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Copywork
About This Passage
Study how Charlotte builds a complete judgment. She states a verdict ('a most unattractive personality'), backs it with exact faults, compares Uncle unfavorably to Wilbur, then makes an honest concession, his size will be hard to beat, before the final 'But' turns assessment into resolve. The passage models how a clear mind weighs character against advantage and still chooses to act.
One thing is certain, he has a most unattractive personality. He is too familiar, too noisy, and he cracks weak jokes. Also, he's not anywhere near as clean as you are, nor as pleasant. I took quite a...
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Discussion Questions
Narration Prompt
In your own words, reconstruct the chapter from the family's arrival at the Fair to the nap after lunch. Which moment do you take to matter most beneath the noise and spectacle, and how do you know?
Discussion Questions
- Charlotte's report on Uncle moves from a verdict, 'a most unattractive personality,' through the particular faults she names, to an honest concession about his size, and finally to her resolve to beat him. Trace how Charlotte builds this argument, and explain what her way of weighing Uncle suggests about the standard she uses to measure a creature. Use Charlotte's own words about Uncle to support your reasoning.
- From a single brief interview, Charlotte forms a confident judgment of Uncle's character. State a thesis about whether a judgment reached so quickly can be trusted, then raise the strongest objection to your thesis and answer it. Use the details of the meeting between Charlotte and Uncle to support your reasoning.
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Vocabulary
Item 1
Unappealing in character; Charlotte's verdict on Uncle's nature, not his looks.
Item 2
Presumptuously forward on slight acquaintance.
Item 3
Approving; the crowd's verdict on Uncle's bulk.
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Critical Thinking
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