Table of Content

Cover ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………...… 1

Chapter 1 ………………..…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………...…… 2

1.1 Introduction ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..…..….. 3

1.2 Background ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………....... 3

1.3 Purpose …………………………………..…………………………………………………………………………………………….…………..…...….. 3

Chapter 2 ………………………………………………………………..……………………………………………………………………………..….……… 4

2.1 Who is protagonist of the novel? Is there an antagonist?

2.2 What is the main conflict of the novel? Are there secondary conflict?
2.3 Is there main conflict told chronologically / some things only revealed later? If so,what effect does this have?
2.4 Is there resolution of the main conflict? Is anything left unresolved?
2.5 What social environment is portrayed in the novel?
2.6 What is the climax of the novel?
2.7 What are the main character like and what character traits do they have?
2.8 Where is the novel set? Are there several setting? Does setting give the story a particular atmosphere?

Chapter 3 ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..….……………………. 5

3.1 Summary ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….……..……… 5-7

3.2 Conclusion ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….……… 7

 Chapter 1
1.1 Introduction
Ron Jones, a history teacher at Cubberley High School in Palo Alto, initiated an experiment in the first
week of April 1967. He'd begun a Holocaust lesson plan, and he was having problems explaining
students' inquiries about how German people and soldiers could have turned a blind eye to the Nazi
party's atrocities—or, worse, obeyed instructions themselves. Jones initiated a five-day experiment
called The Wave to demonstrate how such events could have occurred, maintaining rigorous classroom
discipline and conducting drills in attempt to establish an atmosphere of conformity and obedience.
Jones later designed a salute for his trainees to use when greeting one another, and dubbed the
movement he was indoctrinating them into "The Third Wave," a macabre play on the term "The Third
Reich." As the experiment spread across the school, students began to take their participation in "The
Third Wave" seriously, even reporting one another's anti-"Wave" thoughts or activities to Mr. Jones.
Jones assembled his pupils in the auditorium for an announcement on the final day of the experiment,
stating that they would be viewing a broadcast of The Third Wave's leaders proclaiming its countrywide
proliferation. Students, on the other hand, were shown an empty black channel during the
demonstration, and Jones explained that the experiment was meant to illustrate them the ramifications
of fascism and their own inclination to behave as German civilians and Nazi officers did during WWII.
The novel is based on these true occurrences, as well as the horrors of the Holocaust and World War II.

1.2 Background
The Wave by Todd Strasser is a story about history teacher Ben Ross and the nine days that he changes
the face of Gordon High School by running an experiment to show his students how easily they could
become Nazis. He is well-liked by his students even when they get bored of his lectures. However, when
they begin discussing World War II, his class is curious as to how people could follow Adolf Hitler.
Ben realizes he can't give them everything they want to know, so instead, this is when he decides to
perform the aforementioned experiment with his students. Since he's a charismatic teacher and his
students look up to him, he plays the role of leader and creates a group called ''The Wave.''
The next day in class, he starts building up the confidence of the students, correcting their posture, and
getting them excited about their new group. He starts posting ideals for the class to remember and
embody, including ''strength through discipline'' and ''strength through community.''
The students are also taught a salute that they can do between students and with the teacher. The
discipline that ''The Wave'' requires from its followers seems to make the football players who are in the
group better, as they learn to go to practice on time and take better care of their team.

1.3 Purpose
The Wave is based on a true incident that occured in a high school history class in Palo Alto, California, in
1969. The powerful forces of group pressure that pervaded many historic movements such as Nazism
are recreated in the classroom when history teacher Burt Ross introduces a "new" system to his
students

1.4 Conflict
The main conflict of the story is between Lourie and the wave. This conflict would be a man vs. society
conflict. This conflict is very hard to fight because there are so many people against Lourie.
 Chapter 2
2.1 Who is protagonist of the novel? Is there an antagonist?

Answer : the protagonist: Laurie Saunders the antagonist: The wave is the main antagonist, even “acting” on its
own as its power grows. Robert Billings is represents the group mentality of The Wave.

2.2 What is the main conflict of the novel? Are there secondary conflict?

Answer : The main conflict of the story is between Lourie and the wave. This conflict would be a man vs. society
conflict. This conflict is very hard to fight because there are so many people against Lourie.

2.3 Is there main conflict told chronologically / somethings only revealed later? If so,what effect does this have?

Answer: Mr. Ross manipulates his students into embracing The Wave by emphasizing values that the students
genuinely need help with like organization and equality. The Wave appeals to students because it seems to offer
a fast and easy way for them to solve problems in their personal lives and in the community. However, Mr. Ross
also acknowledges that the movement is also successful because the students do not know they are
participating in an experiment something he admits is unethical to Principal Owens.

2.4 Is there resolution of the main conflict? Is anything left unresolved?

Answer : The Wave initially makes Mr. Ross a worse teacher and a worse husband. He becomes self centered,
focused only on the glory he will achieve when he sees how The Wave improves his students' academic
performance. However, the experiment ultimately humbles him and leaves him with important insights about
human psychology. After The Wave, he makes a stronger effort to help Robert Billings, and he recognizes how
easily and uncritically students will accept a leader.

2.5 What social environment is portrayed in the novel?

Answer : David, Laurie, and Mr. Ross all lament the students' lack of organization at the beginning of the novel.
Each of these characters has a goal be it winning the football game, printing The Gordon Grapevine on time, or
teaching twelfth-graders about history that can only be achieved if all of the students work together in an
organized and cooperative fashion.

2.6 What is the climax of the novel?

Answer : The climax of the novel is when The Wave becomes a huge thing and people begin to hear about it. Mr.
Ross was going deeper into the subject and people viewed him as the leader. Members started to “bully” people
who were not in the group and things were spreading throughout the whole High School.

2.7 What are the main character like and what character traits do they have?

Answer : Many of the characters in The Wave play sports. Besides the football team, which plays an important
role in the plot, Christy Ross plays tennis and Mr. Saunders plays golf to relieve his stress from work. The
characters' enthusiasm for athletics suggests that there are other ways that people can bring discipline and
organization into their lives.

2.8 Where is the novel set? Are there several setting? Does setting give the story a particular atmosphere?

Answer : he setting of the book is Gordon High School in Spring 1969. The plot revolves around a history teacher
Mr. Ben Ross, his high school students, and an experiment he conducts in an attempt to teach them what it may
have been like living in Third Reich Germany.
 Chapter 3
3.1 Summary
That night, Ross is determined to read every second-world-war history book he can get his hands on in
order to figure out how the Nazis were able to attain such unquestionable control through groupthink
and coercion—but he becomes discouraged when he still can't find the answers. Ross begins to question
if the only way to get the solution is to conduct an experiment that mimics Nazi Germany's conditions,
so he begins planning an exercise for the following morning's class. Christy, Ross's wife, admires and
encourages her diligent husband to seek the answers he seeks, but she is concerned about his
compulsive tendencies. Ross undertakes an experiment with his senior history students the next day. He
chalks the words "STRENGTH THROUGH DISCIPLINE" on the board, establishes many new stringent,
militaristic classroom regulations, and drill sergeants his students through physical and mental exercises.
He is taken aback when the activity exhilarates and energizes his normally sluggish, sloppy classmates.
When Ross arrives into his history class the next morning, he notices that his pupils are sitting upright
and silent in their seats, and he realizes that they don't just tolerate but crave the discipline he's
enforcing, so he decides to take the experiment a step further. On the board, he draws the words
"STRENGTH THROUGH COMMUNITY" and encourages his kids to think about how they may do
wonderful things if they work together. Ross introduces a logo, a name, and a salute for the movement,
which he has decided to call The Wave, by leading the students in a recital of their class's new motto
—"Strength through discipline, strength through community"—and then introduces a logo, a name, and
a salute for the movement, which he has decided to call The Wave. Ross is impressed—and a little
nervous—as the youngsters practice The Wave salutation. Some kids, like David Collins and his football
mates Brian and Eric, appreciate The Wave's tenets of hard work, discipline, and community, while
others, like Laurie Saunders, find The Wave a little "militaristic" and dangerous to individuality as it
travels across the school. Ross is undecided about how far he should go with the experiment, despite
Christy's concerns about becoming a "guinea pig" in his own lab. Despite this, Ross pushes The Wave
even harder, handing out membership cards and designating certain students as monitors, entrusted
with directly reporting rebellious Wave members to Ross. He adds a third motto, "STRENGTH THROUGH
ACTION," and encourages Wave members to recruit new members from lower classes as well. At
Gordon High, the social order begins to shift—cliques dissolve, and even losers like Robert Billings are
embraced by the more popular students. Laurie grows increasingly suspicious of The Wave—while it
makes everyone feel equal, there's something "weird" about how unquestioningly all of her peers
accept it. As the days pass, a growing number of students join The Wave. Ross's senior history class is
prepared, on-time, regulated, and courteous, and despite being overwhelmed by The Wave's spread,
Ross wonders if his experiment could genuinely improve education. Laurie charges her Grapevine staff
writers with gathering as many articles as they can on how Gordon High students actually feel about The
Wave as students plan a Wave rally to "indoctrinate" new members. Ben Ross is summoned to a
meeting with Principal Owens, the school's principal, who expresses his reservations about The Wave.
Ross convinces Owens that the movement is nothing more than a class experiment, and Owens gives
Ross permission to continue—but cautions him that such experiments have "limits." Laurie becomes
even more concerned when she discovers an anonymous letter to the Grapevine describing The Wave
members' bullying tactics and threats in recruiting other students. When Robert Billings designates
himself as Ben Ross's "bodyguard," Ross begins to question if The Wave has crossed into dangerous
territory. Laurie and David fight as the Wave rally approaches, and David accuses Laurie of despising The
Wave because it makes her "not special anymore." Laurie visits a football game over the weekend in the
hopes of telling Amy about The Wave's dangers, but she is barred from joining the member-only seats
 unless she performs the Wave salute. Laurie convenes an emergency meeting of the Grapevine team,
and they work together to put together an issue that will reveal The Wave's true face. Laurie approaches
Amy in the halls on Monday morning to tell her about the paper, which will be published at lunchtime—
but Amy, who has always considered Laurie as a competitor, repeats David's earlier charges and
dismisses Laurie out of hand. As word of the new edition of The Grapevine spreads throughout school,
rumors and gossip abound—and Ben Ross begins to worry about the moral concessions he's made for
The Wave, amid whispers that he's "brainwashed" the entire school. Christy confronts Ben about the
beast he's created later that night, pleading with him to put a stop to it. Ben is adamant that the
children be pushed even harder, or they would miss out on learning "the most crucial lesson of their
lives." Meanwhile, Laurie discovers the phrase "ENEMY" scribbled on her locker after leaving the
Grapevine offices late after celebrating the issue with her team. She dashes out of the building, only to
discover David waiting for her outside. Laurie persists on writing what she wants, when she wants, when
he confronts her about her demonization of The Wave. David grabs Laurie and slams her to the ground
in a frenzy of rage. He immediately recognizes the significance of his actions and embraces Laurie,
profusely apologizing to her. Meanwhile, Ben Ross is working on a plan to put a stop to The Wave the
next day at home. He is astonished when Laurie and David knock on his front door, but he invites them
in. They beg him to halt The Wave, and he assures them that he will—but only for one more day. Ross
begs an enraged Principal Owens for a couple extra hours the next day. Teachers and parents have been
calling Owens, scared and upset, and there has even been an allegation of a Jewish boy being beaten up,
allegedly by Wave members. Ross is warned by Owens that if the experiment isn't completed by the end
of the day, he will be fired. Ross accepts Owens' condition and returns to class to put the experiment to
an end. He announces in history class that an unexpected rally will be organized that afternoon. He
informs the class that a "National Wave Youth Movement" has begun, and the movement's head wishes
to congratulate Gordon High students for initiating it. Ross has duped Laurie and David in his drive for
power, Laurie and David believe. They decide to skip class since they can't stand being at school any
longer. However, while sitting at a park, Laurie is overcome by the need to see The Wave's "leader."
Laurie and David arrive at school just as the rally gets underway. Ross informs the entire student
population, who are wearing Wave armbands and waving Wave banners, that The Wave's leader will
address them on television soon. However, as the television remains blank and without service, some
students accuse Ross of deception, claiming that the movement lacks a leader. Ross screams, "It does!"
and, with the help of Alex and Carl, reveals a massive projection screen bearing Adolf Hitler's visage.
Ross tells the stunned students that they would have made "good Nazis" because they blindly followed a
movement, let others make their decisions for them, and gave up their "individual rights" in the name of
equality that didn't exist because Wave members discriminated cruelly and violently against non-Wave
members. Ross implores the kids to remember what they've learnt from this experiment. As the stunned
students file out of the auditorium, Ross apologizes personally to Laurie, David, Eric, Brian, and Amy.
After they leave, the only student left in the room is Robert Billings, who sits weeping in his seat. Ross
comforts Robert and offers to take him out for a meal, stating that the two of them have a lot to talk
about.

3.2 Conclusion
By the end of the story, David confronts Laurie and tries to bully her into stopping her negative
commentary about ''The Wave'' in the newspaper. Laurie refuses, which incites David to hurt Laurie by
knocking her to the ground.