Anger Is a Gift

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.

Locating “Privilege” in Anger Is a Gift

In this activity, students will embark on a “privilege walk” to visualize the characters’ privilege (or lack thereof) in Anger Is a Gift.

Moss’s friend group is comprised mainly of queer people of color, each with their own unique and diverse background. As such, Moss and his friends are up against a societal oppression that is Intersectional in nature—that is, each character experiences different levels of privilege and marginalization in various settings for a variety of reasons.

In this activity, you will peel back the layers of privilege in the characters in Anger Is a Gift via an exercise called a “privilege walk.”

• First, define terms. What exactly is “privilege” and the related concept of “intersectionality”? As a class, read through “Intersectionality of Privilege” to get a shared understanding of these terms. Spend time reviewing the graphic “Wheel of Privilege” in this article as well.
• Choose your character. Students can volunteer to be any character in this exercise: Moss, Esperanza, Javier, Wanda, or one of the other minor characters (Reg, Martin, etc.).
• Embark on the “privilege walk.” Once you’ve selected your character, stand in a line at the center of the class, with room to move both forward and backward at least 10 steps. Your teacher will then begin reading aloud a series of questions, which will help tease out each character’s various privileges and disadvantages. Answer as your character would answer and, depending on your answer, take a step forward or a step back. Taking a step forward indicates a gain in privilege; taking a step backward represents marginalization.

At the end of the exercise, who appears to have the most privilege? Do you think this is a fair assessment? If not, why? Consider how well this exercise might capture some of the challenges that each of the characters faces as their contexts change (for example, as characters move through time, but also as they move through geographic locations).

Teaching Suggestion: This activity will give students a way of deepening their understanding of the layered nature of privilege and visualizing how Intersectionality complicates the notion of “privilege.” You may use this “Privilege Walk Exercise” from Eastern Illinois University as the basis of the exercise, adapting and tailoring it to Anger Is a Gift. For example, you may want to add certain “Privilege Walk Statements” that are specific to the text. One such statement in the “Stepping Back” section would be “If you every felt uncomfortable discussing your sexuality openly with friends and family, take one step backward.” Moss’s and Javier’s sexualities are completely accepted by their friends and family; however, Esperanza—who, though she is Puerto Rican herself, has the relative privilege of having been adopted by white parents—feels shame at actually discussing or acknowledging her sexuality, which is subtly portrayed throughout the novel. Additionally, you may also want to note how different characters’ privilege status changes over time and place. For example, at the end of the book, when Moss becomes more accepting of the power in his anxiety/rage, is that a kind of “privilege”?

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. Institutional Racism in Anger Is a Gift plays out across several of the book’s core themes, particularly the theme of Police Brutality.

• In what contexts and settings does the theme of institutional racism appear throughout the novel? (topic sentence)
• Focusing on police brutality, analyze at least 2 key moments in the text to show how institutional racism interplays with this theme. Can this theme be understood without understanding institutional racism first?
• In your conclusion, explore how Institutional Racism is inextricably linked to corrupt policing systems in America.

2. Police Brutality is central to the lives of several characters in Anger Is a Gift, especially Moss.

• How do Moss’s panic attacks highlight the traumatic effects of police brutality? (topic sentence)
• How do the origins of Moss’s panic condition demonstrate that police brutality is not merely a historical issue, but an ongoing one?
• In your conclusion, describe how Moss’s panic attacks are symbolically significant, highlighting the lasting effects of Police Brutality that extend far beyond those actually harmed at the hands of police.

3. Moss’s friend group is comprised, primarily, of an extremely diverse group of young kids of color.

• Why is it significant that Oshiro chose to make Moss’s friend group more diverse, containing people from different types of marginalized communities? (topic sentence)
• Through Moss’s friend group, how does Oshiro assert that oppression can be intersectional?
• In your conclusion, show how Oshiro asserts that even marginalized/oppressed people can sometimes be ignorant of the experiences of others, benefiting from their own relative areas of privilege due to their multifaceted and Intersectional identities.

Full Essay Assignments

Student Prompt: Write a structured and well-developed essay. Include a thesis statement, at least three main points supported by text details, and a conclusion.

1. Moss’s mother, Wanda, is still incredibly present in Moss’s life, even while being forced to work long hours at the post office ever since Moss’s father died. How does Wanda’s experience and knowledge influence the other characters’ development and the overall narrative? Consider how the themes of the book—especially Police Brutality, Intersectionality, and Anger—can be viewed through the lens of Wanda’s character. In your conclusion, explore how Wanda helps Moss reconceptualize anger, which is crucial to Moss’s own character development and to the overall novel’s plot.

2. The novel’s themes reflect multiple contemporary social and political issues in the US. What techniques did the author use to weave these issues, including Police Brutality, Institutional Racism, and Intersectionality, into a believable narrative? Consider Oshiro’s use of point of view, characterization, setting, and plot in your response. In your conclusion, explain how the author rose to the challenge of honestly portraying a wide variety of social issues in a compelling work of fiction.

3. What does Wanda mean when she says, “Anger is a gift” (Chapter 14), and how does this affect Moss’s relationship with Anger? Consider how Moss’s relationship to anger evolves throughout the novel. What happens when he attempts to suppress it, compared to when he decides to view it as a “gift”? In your conclusion, explain how Moss’s transformation at the end of the novel is largely thanks to his reconceptualizing the emotion of Anger.

Multiple Choice and Long Answer Questions create ideal opportunities for whole-text review, exams, or summative assessments.

Multiple Choice

1. Police Brutality is one of Anger Is a Gift’s most apparent themes. Which plot scenario contributes most directly to this theme?

A) Moss is deeply traumatized from witnessing his father being murdered by police.

B) Shawna is irreversibly injured after being forced through a metal detector.

C) Reg is assaulted by a police officer at school, which serves as the catalyst for everything that happens in the novel.

D) Throughout the novel, the media attempts to shine a spotlight on how police brutality is out of control in West Oakland.

2. How does Moss’s school, West Oakland High, symbolize how young people of color are mistreated by society at large?

A) It is shunned by a neighboring (predominantly white) high school; it’s an example of overt interpersonal racism.

B) It has uncaring teachers and administrators; this represents the neglect often faced by young students of color.

C) It offers no extracurricular activities; without extracurricular activities, students have little opportunity to engage in positive, productive activities after school.

D) It is drastically underfunded; a crumbling school with no educational tools imparts the idea that society has given up on poor people of color.

3. Which of the following is not a component of Moss’s multifaceted identity?

A) He is Black.

B) He is gay.

C) He deals with anxiety/mental health issues.

D) He is nonbinary.

4. In Moss’s English class, students are supposed to be studying Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart, but most of the copies of the book have fallen apart and there is no funding to replace them. Which literary device does Oshiro use in this plot point?

A) Simile

B) Irony

C) Euphemism

D) Foreshadowing

5. What concept captures how Esperanza’s identity simultaneously represents both privilege and marginalization?

A) Oppression

B) Being transgender

C) Intersectionality

D) Tokenization

6. How does Assistant Principal Mr. Jacobs disrespect Shawna in Chapter 7?

A) He forgets her name.

B) He tells her that perhaps she should be enrolled in remedial classes.

C) He misgenders her.

D) He uses a racial slur in front of her.

7. At the Blessed Way Church in Chapter 17, Moss looks onto the crowd and sees “two worlds colliding.” Which worlds is he referring to?

A) His mother and Reverend Okonjo

B) His mother and Javier

C) School friends and activists

D) School administrators and his mother

8. Why is it important for Moss to learn if Javier has ever dated a Black man before?

A) Moss is trying to assess Javier’s motives in dating him.

B) Moss worries that Javier is secretly harboring racist tendencies.

C) Moss is concerned that Javier’s family won’t accept him.

D) Moss has a complex about being people’s “first.”

9. What is the mood at West Oakland High when Reg returns to school in Chapter 19?

A) Energized and excited

B) Somber and unhappy

C) Neutral and uninvolved

D) Timid and worried

10. Which statement best describes how the media’s reports on the incidents with Shawna and Reg connect to larger themes in the book?

A) The media amplifies Anger in the protestors, making them seem scary and irrational.

B) The media downplays the culpability of institutions, thus connecting to the theme of Institutional Racism.

C) The media does a long exposé on Police Brutality, which helps Moss make his case against the school.

D) The media focuses on Shawna’s and Reg’s unique identities, highlighting the Intersectional nature of their backgrounds.

11. What does Moss’s nightmare from Chapter 15 foreshadow on the day of the school protest?

A) In his nightmare, he sees a line of faceless officers; at the protest, police are everywhere.

B) In his nightmare, he sees Javier transform into a dove; at the protest, Javier is murdered.

C) In his nightmare, he sees a glowing fire in his chest; at the protest, he feels rage swell within him.

D) In his nightmare, he sees wild horses running through the school hallways; at the protest, he sees his friends running free down the streets, feeling elated and powerful.

12. What type of language do news reports use when covering the protest to avoid placing blame squarely on the police officers for inciting violence?

A) Passive voice

B) Code switching

C) Slang

D) Regional dialect

13. Which of the following represents the moment when Moss’s anger turns?

A) He screams at Esperanza for not being able to understand his pain over Javier.

B) He explodes with rage at the meeting after the protest, throwing a chair and shouting at Rachel Madsen.

C) He acts out in school, refusing to attend classes for an entire week.

D) He takes his rage out on himself, engaging in destructive behaviors like drinking alcohol and smoking cigarettes.

14. What is implied by the respectful treatment of the NBC reporter, Sophia Morales, in her interview with Moss in Chapter 31?

A) That she’s worried about Moss acting out, so she treats him with respectful caution

B) That, as a Latinx woman, she understands exactly why Moss is protesting and therefore treats him with respect

C) That she’s older and wiser than Moss and so knows that the best way to appeal to him is with a show of respect

D) That she must have been coached by her employer (NBC) to treat Moss with respect in order to avoid bad press

15. What is Moss’s “Rolodex,” and what is its purpose?

A) It’s a collection of student protestor names, which he can call upon going forward if he needs to organize a rally.

B) It’s a collection of BIPOC LGBTQ+ allies, whom he knows will always support him if faced with racism or anti-gay bias.

C) It’s a collection of police officers’ addresses, which he can potentially release to the public if they ever act out again.

D) It’s a collection of happy memories with his father, which he uses to help calm himself down from panic episodes.

Long Answer

Compose a response of 2-3 sentences, incorporating text details to support your response.

1. How do metal detectors represent societal attitudes about the West Oakland students’ well-being? In your response, cite moments in the text where metal detectors are featured prominently.

2. How does Javier serve as the catalyst for the primary character arc for Moss?