Black Beauty

How does Ginger serve as a foil to Black Beauty? Why do you think Ginger eventually encounters a tragic fate?

How is social class depicted through the human characters Black Beauty encounters? What qualities does Beauty tend to admire in the humans he encounters, and are these qualities more prominent in individuals from any specific class background? How does being owned by an individual from a specific class or income background impact the experience of a horse?

Describe and analyze at least two examples where a character intervenes in an incident of cruelty or neglect. Why do individuals in the novel feel compelled to intervene when they see a situation they disapprove of? What strategies are employed in these interventions? Under what circumstances do characters tend to be more or less successful in their interventions?

Throughout his life, Black Beauty encounters other horses who share information about their past experiences with him. What role do these minor characters play? What types of information and strategies does Beauty learn from these other horses? Choose one minor character (Sir Oliver, Peggy, Captain, or Hotspur) and analyze what he or she contributes to the plot.

What role do female characters play in the novel? How does Sewell depict the lives and experiences of Victorian women, and how does this depiction intersect with representations of class?

Black Beauty is composed of short chapters in which a specific incident or event is typically introduced and resolved with subsequent chapters focusing on a new event. What are the benefits and challenges of this structure, and how did it impact your reading experience?

Black Beauty was not originally intended for children, yet it has become famous as a classic work for younger readers. Why do you think the novel might be especially appealing to young readers? What messages does it promote that make sense for that audience?

Anna Sewell wrote Black Beauty with the desire to inform her readers about practices she disagreed with and to affect social change. Why do you think Sewell chose to communicate her message through fiction rather than another form, such as an essay, speech, or pamphlet? In what ways can works of fiction be more effective at communicating social messages?