Preview
Copywork
About This Passage
This sentence captures the wonder of a first meeting between two peoples who have never seen each other. To Too-wit and his people, the great ship is not a thing built of wood and rope but a living creature, and they are gentle with it, turning their spears up so they will not hurt it. Copying it helps a young reader feel how new and astonishing the world looks to someone seeing it for the very first time, and how Poe shows that wonder through one careful, surprising image.
They believed the Jane to be a living creature, and seemed to be afraid of hurting it with the points of their spears, carefully turning them up.
Full copywork activity with handwriting lines available in the complete study guide.
Discussion Questions
Narration Prompt
Retell this chapter in order: how the ship sails on through a warm, smooth sea pulled steadily toward the pole; how the crew finds a strange white animal and then reaches green, wooded islands; how Too-wit and his people paddle out in canoes and come aboard, amazed by everything — the big guns, and most of all a mirror, which frightens Too-wit so much he hides his face; how the islanders are friendly but will not go near white things like the sails or an egg; how the crew sails into a calm bay and goes ashore; and how, inland, they find trees, rocks, and even water unlike anything they have ever seen. Stop where the chapter most surprises you and tell why.
Discussion Questions
- When Too-wit's people come aboard, they think the Jane is a living creature and treat the big guns with deep awe. Why might the ship seem so amazing to people who have never seen one, and what part of the chapter shows their wonder? Use details from the chapter.
- Too-wit is so frightened by seeing himself in a mirror that he throws himself on the floor and hides his face. Why might his own reflection scare him so much, and how do you know it frightened him? Use details from the chapter.
+ 2 more questions in the complete study guide
Vocabulary Builder
Item 1
New and unfamiliar.
Item 2
Perfectly clear; see-through.
Item 3
Strong and muscular.
+ 5 more vocabulary words in the complete study guide
Critical Thinking
+ 4 more questions in the complete study guide
Get the complete study guide — free
Sign up and get your first book with every chapter included. Copywork, discussion questions, vocabulary, and critical thinking.
Sign up free