The Scarlet Pimpernel

Use this activity to engage all types of learners, while requiring that they refer to and incorporate details from the text over the course of the activity.

Activity 1: “Analyze Biases”

Students research, analyze, and present biases in their own culture or in cultures around the world.

From a modern perspective, Baroness Orczy’s novel is written with a clear cultural bias. However, at the time it was written, many people shared her biased views.

• Review or investigate Baroness Orczy’s bias and how it is reflected in the novel.
• Consider some cultural biases that are common today that many may be unaware of, or biases that many people support.
• Select a culture or cultures to analyze. Research cultural bias(es) for that group, then create a slideshow presentation using the discussion points below.
• Explain how biases shift and change with time and cultural changes.
• Describe the difficulties in overcoming cultural biases.
• Develop a theory on how to effect change on biases.
• Draw comparisons between the cultural biases of Orczy’s novel and the biases that are reflected in the culture you researched.
• Biases may include:
• Attitudes toward types of work
• Religious biases
• Social class biases
• Racial biases
• Extracurricular biases (such as computer gaming vs.