Week 5: The Experiment Begins Blog Post
This week, I read The Chocolate War by Robert Cormier. This novel follows the main character, Jerry, while he attends an all boys Catholic high school. This high school has a secret society known as The Vigils, a group of pranksters who manipulate the entire school into following norms and conforming. Jerry finds himself the target of this secret society after refusing to participate in a fundraiser that involves selling chocolate, and while his decision to not conform at first is seen as heroic by the other students, the society soon manipulates the school into seeing Jerry as an enemy. The leader of The Vigils, Archie, goes to more and more extreme lengths in order to make Jerry conform, but Jerry continues to be set in his ways, even after being beat up. Jerry eventually finds himself in a boxing match against the school bully in front of everyone on the football field, and is severely injured after a teacher attempts to shut down the fight by turning off the lights. As a result, Jerry concedes and tells his only friend that he should have just compiled. The novel ends with the implication that this cycle will continue all over again next school year.
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The Chocolate War may struggle with seeming relevant to today’s students because of some of the dated references. Having been published in 1974, students may not connect to it as much initially because of how much a 70’s private, all boys Catholic school will differ from a traditional modern public school. The novel has many religious and literary allusions that students may not understand. Additionally, students may dismiss the messages and themes of the novel because the exact circumstances of the story being centered around a secret society focused on maintaining conformity may seem outlandish to them. With the novel ending with the main character admitting defeat against The Vigils and their manipulative plots, this book may seem counterintuitive to teach to students, especially during a time when they crave the acceptance and approval of their peers so much.
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However, this novel can definitely be taught to students in a way that encourages them to be mindful of manipulation and the power of fear. The Chocolate War can serve as a gateway to meaningful conversations about mob mentality, corruption, peer pressure, and bullying. Young adolescence is the time when many students will begin to challenge their conceptions of what is right and wrong and begin to establish their sense of morality and justice. While students may not have a secret society pressuring them about their participation in a chocolate sale fundraiser, many will have experienced peer pressure in some way, and discussions surrounding The Chocolate War can help students navigate the feelings and emotions that being pressured to conform by their peers can invoke.
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One theme that is central to the development of the novel is the theme of the power of fear. The most powerful member of The Vigils, their leader Archie, isn’t particularly well liked or respected. Despite this, he is able to remain in control of The Vigils and manipulate the entire school because of how much other students, even members of The Vigils, fear him, “He shivered with dread, realizing how awesome Archie’s power really was” (Cormier, 20). No one is brave enough to stand against him, and Jerry, the one student who ever dared to act against Archie, is eventually beaten down and forced into conformity. This is an important theme for students to explore because it allows them to examine why horrible people are able to gain and keep power, and how that power is only maintained because people are too scared to band together. Had other students shown support for Jerry and resisted Archie’s manipulative tactics, Archie would have lost his power and the students would no longer have to fear getting on his bad side. However, their fear of Archie and being ostracized controls the students and creates a never ending reign of power for Archie. This theme connects to several current events, but one that stands out is the potential for connections to discussions about the power of political elections. Voter intimidation is a rising problem, and with the January 6th Insurrection, students have recently seen a rise in political polarization. With one of my endorsements being Social Studies, I could definitely see myself connecting The Chocolate War to a discussion about how politics and the way we talk about politics has changed. To discuss this particular issue, I think students would benefit from hearing from a voting rights activist or from someone who is an advocate for the First Amendment. The United States has a very low voter turnout, so creating a culture where students are excited to turn 18 and go vote would be one of my main goals as a teacher.
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Another important theme of The Chocolate War is the theme of corruption and morality. The novel takes place in a Catholic high school run by Brother Leon. As a religious leader, Brother Leon should be a shining example of morality, yet he is revealed to have unscrupulously paid for the chocolate that the students are selling, and as a result is desperate to sell all of the chocolate so that he can break even. Brother Leon is well aware of all of the bullying that Jerry is undergoing, even watching as Jerry is assaulted in front of the entire school only to save Archie from getting in trouble for orchestrating the fight in the end. He even promises to help Archie maintain his power the next school year. This theme provides students with the message that adults and other figures who they were always taught to trust can in fact have motivations other than the best for the students, “They tell you to do your own thing but they don’t mean it. They don’t want you to do your thing. not unless it happens to be their thing, too” (Cormier, 268). While it is unfortunate that students have to be taught that not every person out there is trustworthy, it is important that students learn to examine others with a critical eye in order to be able to protect themselves. One connection that this particular theme has to current events is the discussions surrounding police brutality and growing mistrust of the police. As children, we are taught that the police are the peacekeepers and that we can rely on them to help us if we find ourselves in need. However, as the times have advanced, it has become increasingly public that this isn’t always the case, especially for black and other individuals of color. In this video, Vice News interviews several individuals about if they trust the police or not. This relates to the theme because it shows how many communities live in such fear of retaliation that they feel that they can’t speak out against brutality, and how disappointing it is to discover that the public servants who are supposed to keep communities safe seem to be doing the exact opposite of that. There are many different angles one could take to connecting speakers to this topic. Anti-bullying activists could come in to provide students with self-empowerment tools, as The Chocolate War does have scenes with bullying occurring. Additionally, speakers who have experience being a whistleblower or fighting corruption could come in, as it would be interesting for students to speak to someone who has followed their morals, even when it was difficult to do so.
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Extra Quotes:
“The world was made up of two kinds of people—those who were victims and those who victimized” (Cormier, 103).
“A new sickness invaded Jerry, the sickness of knowing what he’d become, another animal, another beast, another violent person in a violent world, inflicting damage, not disturbing the universe, but damaging it” (Cormier, 235-236).
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