The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle
Study Questions
Ch. 1
1. Who is telling the story?
2. If, as Charlotte believed, Mr. Grummage was a gentleman like her
father, what kind of man do you think her father might be?
3. When Charlotte watches Grummage arguing with someone she can't
see, who does it turn out to be?
Ch. 2
1. What did the porters seem to fear? Why do you think the author
mentioned their fears?
2. Why was Charlotte distressed to discover that she would be the only
passenger aboard the ship?
3. What was your first impression of Mr. Keetch?
4. Describe Miss Doyle's living quarters on the ship.
5. What was Barlow "deputized" to do?
6. What does Zachariah give Charlotte?
7. Why did Zachariah think he and Charlotte could be friends, and why did
Charlotte disagree with him?
8. In the conversation Charlotte overhears outside her cabin, it sounds
like Charlotte is on the ship… a) for her own protection. b) as a part of
someone else's plan. c) because her dad messed up. d) because it was
the only ship available. e) All of the above. f) None of the above.
Ch. 3
1. How does Charlotte know at once that Jaggery is the captain when
she sees him for the first time?
2. What does Charlotte say she shares with the captain that makes her
respect him?
3. What did the captain tell the crew in his first speech that
demonstrated to them how powerful he was as the captain of the ship?
Ch. 4
1. What did Zachariah tell Charlotte in order to convince her to keep the
dirk?
2. Against whom does Zachariah say Charlotte needs the dirk to defend
herself?
Ch. 5
1. Why did Charlotte trust the captain?
2. Why did the captain show Charlotte the round robin and ask her to be
his eyes and ears among the crew?
3. Why did Charlotte lie to the captain about the person who gave her
the dirk?
4. How did Jaggery react when Charlotte tells him that Mr. Grummage
gave her the dirk?
5. Do you think Charlotte made the right decision by believing and
trusting in the captain? Explain.
6. After Jaggery gives the knife back to her, what does Charlotte
promise herself she will do with it?
Ch. 6
1. Why did Captain Jaggery have the crew set all the sails?
2. Why did Barlow want to speak privately with Charlotte?
Ch. 7
1. Of all the men on the ship, who could have put the carved head in the
hold? Why do you think the carved head was put there?
2. Why didn't Charlotte tell the captain about her adventure in the hold?
What might have happened if she had told him?
3. Why did Charlotte keep the dirk?
4. Miss Doyle has the strange feeling that both Zachariah and Jaggery
are trying to win her love. What are they really trying to do? What
advantage would each have in doing so?
Ch. 8
1. Why were the crew's quarters off limits to Charlotte?
2. What did Charlotte's response to Zachariah's gift of sailor's clothing
indicate about the development of her character?
3. What do you think Charlotte meant when she said, "But the storm was
--at first-- man-made"? To what different kinds of storms might she have
been referring?
Ch. 9
1. What did volunteering to go for Ewing's needle indicate about the
change in Charlotte's character?
2. Although Charlotte had been spying on the crew, how did she feel
when they began to spy on her?
3. What did Charlotte tell Captain Jaggery?
Ch. 10
1. Why was Cranick on board the ship?
2. What happened to Cranick?
3. Who did the captain choose to take the punishment as second in
command with Cranick?
Ch. 11
1. What did Zachariah say to the captain when he was asked?
2. Mr. Hollybrass hesitates often when taking orders from Captain
Jaggery. What does that reveal about his feelings?
3. Why does Hollybrass continue to carry out Captain Jaggery's orders?
4. Why was Charlotte the only one to defend Zachariah against the
captain?
5. What made Jaggery beat Zachariah even more furiously?
Ch. 12
1. At what point did Charlotte finally recognize the captain's true nature?
2. When Charlotte apologizes to Jaggery, what does he do?
3. Do you think Charlotte made the right decision to join the crew? Why
or why not?
Ch. 13
1. What does Grimes suggest Charlotte do to win the support of the
crew?
2. The author tries to get you to appreciate the height and the danger
involved in Charlotte's task. To do this, he uses similes to compare this
with things with which you are more familiar, using the words "like" or
"as". Find and write two similes from this chapter and explain what each
one means.
Ch. 14
1. Why was Charlotte's clothing such an important issue for the captain?
2. Captain Jaggery and the crew decided to call Charlotte by different
names. What was the significance of the new names?
3. What was the "prison" that Charlotte referred to as her proper place?
4. Why does Jaggery hit Charlotte?
5. Why does Grimes begin teaching Charlotte to use a knife?
Ch. 15
1. As she is climbing the mast during the hurricane, what does Charlotte
do on the way up?
2. Who saves Charlotte during the hurricane?
3. Do you think Charlotte really saw Zachariah or did she see something
else?
4. What do you think will happen as a result of the death of Mr.
Hollybrass?
5. Why was Charlotte's handkerchief found near the dirk?
Ch. 16
1. When Charlotte wakes up after the storm, she notices many signs that
something strange is going on. Name some.
2. What two pieces of evidence are there that Charlotte killed
Hollybrass?
3. For Charlotte, out of all the misfortunes, what was the most hurtful
for her to bear?
4. Who does Charlotte see in the brig?
Ch. 17
1. What is Zachariah's plan after the ship reaches Providence?
2. Whom does Charlotte think killed Hollybrass?
3. Why does Charlotte suppose the crew will not defend her?
4. When Jaggery comes to get Charlotte for her trial, he tells her that he
does not need to give her a trial. Why does he do it?
Ch. 18
1. During the trial, Jaggery claims that Charlotte is unnatural. What is his
evidence of this?
2. When the crew doesn't speak up for her at her "trial," what does
Charlotte think the reason is?
Ch. 19
1. What did Zachariah mean when he said to Charlotte, "It does you
honor"?
2. How do Zachariah and Charlotte come to the conclusion that it must
be Jaggery who killed Hollybrass?
Ch. 20
1. What was the plan that Zachariah and Charlotte decided?
2. Who was Jaggery's informant all along?
Ch. 21
1. What evidence supported Charlotte's assertion that the captain was
mad?
2. What three choices does Jaggery give Charlotte when she is caught?
Which one does it seem HE would prefer?
3. What does Charlotte choose to do?
4. In Chapter One, the figurehead of the Seahawk reminded Charlotte of
an avenging angel. How did its appearance in this chapter (21) support
this interpretation?
Ch. 22
1. Why, ever since that voyage, has Charlotte been doubtful about
stories of dead heroes?
2. Zachariah told Charlotte that he had never returned home because he
didn't know if he would be welcome. What event did this foreshadow?
3. When Charlotte dressed to go ashore, she felt pinched and confined in
her old clothes. What did her clothing symbolize to her?
4. What did sitting down to a meal before her mother, offering to get the
butter herself, and asking the servants to call her by her first name
indicate about Charlotte?
5. What two things does her father do after he reads Charlotte's diary?
6. Compare Jaggery and Charlotte's father. How are they similar?
7. Find a single word on p. 218 and another on p. 220 that might be
clues to how similar Jaggery and Charlotte's father are. What are the two
words they both used?
8. Explain what Zachariah meant by his speech to Charlotte: A sailor
chooses the wind that takes the ship from a safe port. Ah, yes, but once
you're aboard, as you have seen, winds have a mind of their own. Be
careful, Charlotte, careful of the wind you choose.
9. Do you think Charlotte made the right decision at the end of the
book? Why or why not?