charlotte's web - literary discussion guide

charlotte's web
by e. b. white
literary discussion guide
a. characters

charlotte
wilbur
templeton
fernthe arables
the zuckermans
avery
henry fussyfarm animals
dr. dorian
uncle
baby spiders

2. conflict

person vs. self (inner conflicts of feelings & thoughts)

person vs. person (protagonist vs. antagonist)

person vs. society (larger organizations/belief systems of society)

person vs. nature (battling the elements of nature)

3. themes/symbols

analyze themes such as: friendship, acceptance, loneliness, courage,

death, believing in yourself, coming of age, self-sacrifice,
cycles of the life and the change of seasons, animal rights, etc.

do symbols foreshadow the plot, affect tone and/or meaning?

4. pre-reading/post-reading activities

science: farm life (animals, feed, barn, tools & machinery),

change of seasons, pigs, spiders, spider webs, etc.

math: county fair money (admission, prizes, rides, food, etc.)

classroom projects: art, "web" vocabulary, fieldtrip to farm, etc.