National Gallery of Art

Grade Level: 5–8

Students will explore life on a nineteenth-century farm by analyzing a painting of Mahantango Valley farm and researching the Manual of Agriculture (1862). They will then write a journal entry of a day in the life of a young person on this farm.

Curriculum Connections

• History/Social Studies
• Performing Arts

Materials

• Large sheet of paper or board to write adjectives to develop a definition of hero/heroine
• Drawing materials
• Copies of the “Design Your Own Coat of Arms” template
• Computers with internet access for student research (if they wish to come up with a Latin motto)

Warm-Up Questions

What is going on in the painting? What do you think happened just before this moment?

Background

In 1749, fourteen-year-old Brook Watson, a young English cabin boy, was attacked by a shark while swimming in the harbor at Havana, Cuba. Nine sailors rushed to help the boy and saved him from almost certain death, though he lost his right leg to the knee.

Watson grew up to be an important merchant and, briefly, Lord Mayor of London. He did not want his story of danger, courage, and survival to be forgotten. He asked John Singleton Copley, an American artist working in London, to paint this picture as a record of the events. Copley, America’s most important colonial painter, had traveled to Europe in 1774 to study art in Rome and other cities. To escape the hostilities of the American Revolution and for artistic reasons, he and his family settled permanently in England. During his stay in London, he received many painting commissions, including this one from Brook Watson.

Watson and the Shark created a sensation when it was exhibited, in part because the subject was so grisly. To lend believability to the scene Copley, who had never visited the Caribbean, consulted maps and prints of Cuba. It’s unlikely that he painted the shark from life or from prints because he erroneously painted an ear on the beast. On the frame of the painting an inscription relates the story and states Watson’s wish that this painting “might serve a most useful lesson to youth” about the risks of foolish behavior.

Guided Practice

• How has Copley told you that Brook Watson has already suffered one attack from the shark at the moment this scene was painted? (A bloody stump below his right knee indicates that the shark has bitten off his lower leg.) The shark is swimming around the boat again in the direction of Watson. Why do you think Copley chose this moment of the story to depict? (Because it is the most dramatic and suspenseful moment of the story.)
• What are the various sailors doing to try to save Brook Watson? Have nine classmates stand together and recreate their poses. Touch each student on the shoulder and ask them what they are thinking and feeling.
• How would you describe the mood of the painting? What might Watson be thinking?
• What are some character traits that these everyday heroes/heroines possess?
• Was there a time when either you or someone you know was saved or helped by a friend? What happened? How did those involved feel? What were the character traits that the hero/heroine possessed?

Activity

Students will develop a class definition of a hero/heroine:

1. Ask students to write the names of four or five of their personal heroes/heroines.
2. Next to each person, they will write adjectives that describe them (these may include characteristics such as strength, skill, bravery).
3. Ask for volunteers to read their lists as you write the names of their heroes/heroines in one column on the blackboard and the adjectives in a second column.
4. Then, in a third column, ask students to help you categorize each hero/heroine—sports, military, everyday, etc. Use the adjectives and categories from the second and third columns to help students develop a class definition of hero/heroine.

Extension