Use these questions or activities to help gauge students’ familiarity with and spark their interest in the context of the work, giving them an entry point into the text itself.

Short Answer

1. What definition might be suitable for the phrase social hierarchy? How might different cultures view social hierarchy? What impact might social hierarchy have on individuals and communities? 

Teaching Suggestion: Alina, the protagonist of the novel, is a mapmaker in the First Army, a division of non-magic people who serve the King. The setting is based on 19th-century Tsarist Russia, and the Fold, an accidental magic division created by the Black Heretic, prevents the monarchy of Ravka from creating a unified force. The Second Army, composed of magic people called Grisha, has luxuries the First Army does not have access to. The Grisha feel superior to the First Army and the peasants outside of the palace because of their magic and closeness to the King. As part of the introduction to the novel, it may be beneficial for students to discuss their descriptions of social hierarchy as a concept, what creates division in different cultures, and how those divisions impact communities.

• The first two sections of this scholarly article describe what social hierarchy is and provides language for discussion.