Creative Writing – Sefer Yonah/0

Creative Writing – Sefer Yonah

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Chapter One

• Yonah's Flight – Write a letter from Yonah to his family explaining why he has decided to flee, what he is feeling as he leaves, and what he thinks will be the long term outcome. Does he really think he will succeed in fleeing from Hashem? Why is he determined to try?  Base your piece on one of the positions in Why Did Yonah Disobey Hashem, footnoting sources as you write. Afterwards, add a paragrpah explaining why you prefer that approach over others.
• The Sailors – Write a letter from one of the sailors to his family telling them what happened on the boat, what he learned from it, and how it changed him.  Footnote the piece with sources to back up the claims.

Chapter Two

• Yonah's Prayer – BEFORE students read the chapter, have them write their own "Tefillat Yonah."
• Afterwards have them compare it to the prayer of Chapter 2 and question the points of difference.  This should highlight that, despite expectations, Yonah's prayer does not include any explicit call for deliverance or expression of regret for his actions. See Yonah's Prayer for discussion.
• Alternative: Have students piece together verses from Sefer Tehillim to compose their prayer.  Proceed as above. At the end, explore the parallels between Sefer Yonah and Sefer Tehilllim.  See Yonah's Prayer and Tehillim.
• Yonah in the Fish – Write a diary entry from Yonah's perspective answering: What did you feel while in the fish? Were you relieved to be saved or terrified of dying? After being spit out, how did you feel about continuing your mission?  What did you learn from being in the fish?. See Yonah's Prayer and Why Did Yonah Disobey Hashem.

Chapter Three

• Nineveh's Repentance – Write out a speech of the King of Nineveh to his people as he tries to convince them to repent. Include the various types of actions he wants them to do. [Does the king call on the people to return to Hashem and forsake idolatry or only to work on their interpersonal deeds?  Does he suggest that they engage in external signs of submission (fasting and the like) or does he speak only of change in behavior?  Whom is he addressing?]   See The Repentance of Nineveh.¹
• Make It Personal – Have students write about a case where they have been given a second chance (or wish they had) and how they acted (or would have acted) differently the second time around.  What made them change?  How long did the change last?

Chapter Four

• Dialogue between Yonah and Hashem – Write out the conversation between Hashem and Yonah in this chapter in your own words.  Choose a modern analogy to express the message that lies behind the analogy of the gourd. Make sure to convey clearly both what is bothering Yonah and what Hashem replies to this complaint, presenting at least one understanding of Yonah's complaint and one possible explanation of God's analogy. [Choose from the approaches presented in: Why Did Yonah Disobey Hashem.]
• The Day After – The book ends with Hashem's words and no reply of Yonah. Give Yonah the last word. What does he say?

General

• Repentance Contest – Have students choose a character in the book who is vying to win a "repentance contest".  Have them then write a proposal why they think they deserve to win, using incidents in the book to support their claims. [See the section entitled "Character transformations" in the Overview.]
• Comparison to other leaders – Yonah is invited to participate in a panel and asked how he compares to other great leaders such as Avraham, Moshe, or Eliyahu.  What does he respond?  How is he similar to or different from each? In a separate paragraph, have students include several literary parallels between the various stories, explaining why they are (or are not) significant. [See Avraham and Yonah, Eliyahu and Yonah and Sefer Yonah and the Sin of the Calf for discussion.]

¹ This exercise can be done before reading the chapter to highlight the questions the chapter raises regarding both what ideal repentance should look like and how one should evaluate Nineveh's repentance campaign in particular. Using their speeches as foils should help students do a closer reading of the chapter.  Alternatively, use the assignment as review and require students to footnote sources upon whom they are based.