Paired Texts > Welcome to the Underworld

by Michael A. Signal 2018

We've identified these texts as great options for text pairings based on similar themes, literary devices, topic, or writing style. Supplement your lesson with one or more of these options and challenge students to compare and contrast the texts. To assign a paired text, click on the text to go to its page and click the "Assign Text" button there.

Egypt's Pyramids
Egypt's Pyramids
USHistory.org

In "Egypt's Pyramids," this informational text explores the motives behind the construction of the ancient Egyptian pyramids, both for religious reasons and for glorification of their pharaohs.

Pair “Egypt’s Pyramids” with “Welcome to the Underworld” and ask students to discuss how both texts explore different versions of an afterlife. In ancient Egyptian culture, how was it determined how the dead would spend their afterlife? How does this compare to what happens to souls in the afterlife in Greek mythology? Why do students think that people from both cultures were so interested in the afterlife?

7th Grade Informational Text 980L
A Psalm of Life
A Psalm of Life
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

In Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's poem "A Psalm of Life," a speaker describes how humans should approach life, even with death always looming nearby.

Pair “A Psalm of Life” with “Welcome to the Underworld” and ask students to discuss how the themes of life and death are explored. How does the speaker in “A Psalm of Life” think people should live their lives? How does this compare to the lives and behavior that Hades rewards people for when they reach the Underworld?

7th Grade Poem
Theseus and the Minotaur
Theseus and the Minotaur
E2BN.org

In this myth from Ancient Greece, a brave Athenian prince sets out to Crete to take a stand against the monster who has been terrorizing his people for years.

Pair “Theseus and the Minotaur” with “Welcome to the Underworld” to provide students with another story from Greek mythology. How does the myth about Theseus and the Minotaur compare to the myths about the Underworld and Hades? Ask students to discuss how they think Hades would have judged Theseus if he died.

6th Grade Myth 920L
Apollo and the Laurel Tree
Apollo and the Laurel Tree
Retold by Mary Morton Cowan

In "Apollo and the Laurel Tree," an Ancient Greek legend explains how the Greek god Apollo's beloved tree came to be.

Pair “Welcome to the Underworld” with “Apollo and the Laurel Tree” and ask students to compare the different points of view in the two stories. What is the narrator’s point of view in “Welcome to the Underworld”? How does the narrator teach about Greek mythology in “Welcome to the Underworld”? What is the narrator’s point of view in “Apollo and the Laurel Tree”? What can readers learn about Greek mythology in “Apollo and the Laurel Tree”? How do the different points of view affect what you learn in each text?

5th Grade Myth 790L