Identify and give information describing the following characters. Tell who they are and give some details about his/her personality:

Mother

Father

Mary Nell

Michael

Sally Ann

Stephen Paul

Edgar Allan

Vocabulary: Write the sentence from the novel, the correct definition.

"whole man" (p. 7 ) (you will not find this in the dictionary)

probation period (16-17)

prejudice (25)

integrity (26)

What point of view is used in this story? Who is the narrator?

Explain the main conflict in these chapters.

Describe the town as Michael sees it in Chapter 6. What does Michael mean when he says on page 30 that the "town isn’t very real"?

Short Essays: Write one full page

What does Mother mean when she says, "Integrity. It’s a lonesome gift, I admit. But it’s a valuable one, nevertheless." Explain what you think she means by this quote and predict how integrity will probably be important in the book. Then give an example from your personal experiences. The experience could be something that happened to you to someone you know or heard about.

 

Describe your first impressions of Michael and Mary Nell as they are presented in these first seven chapters of the book. Be sure to give examples to support your impressions. With which character do you sympathize the most? Explain why.

 

In these chapters the man against man conflict of prejudice towards the Ficketts becomes very strong. As you read these chapters, list each example of prejudice you come across. Do the following for each example:

Describe what happened

Tell who was the victim of the prejudice and who was the perpetrator

Give your feelings—how you responded when you read this or how you would have reacted in a similar situation.

In these chapters Mary Nell is very concerned about her "image". She is not comfortable being a minister’s daughter. She wants to be like her friends. Write a short essay (1 page) describing Mary Nell’s conflict. Be sure to include details from the book as well as appropriate quotes which show her conflict. In the conclusion, discuss whether you or your friends, or kids in general today feel a similar kind of pressure to "fit in". How do you handle it?

Father tells Michael, "Sometimes you have to make a choice between the idea and the real world that surround the idea." What do you think his father means by this? Do you agree? Explain. How do Michael’s actions demonstrate this idea in the book?(pg. 57)

Michael is beginning to feel disappointed or angry with his father in these chapters.

Explain why Michael feels this way. Give specific examples from the book and include the specific quote. (Look specifically at Chapters 11 and 12 and how Michael couldn’t sleep in Chapter 11 and yet slept like a rock in Chapter 12. )

Explain how Michael’s difficulty sleeping is connected to his feelings about his father.