Beyond the Curve Lesson Plan

At several points in the story, the author depicts motion and gesture as both the reflection and potential cause of a person’s emotional state. Consider the mind-body connection through the lens Abe creates in “Beyond the Curve”. How do thoughts/emotions and the body influence each other? Can we change one through manipulating the other? Or is it an illusion to think we can control either one?

Students may find it interesting to investigate whether the mental or physical phenomena arise first, examples including: “I shifted my balance and held my breath, feeling anxiety mount. Or was it the other way around? Did I start holding my breath after I grew anxious? In any...