43 pages • 1 hour read
Jerome Lawrence, Robert E. LeeThe Night Thoreau Spent In Jail
Fiction | Play | Adult | Published in 1970A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Essay Topics
Consider the disagreement between Henry and Waldo after Williams’s death. What are the pros and cons of each of their beliefs? Discuss whose methods are most likely to inspire lasting change.
Henry argues that one should refuse to follow unjust laws. What are the potential benefits and pitfalls of this idea? How do you see this working with relevance to contemporary issues?
Analyze the character of Waldo, noting the opinions that other characters in the play—including his family—hold about him. Ultimately, do you believe he is worthy of respect or not? Explain why.
Discuss Henry’s traits and beliefs, explaining how they are often paradoxical. Explain which of his ideas appealed most to you and why.
Examine the role of the female characters in the play. How do they enhance the themes of the play and contribute to characterization?
Critically examine Act II of the play, particularly the section centered around Henry’s conversation with Williams. How do Henry’s words and actions in this section show his belief in universal freedom and equality? Analyze how some of Henry’s claims in this section are insensitive and come from a place of privilege.
Analyze Henry’s war dream and discuss what it reveals about his beliefs, hopes, and fears.
Explain how Henry criticizes traditional education and its emphasis on obedience and conformity. How does your experience as a student align with or depart from his ideas?
Read Thoreau’s essay, “Resistance to Civil Government.” Trace the connections between Henry’s character in the play and the claims Thoreau makes in the essay.
The Night Thoreau Spent in Jail was written toward the end of the Vietnam War in 1970, more than 100 years after the events it describes. Compare and contrast the significance of Henry’s ideas during the events of the play in 1846, in 1970 when the play was written, and in contemporary times.
