1a. What changes occur in El Building the day President Kennedy is shot? What effect does the assassination have on the narrator's mother? How was the President going to be remembered in El Building?
2a. Whom does the narrator watch from her window?
3a. What does Eugene's mother tell the narrator when she comes to visit Eugene?
4a. Compare and contrast El Building with Eugene's house.
5a. Assess how ethnic prejudice affects the narrator.
1b. Why doesn't the narrator grieve for the dead president?
2b. Do Eugene and the narrator make a suitable couple? Why, or why not?
3b. What does Eugene's mother think of the narrator? On what does she base her opinion?
4b. Why does the narrator want to enter Eugene's house? Explain whether you think getting her wish would have had the effect she expected.
5b. If this story took place today, do you think the narrator would be treated the same way? Explain.
Exposition and Setting. What is the setting of "American History"?
Narrator and Major Character. Who is the narrator of "American History"? Who is the major character in the story?
Inciting Incident, Rising Action, Climax, and Resolution. What are the inciting incidents of the story? What happens in the rising action? When does the climax of the story occur? How does the author resolve the conflict?
Minor Character. Why is the minor character Mr. DePalma important to the story? Why is it surprising that he cries the day the President is shot?
Conflict. What types of conflict does the narrator experience?
1. Imagine that you are the narrator. Write a letter to your cousin in Puerto Rico describing where you were when you heard about President Kennedy's death and people's reactions, including your own.
2. Imagine that you are the narrator. Write a note to Eugene explaining what his mother did to you and describing how it made you feel.
3. The narrator says that her parents' dreams are told "as fairy tales." Imagine that you are the narrator. Write a journal entry describing your fairy tale about Eugene.
