Go Tell It on the Mountain

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. Many characters claim to be religiously pious, but their actions are often antithetical to church doctrine.

• What is the relationship between the duality of Religious Piety and Hypocrisy? (topic sentence)
• Select one character and examine how this person’s piety is counteracted by hypocritical actions.
• What comment does Baldwin make about hypocrisy and religion?

2. John fears his sexual thoughts about other men make him a sinner.

• How does the dichotomy of Sexuality and Shame manifest itself in John’s thought process? (topic sentence)
• Identify 2-3 examples where John wrestles with shame and his sexuality in the novel.
• To what extent does he resolve this anxiety? Consider how the novel’s ambiguous ending comments on this resolution.

3. Structurally racist institutions and mindsets are constantly present in Baldwin’s novel.

• How is the pain of racism passed down across generations in the novel? (topic sentence)
• Find 2-3 examples from the novel where Racism and Generational Trauma are linked.
• What point does Baldwin make about the perpetuity of structural racism?

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. Consider the physical location of the Grimes’s church. How does the structure of the church function for the novel’s characters? What does the “threshing floor” represent? Choose two characters and analyze how they engage with this space symbolically.

2. John ends the novel by declaring that he has accepted God into his life. How does his religious experience affect his relationship with his immediate family? Will this revelation affect his fears about his future? What examples and details in the novel lead the reader to speculate yes or no? Support your discussion with evidence from the text.

3. Compare and contrast John and Florence’s childrearing and relationships with their families growing up. What do their respective childhood experiences say about the effects of Racism and Generational Trauma on families?