Go Tell it On the Mountain Lesson Plan

Elizabeth is distant throughout this section, both in John’s visions and in person at the chapter’s end. What do you think makes her distant from the visions and from the real-time action?

All students should identify that Elizabeth’s distance as perceived by John is directly connected to the secret that she keeps from him: the fact that Gabriel is not his father, but his stepfather, and that this is why Gabriel is so distant and disapproving. This secret closes off part of her personality from John, as she is trying to hide a significant part of herself from him—the part that loved (or loves) Richard, and that endured having a child alone.

In the visions, students should...