Lesson 18: Political Alliances — When Every General Lies
50 min
Student Lesson
Lesson 18: Political Alliances — When Every General Lies
Student Learning Objectives
Content
Students will analyze how Sanderson develops character and theme through key details in The Well of Ascension.
Language
Students will use textual evidence from The Well of Ascension to support written and oral analysis.
Foundations
Students will use domain-specific vocabulary — Koloss, Kandra, Assembly, Terrisman — when discussing the text.
Essential Question
How does Sanderson use textual evidence in this passage to develop theme and character?
What does this scene reveal about power, identity, or belonging in The Well of Ascension?
Connections to
Knowledge-Building
Close reading "The Well of Ascension, Chapters 20-22: Vin Negotiates with the Besieging Kings" builds the evidence base students need to analyze how Sanderson develops character and theme across The Well of Ascension.
Enduring Understanding
Close reading with annotation develops the habit of supporting claims with precise textual evidence — the same skill required in every writing lesson in this unit.
Future Lessons
Evidence gathered from this passage will be referenced in upcoming writing and discussion lessons.
Unit Performance Task
This close read directly informs the unit's performance task, which asks students to synthesize evidence across multiple scenes to argue what The Well of Ascension claims about its central themes.
Lesson Pacing
| Lesson Flow | Purpose of Learning Experience |
|---|---|
Launch5 Minutes | Orient students to the day's learning goals and activate relevant prior knowledge about The Well of Ascension. |
Literacy Lab10 Minutes | Provide direct instruction on the day's focus skill before releasing students to practice with The Well of Ascension. |
Learning in Action30 Minutes | Students apply the day's focus skill to The Well of Ascension with teacher support through circulation, conferring, and targeted questioning. |
Vocabulary
Vocabulary Addressed in Lesson
Koloss
Hemalurgic constructs created by driving four spikes from four different people into a single host, producing large, blue-skinned, emotion-volatile soldiers controlled by the Lord Ruler — and later by Allomancers.
Kandra
Hemalurgic creatures that can consume a body and perfectly replicate its appearance. Born from mistwraiths, they gain sapience through two Blessings (metal spikes) and serve Contracts with humans.
Blessing
A pair of Hemalurgic spikes that gives Kandra their sapience and abilities. Different Blessings grant different powers — awareness, power, presence, or stability.
Additional Vocabulary
Not available for this lesson
Material List
- Text: The Well of Ascension, Chapters 20-22: Vin Negotiates with the Besieging Kings
- Graphic organizer: Character motivation tracker
- Handout: Annotation guide — tracking theme and evidence
- Student journals
Routines & Protocols
- Close Read & Annotation Protocol
- Think-Pair-Share
- Turn-and-Talk