Maple Street Drama Worksheet
STAAR Drama Analysis Teleplay Study Guide
"The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street"
By Rod Serling • Paused Reading Analysis: Stage Directions, Mood, Tone & Conflict
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Date:
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Drama Key: Stage Directions: Actions & tone cues [in brackets] | Dialogue: Spoken character lines | Mood: Atmosphere felt by reader | Tone: Speaker's attitude
Pause Point 1
Act I (Pages 1–3): Exposition, Staging & Foreshadowing
Stop after appliances stop working
- Read the opening stage direction from Act I (page 1):
"[It's a tree-lined, quiet residential American street, very typical of the small town... Steve Brand polishes his car... A Good Humor man rides a bicycle and is just in the process of stopping to sell some ice cream...]"
The playwright uses these specific stage directions and details of setting primarily to —
A hint that the neighbors have harbored longstanding rivalries and deep mistrust.
B establish an ordinary, idyllic community so the coming breakdown is more jarring.
C demonstrate that Maple Street is completely isolated from all modern technology.
D criticize the town's failure to maintain its municipal power lines.
- Read the Narrator's lines on page 2:
"Maple Street. Six-forty-four P.M., on a late September evening. [A pause.] Maple Street in the last calm and reflective moments... before the monsters came!"
How does this dramatic monologue impact the mood of the scene?
A It generates humor by poking fun at how easily suburban adults become flustered.
B It creates a lighthearted, playful atmosphere that puts the audience at ease.
C It suddenly turns the peaceful mood ominous by foreshadowing an inevitable threat.
D It introduces an objective scientific tone describing solar flare disruptions.
Pause Point 2
Act I (Pages 4–9): Rising Action & The Seed of Paranoia
Stop after Les Goodman's speech
- Read this critical stage direction from page 7 when Les Goodman's car starts on its own:
"[In this brief fraction of a moment they take the first step toward performing a metamorphosis that changes people from a group into a mob. They begin to head purposefully across the street...]"
The playwright's use of the word metamorphosis in this stage direction illustrates that —
A unfounded fear is stripping away the neighbors' rational judgment and humanity.
B the characters are undergoing an actual physical transformation into extraterrestrials.
C the residents are uniting in an organized, cooperative way to solve a civic problem.
D Steve Brand's authority as neighborhood leader has successfully calmed the crowd.
- Read Les Goodman's dialogue on page 9:
"You fools. You scared, frightened rabbits, you. You're sick people, do you know that?... As God is my witness... you're letting something begin here that's a nightmare!"
Which word best captures Goodman's tone, and what does it reveal about the conflict?
A Sarcastic; it shows he thinks the neighbors are staging an amusing prank.
B Desperate and prophetic; it underscores the dangerous spiral of mob suspicion.
C Apologetic; it shows he regrets his habit of looking at the stars at night.
D Aggressive and boastful; it confirms that he possesses alien technology.
STAAR Reading Drama Unit • TEKS 7.8(C), 8.8(C) Page 1 of 3 • Turn Over for Act II
Act II: The Darkening of Maple Street
Climax, Irony & Theme Synthesis
Drama Craft • STAAR Stems
Pause Point 3
Act II (Pages 10–14): Staging, Technical Elements & The Fatal Shot
Stop after Pete Van Horn is shot
- In Act II, stage directions specify: "candlelight but no electricity... an all-pervading quiet blankets the area..." Charlie adds, "it's like goin' back into the dark ages!"
How do these technical elements (lighting and sound) affect the scene?
A They demonstrate that the neighborhood has calmly adapted without power.
B The shadows and silence heighten paranoia, reflecting the collapse of reason.
C They provide lighthearted relief by exaggerating how silly adults act.
D They confirm Pete Van Horn deliberately disabled the street's electrical grid.
- When the dark figure emerges, Charlie grabs the shotgun and fires without looking, killing Pete Van Horn.
What does this dramatic action reveal about the climax and central conflict?
A The true menace on Maple Street is the neighbors' own unchecked hysteria.
B Pete Van Horn was an extraterrestrial scout posing an imminent threat.
C Charlie is executing an organized defense authorized by local authorities.
D Steve Brand was secretly responsible for triggering the shotgun misfire.
Pause Point 4
Act II (Pages 15–18): The Extraterrestrial Reveal & Irony
End of Teleplay
- On page 17, Figure One states: "They pick the most dangerous enemy they can find... and it's themselves. And all we need do is sit back... and watch." Serling uses this dramatic irony primarily to —
A warn that foreign invaders have mastered acoustic mind-control frequencies.
B indicate that the residents will successfully find and capture the spaceship.
C emphasize that human paranoia and prejudice are far deadlier than alien weapons.
D show that Tommy's sci-fi comic books accurately recorded every invasion step.
STAAR SCR
Short Constructed Response • Theme & Dramatic Craft
TEKS 7.8(C) & 8.8(C)
"The tools of conquest do not necessarily come with bombs and explosions and fallout. There are weapons that are simply thoughts, attitudes, prejudices—to be found only in the minds of men..."
Prompt: Explain how Rod Serling uses elements of drama (such as dialogue, stage directions, or lighting) to develop the play's theme about fear and suspicion. Support your response with specific evidence from the text.
STAAR Scoring Criteria:
States Clear Claim Includes Text Evidence Analyzes Dramatic Element
Rod Serling's "The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street" • Elements of Drama Page 2 of 3 • Turn Over for Media Comparison
Media Comparison TEKS 7.8(D) • 8.8(D)
Script vs. Screen: Film Comprehension & Analysis
Analyzing Director Ronald Winston's 1960 Television Adaptation of Rod Serling's Teleplay
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Period:
Part 1
Cinematography, Sound & Actor Interpretation
Answer based on the 1960 Twilight Zone episode
- In the filmed broadcast, the director frequently positions the camera at tilted angles (Dutch tilts) and zooms into extreme close-ups of characters' sweating faces during crowd arguments. What effect does this cinematography achieve that the written script cannot?
A It proves that the neighbors are following a scripted theatrical routine.
B It creates a feeling of disorientation and claustrophobia, visually reflecting the mob's loss of sanity.
C It allows the audience to spot secret extraterrestrial markings hidden on the actors.
D It softens the tension by reminding viewers that the broadcast is purely science fiction.
- Throughout the television episode, the soundtrack contrasts dead, eerie silence with Bernard Herrmann's shrieking brass musical cues and sudden loud noises (such as the gun blast). How does this sound design enhance the dramatic tension?
A It keeps the audience in suspense, making Maple Street's peaceful facade feel dangerously fragile.
B It mimics authentic sound effects from 1960s scientific weather monitoring stations.
C It covers up dialogue mistakes made by background actors during chaotic scenes.
D It indicates that Pete Van Horn was transmitting radio static before his death.
- When Les Goodman stands alone on his porch facing his neighbors, the actor stammers, darts his eyes frantically, and lets out a desperate, cracking laugh when defending his insomnia. How does the actor's nonverbal performance develop his character?
A It suggests he is trying to conceal his secret collaboration with alien invaders.
B It highlights his helplessness and disbelief that years of neighborly friendship are instantly erased by rumor.
C It shows he is attempting to provoke the mob into committing physical violence against his house.
D It conveys that he considers the whole neighborhood ordeal to be an amusing neighborhood joke.
Part 2: Evaluation
Comparative Extended Response • Script vs. Film
TEKS 7.6(C) • 8.8(D)
Prompt: Which medium—reading the written teleplay or viewing the filmed television episode—is more effective in conveying Rod Serling's theme that fear and suspicion are humanity's most destructive weapons? State your claim and support your answer with one piece of text evidence from the script and one specific visual or audio technique from the film.
Evaluation Checklist:
Clear Claim (Defends Script vs. Film) Cites Script Text Evidence Cites Film Visual / Sound Detail
Rod Serling's "The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street" • Cross-Medium Comparative Study Page 3 of 3
