Use these essay questions as writing and critical thinking exercises for all levels of writers, and to build their literary analysis skills by requiring textual references throughout the essay.

Differentiation Suggestion: For English learners or struggling writers, strategies that work well include graphic organizers, sentence frames or starters, group work, or oral responses.

Scaffolded Essay Questions

Student Prompt: Write a short (1-3 paragraph) response using one of the bulleted outlines below. Cite details from the text over the course of your response that serve as examples and support.

1. After striking the Bride at the end of the play, the Bridegroom’s mother allows the Bride to stay and mourn with her.

• What caused her change of heart? (topic sentence)
• Consider whether or not this action is evidence that she allows the Bride a place back in society.
• Is the Bride’s future ambiguous? Or does Lorca point to a reconciliation between The Incompatibility of Desire and the Social Order?

2. The Bridegroom’s mother and the Bride view women’s agency differently; however, each character is conflicted with the position they assume.

• Compare and contrast their different viewpoints. (topic sentence)
• What is each character’s particular contradiction that she must overcome?
• How do these opposing viewpoints speak to the larger theme of Women as Casualties?

3.