Invictus



=Background Information=
 * // What is apartheid? //
 * // Who is Nelson Mandela? //

=The Nelson Mandela Foundation=

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// Invictus // William Ernest Henley

Out of the night that covers me, Black as the pit from pole to pole, I thank whatever gods may be For my unconquerable soul.

In the fell clutch of circumstance I have not winced nor cried aloud. Under the bludgeonings of chance My head is bloody, but unbowed.

Beyond this place of wrath and tears Looms but the Horror of the shade, And yet the menace of the years Finds and shall find me unafraid.

It matters not how strait the gate, How charged with punishments the scroll. I am the master of my fate: I am the captain of my soul.

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 * //Invictus //**** Discussion Questions **

1) What is it about the Springboks that Mandela values most?

2) How would you describe the relationships among Mandela’s security guards as the story progresses?

3) Mandela says: If we remove the rugby team, “we prove that we are who they feared we would be.” What does he mean, what is he describing?

4) What was the point of the team’s trip to Robben Island to see the prison where Mandela was held?

5) How does sport shape community, impact relationships, create connections?

6) Did Nelson Mandela’s pursuit of reconciliation prevent a civil war in South Africa?

7) In 1969, three years after arriving on Robben Island to serve a life sentence for sabotage, Nelson Mandela’s eldest son, died in a car crash. Prison authorities refused to allow Mandela to attend the funeral. After 27 years in prison, how is it possible to not only forgive your captors, but to seek reconciliation with the white population and the apartheid leaders?

8) What did François Pienaar, the captain of the Springboks rugby team, learn from Nelson Mandela? What experiences enabled Pienaar to hear Mandela's message?

9) What archetypes do you see in Nelson Mandela and François Pienaar? What can we learn from these characters?

10) <span style="color: #555555; font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">Mandela drew strength from Henley's poem. What sources of wisdom have inspired you during times of trial?

<span style="color: #333333; font-family: 'cambria','serif';">11) <span style="color: #555555; font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">In what other ways did //<span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">Invictus // have an impact upon you?

=<span style="color: #555555; font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">Scene Analysis =

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