The Crossover

Use these essay questions as writing and critical thinking exercises for all levels of writers, and to build their literary analysis skills by requiring textual references throughout the essay. 

Scaffolded/Short-Answer Essay Questions

Student Prompt: Write a short (1-3 paragraph) response using one of the below bulleted outlines. Cite details from the play over the course of your response that serve as examples and support.

1. The poems about basketball frequently use techniques of concrete poetry.

• How do these stylistic choices influence the meaning of the poems? (topic sentence)
• Provide specific examples from one poem that demonstrate the relationship between form and meaning.
• What feeling is the use of concrete poetry trying to evoke in the reader?

2. The moment in the novel when Chuck and Josh are pulled over by the police is a weighty reminder of the difficulty of being Black in America.

• What is the novel saying about Chuck’s fragile position as a figure of celebrity or authority? (topic sentence)
• How does this inform other parts of Chuck’s character or Josh’s story?
• How might this be related to Chuck’s distrust of doctors (or another defining character trait)?

3. At the beginning of the novel, a bet gone awry causes Josh to lose his dreadlocks.

• What is the significance of Josh’s hair, and how does losing it change him? (topic sentence)
• Provide specific examples from the novel that demonstrate Josh’s relationship with his hair before and after it is cut.
• Does Josh come to terms with losing his hair? If so, how?

Full Essay Assignments

Student Prompt: Write a structured and well-developed essay. Include a thesis statement, at least three main points supported by text details, and a conclusion.

1. The form of the poetry throughout The Crossover is a vital tool for understanding the thematic meaning of the poems themselves. Some poems fit the mold of concrete poetry; some have rhyming verse while others are free verse; some fit recurring patterns that the book establishes. Using examples from the text, identify several different types of poems in the book and demonstrate how their form and style deepen their meaning and your understanding of Josh’s character.

2. Josh and JB’s father Chuck portrays outward confidence, yet he is physically a fragile man whose shortened basketball career weighs more heavily on him than he lets on. How does Chuck’s lack of vulnerability affect his life and his relationships in his family, and what is the book trying to say about the relationship between confidence and vulnerability?

3. Though The Crossover is not overtly a book that addresses race, the family’s Blackness is a running subtext throughout the novel. How does Blackness define and affect Josh and JB as they are growing up, and in what ways is the novel showing the subtle effects of racism, cultural norms, and expectations on their lives?