The Scarlet Pimpernel

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

What does it mean to “enlighten” someone? What, then, is the Enlightenment period in history? When and where did the Enlightenment take place, and what new ideas were formed?

Teaching Suggestion: The Scarlet Pimpernel follows the tale of an elite underground group that smuggles French nobles out of the country to save their lives during the French Revolution. One way to introduce the historical context of the novel might be through a discussion of the Enlightenment and its connection to the French Revolution; from there, readers might review or investigate the social classes that made up the three Estates and the way that the Third Estate broke off from the First and Second. Another topic to introduce might be the guillotine and its importance in the French Revolution.

• This 6-minute TED-Ed video describes the French Revolution and how the Enlightenment drove it.
• This article describes the Enlightenment and the ideas that developed during this time.

Short Activity

Use scholarly resources to investigate the Reign of Terror. In your notes or a reading journal, list brief responses to these questions:

• What was the Reign of Terror?
• What was the Committee of Public Safety?
• What was the Certificate of Civism?
• What social class bore the brunt of deaths during the Reign of Terror?
• Why was the Reign of Terror considered unjust, even by those who supported the cause?
• Why was the guillotine sometimes unreliable?
• Why did France end public executions?

Teaching Suggestion: The Reign of Terror is a particularly violent part of the French Revolution. The Scarlet Pimpernel takes place during the Reign of Terror, when the use of the guillotine and public executions were the most common. Chauvelin, the novel’s antagonist, is part of the brutal Jacobin group’s Committee of Public Safety.

• This 12-minute video describes the Reign of Terror in France.
• This 10-minute video describes the guillotine, the iconic tool of execution used in the French Revolution, and the disturbing spectacle of public executions. (Content Warning: May not be appropriate for all groups due to graphic depictions of death and gore)

Personal Connection Prompt

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

The Enlightenment was a time of questioning the concept of human rights: where these rights come from, who is allowed to be in positions of authority, and how to meet the needs of the people. These questions continue to be debated in society today as people seek to create a better world. What political, social, and economic ideas do people often agree on that create a better society? What are some ideas about society that people disagree about? How do human rights play a role in society today? How is governmental authority determined? What injustices and inequities still exist under constitutional government?

Teaching Suggestion: The Enlightenment is credited with sparking the French Revolution. Consider discussing some of the Enlightenment ideas that are still relevant today.

Differentiation Suggestion: For students who require an additional challenge, consider asking them to research and share information on key players in the Enlightenment and to draw parallels between the new ideas of the Enlightenment and the attitudes of people behind the French Revolution—or possibly other periods of revolution and social upheaval in history.