Teach Argument With Ed Sheeran's "Perfect"

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Know what’s better than teaching argument than with Ed Sheeran’s hit song “Perfect”…? Teaching argument with “Perfect” as performed by multiple speakers — including Beyonce and Bocelli.

Every once and a while, the pop culture gods smile down upon us and give us little gifts that are perfect for teaching nuanced rhetoric — and this is one of those times. These materials will prompt students to conduct a scaffolded analysis of Sheeran’s “Perfect,” to consider how the integration of a second speaker influences the argument, and to compose a written analysis that unpacks a translation of Bocelli’s version (a third speaker!). This is GREAT stuff!

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Lesson Description

Looking for more details about what this awesome lesson entails? Look no further!

These resources are divided into three parts:

(#1) First, students will be prompted to conduct a rhetorical analysis of the first verse of “Perfect.” They will consider the argument as posed by a single speaker — Ed Sheeran. Guiding questions to scaffold students analysis are included — ready to print, copy, and distribute!

(#2) Then, students will consider the second verse from the perspective of two different speakers. They will engage in a close reading of each line, and will unpack the nuanced differences in meaning that accompany the shift from Sheeran-as-speaker to Beyonce-as-soeaker.

(#3) Once students have complete the thorough analytical tasks described above, they will be ready to stake it out on their own — without a scaffolded guide for their analysis. The third part of this lesson is a writing task that prompts students to conduct a rhetorical analysis of Andrea Bocelli’s version of the second verse. (Students will consider, and will write about, the impact of a third speaker… the changes in languages… and the overall effect on the argument…!)

To access this, and ALL of our materials, join the TeachArgument Community now! Or, grab this lesson “a la carte” for just $4.99!