Post-Show Discussion
Use these questions to reflect, discuss, or journal about your experience and reactions to Two Trains Running! Explore any of the questions that interest you.
If engaging in this activity independently, consider taking notes or writing your reflections down. If engaging in this activity with a class or group, decide if you would like to answer every question in order, skip around, or select certain questions to spend time on.
Discussion Questions
- Memphis and Sterling don’t see eye to eye about the Black Power movement: Sterling goes to rallies and passes out flyers, and Memphis says “You born free. It’s up to you to maintain it,” and, “you got to think you’re ugly to run around shouting you beautiful.” (Act 1 Scene 2) Compare and contrast the priorities and perspectives of these two characters.
- What do Prophet Samuel, Aunt Esther, and Malcom X have in common? What do they symbolize for the characters in this play, and what purpose do they serve?
- The metaphor of filling a bucket comes up multiple times in Two Trains Running. Holloway says trying to make enough money for rent is like “trying to haul sand in a bucket with a hole in it.” West says it’s better to carry around a little cup, because “that ten gallon bucket ain’t never gonna be full. Carry you a little cup through life and you’ll never be disappointed.” What size “cup” do you think each character has? Which characters in this play refuse to compromise? Does it serve them?
- Hambone appears unwell, and to some characters, foolish and stubborn. What wisdom does he offer? What do the other characters in the play learn from him?
- This activity aligns with the following standards:
- Illinois Arts Learning Standards
- Anchor Standard 7: Perceive and analyze artistic work.
- Anchor Standard 8: Construct meaningful interpretations of artistic work.
- Anchor Standard 11: Relate artistic ideas and works with societal, cultural, and historical context to deepen understanding.
- Common Core State Standards
- CCSS.ELA.SL.1 Prepare for and participate effectively in a range of conversations and collaborations with diverse partners, building on others’ ideas and expressing their own clearly and persuasively.
- CCSS.ELA.RL.3 Analyze how and why individuals, events, and ideas develop and interact over the course of a text.
- Illinois Arts Learning Standards