Sarah, Plain and Tall

Use these questions or activities to help gauge students’ familiarity with and spark their interest in the context of the work, giving them an entry point into the text itself.

Short Answer

1. What motivated white Americans to move West and settle on the plains in the mid and late 19th century? What challenges did they face, either during the long, arduous journey or as homesteaders?

Teaching Suggestion: While students might have encountered media associating American westward expansion with abstract ideals of independence, perseverance, and hope for the future, they’re likely to know less about the concrete factors that drove migration. With its depiction of mail-order brides, the novel offers a window into one such factor, but you can use the resources below to encourage students to think more about the practical realities of resettlement, especially as they interacted with experiences of gender or class. Discussion of this topic can help orient students with regard to the historical and geographical context of the novel, while photographs and other primary sources can give students a visual touchstone as to the setting’s historical significance.

• This document contains photographs and excerpts from letters, documents, and other memorabilia that illuminate some of the factors that drew settlers westward.
• This article explains the Homestead Act of 1862 and includes photographs of the actual document drafted by Abraham Lincoln.

2. What Indigenous American tribes inhabited the lands taken by white settlers in the mid and late 19th century? What happened to these tribes as more people moved into the area?

Teaching Suggestion: Though the novel itself does not engage significantly with the Indigenous history of the American prairie, this absence can itself be a good basis for discussion. Given the amount of territory settled throughout the 1800s, students will probably have heard of at least a few of the tribes who originally peopled the territory, even if they do not immediately associate them with this question. Because the novel’s setting is nonspecific, it’s not clear which groups would have originally peopled the land where the Whitings live: Possibilities include the Lakota, Dakota, Cheyenne, and Omaha. However, even a general discussion of the topic grounded in the resources below can give students insight into the effects—material and emotional—of white settlement on Indigenous tribes.

• This 2017 Smithsonian article discusses the impact of the 1809 Treaty of Fort Wayne on the Delawares, Potawatomis, Miamis, Eel River, and Shawnee.
• This short four-minute video discusses the impact of the loss of tribal lands on Indigenous peoples through interviews with tribe members

Personal Connection Prompt

This prompt can be used for in-class discussion, exploratory free-writing, or reflection homework before reading the novel.

Imagine you are moving to a new city, state, or country that is completely different from your current home. What items would you share with your new friends to represent your old home and its landscapes, customs, and culture?

Teaching Suggestion: To facilitate discussion, you may choose to allow students to bring in show-and-tell items from home that serve as visual representation of who they are and where they’re from. Students who do not feel comfortable sharing publicly might instead journal about the objects they chose.