A thematic literature unit on the generation gap utilizing a variety of materials and in-class activities helps students understand their generation and that of their parents, creates an awareness that parent-child conflict is not a new phenomenon, and emphasizes the inevitable cycle by which the younger generation becomes the older generation. The unit can utilize three approaches, each serving a different purpose: (1) to study literature about the generation gap which covers the entire span of literary history, expressing a wide range of viewpoints; (2) to present characters in a contemporary novel with whom the student can sympathize and identify; and (3) to promote an emotional response to literature through role playing. (Brief lists of supplementary reading suggestions and selected references are included as well as study guides on "Zooey" and "The Late George Apley.") (JMC)