Response Letters

When watching this or any play, there is certain to be some disagreement among audience members about the events of the play and the reasons certain characters behaved the way they did. The purpose of this activity is to try to illuminate the spectrum of understanding that exists within the class.

At the end of Radium Girls, Grace reflects on the death of her friend, Tom and Grace reflect on the end of their relationship, and Roeder reflects on his role in the girls' death of the girls. Given all the events in the play, the characters respond in a variety of ways. Following the end of the play, what would any of the characters say about the events we have witnessed? To whom would he or she say it?

Once the students have written their letters, ask them to get into small groups and read their letters to each other. Once they have all shared, use the discussion questions to debrief the activity.

Discussion Questions

  1. What do we think the characters want to express? Why didn’t they express these thoughts before the end of the play?
  2. What do these letters reveal about the character?
  3. What can the class as a whole learn from this experience?