussion could be for students to revisit their freewriting and reflect on what they learned during this process.