The Fifth The Monsters Are Due on Maple

The Fifth

The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street

Wall to Wall

I believe in life on other planets.

I generally go along with the crowd.

It’s human nature to look for a scapegoat (someone to put the blame on).

I am generally suspicious of people who are different than me.

Man is man’s worst enemy.

Fear and prejudice are the root of most destructive behavior.

Discussion Zone

How susceptible are nice folks to manipulation? How fragile is our civilization?

If you wanted to take over a town without killing anyone, how would you weaken the people enough to overcome their resistance? Where would their weaknesses be?

What makes everyone so fearful? What are the first signs that something weird is happening? How do these signs first initiate conflict?

Why do people on Maple Street begin to suspect each other? How can people who have known each other for years suddenly turn on each other?

Why does Charlie shoot Pete and what does the crowd’s response suggest about how clearly they are thinking?

At the end, Rod Serling says, “The tools of conquest do not necessarily come with bombs and explosions and fallout. ” What does he mean?

Rod Serling continues: “There are weapons that are simply thoughts, attitudes, and prejudices, to be found only in the minds of men. For the record, prejudices can kill and suspicion can destroy, and a thoughtless, frightened search for a scapegoat has a fallout all of its own. . . “ In this episode, where were thoughts, attitudes, prejudices and suspicions used as weapons that led to destruction?

Why did everyone search for a scapegoat?

How did the neighbors shift from a crowd to a mob? What constitutes a mob? How did the mob progress as the story unfolded?

What conclusions do the aliens come to about humanity?

Who are the monsters on Maple Street?

When this episode first aired, it was believed to be a commentary on the Mc. Carthy witch hunts to find the communists among us. Are there present day scenarios where we can see others have success pitting neighbor against neighbor?

The Fifth Dimension

Have a member of the class act out the part of a reporter who has come to the street to cover this frightening event. The reporter can interview others as neighbors who provide their account of what really happened that day.

The Fifth Dimension