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Prestwick House
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Great American Short Stories
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Prestwick House
Prestwick House
Activity Pack
Great American Short Stories
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Copyright © 2010 by Prestwick House, Inc., P.O. Box 658, Clayton, DE 19938. 1-800-932-4593. www.prestwickhouse.com Permission to use this unit for
classroom use is extended to purchaser for his or her personal use. This material, in whole or part, may not be copied for resale.
ISBN-13 978-1-93546-575-1 Item No. 307188
Written by Rebecca Challman
Student’s Page­
Great American Short Stories
Name: ________________________________
Date:_________________
“Young Goodman Brown”
Symbolism
Objective:
Identifying elements in the story that symbolize ideas
Activity
Authors employ symbolism to convey ideas in a story, novel, or play. Nathaniel Hawthorne uses symbolism
extensively in “Young Goodman Brown.” Many symbolic elements are obvious, like the names of the
village and its residents, but some require careful study to reveal what they represent.
Complete the following symbolism chart in which you will list objects, places, or people from the story
that are symbolic of ideas and then briefly explaining what each is meant to represent. The first one is done
for you as an example. Find at least five more examples of symbolism, and add them to the chart.
S - 17
Reproducible Student Worksheet
Student’s Page­
Great American Short Stories
Name: ________________________________
Date:_________________
“The Tell-Tale Heart”
Comic Strip
Objective:
Creating visual representations of the story
Activity
A comic strip tells a story, just as a narrative does; but it does so in visual form, rather than literary form.
For this activity, you will be recreating “The Tell-Tale Heart” in the form of a suspenseful comic strip, with
illustrations, speech and thought balloons, and captions where necessary.
First, make a list of the important events that occur in the story and put them in order. Then, decide on
the best way to illustrate them in comic-strip form. To do this, create a storyboard in pencil on scrap paper,
sketching out each panel in the strip and what the characters in each panel are saying and thinking. Write
the dialogue and thoughts in balloons above the characters who are expressing them.
Once you decide on the storyboard, follow it to create the finished comic strip, using colored pencils,
markers, or computer generated images. Your comic strip should be at least four panels, but may include
as many more as you think are needed to convey the events in the story.
Look for examples of imagery to help you with your illustrations. Comic strips and comic books can tell
a story with very few words because the words that evoke images are not necessary. For example, the line
“One of his eyes resembled that of a vulture—a pale blue eye, with a film over it.” could be illustrated
rather than written.
S - 23
Reproducible Student Worksheet
Student’s Page­
Great American Short Stories
Name: ________________________________
Date:_________________
“Bartleby”
Allusion
Objective:
Recognizing allusion and understanding how it enriches a story
Activity
An allusion is a reference to an event, person, place, myth, or artistic work that the writer thinks the reader
will recognize. It conveys information quickly and helps the reader make a connection to the story. An
allusion can convey a hidden meaning, emphasize a certain characteristic or event, or evoke a particular
feeling in the reader.
In “Bartleby,” Herman Melville makes several biblical allusions and references to people and events that
may be unfamiliar to the modern reader. Using library resources or the Internet, research each biblical and
historical reference listed in the following chart, and explain it and why it is relevant to the story.
S - 25
Reproducible Student Worksheet
Student’s Page­
Great American Short Stories
Name: ________________________________
Date:_________________
“The Luck of Roaring Camp”
Creative Euphemisms
Objective:
Identifying and creating euphemisms
Activity
An author’s work often reflects the widely held ideas of the day. In 1850, birth and death were thought of in
different terms than they are today, and Bret Harte’s story “The Luck of Roaring Camp” illustrates how people
in that time and place viewed them. The characters’ euphemisms reveal their attitudes and beliefs.
A euphemism is a more gentle or tactful term for a difficult, painful, or embarrassing subject. One who
says, “We had the dog put to sleep” instead of “We had the dog killed” is using a euphemism.
Complete the following chart by providing the literal meanings for the euphemisms listed in the left
column. Then, list a few modern euphemisms that you’re familiar with.
S - 31
Reproducible Student Worksheet
Student’s Page­
Great American Short Stories
Name: ________________________________
Date:_________________
“The Bride Comes to Yellow Sky”
Figurative Language
Objective:
Identifying figurative language in a story
Activity
Writers use figurative language to evoke emotion, convey a deeper meaning, or emphasize an action or event
in the text. Similes, metaphors, and personification are just some of the literary devices used to achieve these
goals. Stephen Crane uses all of these in “The Bride Comes to Yellow Sky.”
Locate examples of each type of literary device listed and then complete the chart. You will need to find two
similes, two metaphors, and two examples of personification. An example of simile has been provided.
S - 37
Reproducible Student Worksheet
Student’s Page­
Great American Short Stories
Name: ________________________________
Date:_________________
“The Bride Comes to Yellow Sky”
Irony
Objective:
Identifying irony and understanding its effects
Activity
Irony suggests that the characters are caught up in circumstances beyond their control. In “The Bride
Comes to Yellow Sky,” Jack Potter has no idea that Scratchy Wilson will attempt to shoot him when he
[Jack] returns to town. Jack, along with his new bride, is headed toward an unknown destiny.
Irony can be shocking, tragic, or funny. Through his use of irony, Stephen Crane is able to surprise the
reader with a humorous ending that serves to relieve the suspense; the reader knows the danger facing
Jack and is relieved when Wilson’s drunken anger dissipates in light of Jack’s marriage.
Additionally, the situation is ironic because Jack is deeply concerned about what Yellow Sky residents will
think of his having gotten married. As it turns out, it is the very presence of Jack’s new bride that prevents
the drunken and armed man from shooting him.
In small groups, brainstorm real-life situations that you think are ironic. Compile a list that includes at
least one example of irony that is shocking, one that is tragic, and one that is comic.
We have provided an example of each.
• Shocking – A depressed man attempts suicide by swallowing pills. He lives, but the doctor advises
him that, while the pills were not deadly, x-rays revealed an inoperable tumor in his stomach.
• Tragic – A lifeguard dies of drowning.
• Comic – A teenager spends a lot of time washing the car for a night out, but, just as he finishes, an
unexpected storm hits.
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Reproducible Student Worksheet
Student’s Page­
Great American Short Stories
Name: ________________________________
Date:_________________
“The Private History of a Campaign that Failed”
Letter Writing
Objectives: Summarizing events from the story
Expressing personal opinions
Activity
In Mark Twain’s short story “The Private History of a Campaign that Failed,” fifteen young men with little
life experience form a band of soldiers who travel the countryside in search of battles to fight during the
Civil War. They experience minor discomforts and thrill to a few close calls, but they always return to
safety. They seem to be only playing at war until it becomes real on the night they panic when an unarmed
stranger approaches their camp, and they kill him.
Twain himself narrates the tale, as he looks back on the two weeks he spent in the Marion Rangers, a militia
group planning to fight Union soldiers in Missouri, during the Civil War.
Imagine you are Mark Twain, and you are still in this hastily assembled militia. Write a letter home to your
parents in which you describe your two weeks of service during the war, concluding with the killing of
the unarmed civilian.
Your letter should include a paragraph summarizing, or recounting, the events in the story and a paragraph
explaining what you feel you learned personally from the experience.
S - 43
Reproducible Student Worksheet
Student’s Page­
Great American Short Stories
Name: ________________________________
Date:_________________
“A White Heron”
Persuasive Speech
Objective:
Writing a persuasive speech
Activity
It’s clear that Sylvia loves nature and animals. Although she wants to please the young man and gain his
friendship, Sylvia feels strongly that killing the white heron is wrong, and she refuses to give the man
the information that he needs to find it. This is a painful decision for Sylvia because she knows she has
sacrificed both the man’s friendship and the money he promised.
Neither the man nor Sylvia’s grandmother opposes hunting. Imagine that you are Sylvia, and you want to
explain to the hunter and your grandmother why you won’t reveal the location of the Heron’s nest, and
why you believe that hunting is wrong. Write a speech that Sylvia would give to her grandmother and the
hunter to persuade them to see her point of view. Use as much information from the text as you can to
form and support your argument.
S - 47
Reproducible Student Worksheet
Student’s Page­
Great American Short Stories
Name: ________________________________
Date:_________________
“The Goophered Grapevine”
Frame Story
Objectives: Recognizing narrative framing
Creating a children’s book
Activity
“The Goophered Grapevine” opens with a Northern, landowning narrator telling a story about a story that
had been told to him. This story-within-a-story is called a frame story, which is a literary technique used to
frame the narrative. Usually the interior story is the main focus or reason for the narrative, but the framing
is often a way to prepare readers to suspend their disbelief. Perhaps it is the author’s equivalent of, “The
story you’re about to hear may sound crazy, but it was told to me just this way.”
The frame story form is popular among children’s book authors. Judy Barrett’s Cloudy With a Chance of
Meatballs is one such tale, in which a grandfather is telling his grandchildren a story. For older children,
Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events, by Daniel Handler, is a story being told by a narrator who
is actually in a predicament himself.
Form small groups to create a children’s book that employs the frame story technique. Choose any age group
under twelve as your target audience. Make sure the story you write is appropriate for that age group.
Start by developing the plot of the interior story. Then, decide who is telling the story, and why. Finally,
write, edit, and proof your story.
S - 51
Reproducible Student Worksheet