by Mercer Mayer

Questions for Philosophical Discussion
by Rebecca Bailey
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The nature of reality:

This story tells about one little boy and his nightmare.

1. Have you ever had a nightmare? What did your nightmare look like?
2. What if you couldn't see your nightmare. Would it still be there?
3. Do you think you have to see something for it to be real?
4. Can you think of things you've never seen, but that you believe are real (like maybe the continent Australia)?
5. What about ideas or memories? What about your thoughts? Can you see them? Are they real?
6. Can something be real to one person, but not real to another? How can that be?
7. Try to remember a time when you told someone a true story, but they didn't believe you. Was your story still true? Were the events still real?

---Pointing to pictures in the book---

1. Is the little boy's nightmare in the book a real nightmare?
2. Was your nightmare real? How do you know?
3. Imagine a situation where what seemed to be a dream was actually real. Is this situation possible?
4. Can you ever be sure which is the dream and which is real?

 

OWNERSHIP and CONTROL

In the story, the little boy calls the nightmare his.

1. Did he create the nightmare?
2. Do you think he can control the nightmare?
3. Think about something you own, like a shirt, or a toy, or a lunch sandwich. What does it mean for something to belong to someone?
4. What does it mean for something to be yours?
5. What about your finger? Do you own your finger? Why or why not?
6. Try to remember the last time you drew a picture in class. Did you want other people to draw on your picture? Why or why not?
7. Can you think of things that might have affected how you drew your picture (for example: what colors you had, what assignment your teacher gave you, maybe whether you were happy or sad that day)?
8. How much control did you have over the picture?
   

 

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