The Literature You'll Read

PART 2

Facing Choices Meeting Standards The Literature You'll Read

Charles Dickens, dramatized by Frederick Gaines A Christmas Carol drama 250

Marta Salinas The Scholarship Jacket short story 278

Pat Mora Graduation Morning poetry 283

Jackie Robinson, as told The Noble Experiment from autobiography 287 to Alfred Duckett I Never Had It Made

Ernest Lawrence Thayer Casey at the Bat poetry 299

Special Report Out of the Ballpark newspaper article 305

Aesop, retold by James Reeves Ant and Grasshopper fable in prose 312

Aesop, retold by Ennis Rees The Ant and the Grasshopper fable in prose 312

Dorothy West The Richer, the Poorer modern fable 316 The Concepts You'll Study

Vocabulary and Reading Comprehension Vocabulary Focus: Affixes Visualizing Connecting Summarizing Questioning Setting Purposes

Writing and Language Conventions Writing Workshop: Character Sketch Action Verbs Consistent Verb Tense Active Voice and Passive Voice

Literary Analysis Genre Focus: Drama Stage Directions Theme Autobiography Sound Devices Fable and Moral Modern Fable

Speaking and Listening Oral Summary Interview and Response Evaluation of Video Portrayal Speech and Interview

244 LEARNING the Language of LITERATURE

All the world's a stage, And all the men and women merely players... —Shakespeare, As You Like It

Drama is one of the major forms of literature. In drama, characters and plot are developed through dialogue and action. Drama can be thought of as literature in play form.

Drama is intended to be performed for an audience, either on stage or before a camera. For this reason, dramas are written in a special form called a script, which includes stage directions and dialogue between characters. You see drama on television, in movies, in videos, and on stage.

Key Elements of Drama stage direction plot character dialogue

245 Stage Directions

A play's script includes instructions for the director, the actors, and the stage crew. These are called stage directions. They are often printed in italic type and enclosed in parentheses. In addition to telling the actors how to speak and move, the stage directions describe the scenery—the items that are on stage to help create the setting. Stage directions also describe the props, which are the objects the actors use during the play. Many scripts also include suggestions for lighting and sound.

STAGE DIRECTION

(The percussion thunders. Scrooge hurls himself through the descending snowflakes and sends the children scattering. They retreat, watching. Cratchit comes in. He takes some coal from the mound and puts it into a small bucket; as he carries it to a corner of the stage, the stage area is transformed from street to office. Scrooge's nephew Fred enters, talks with the children, gives them coins, and sends them away with a "Merry Christmas.")

—Charles Dickens, A Christmas Carol,

Dramatization by Frederick Gaines

YOUR TURN What scenery and props would be necessary to create the setting for this scene in the play A Christmas Carol, which is based on Charles Dickens's story?

246 Plot

As in fiction, the plot of a drama is the sequence of related events that happen in the work. The plot begins with an exposition, which introduces the characters and setting and presents any necessary background. In the rising action, the central conflict is developed, and dramatic tension builds. The moment of highest tension is called the climax. After the climax comes the falling action (also called the denouement), in which the conflict is often resolved and the loose ends of the plot may be tied up. (For more on plot, see pages 343-346.)

In drama, the action is often divided into scenes. The scene changes whenever the setting (the time and the place of the story) changes. Sometimes two or more scenes are grouped into an act. Character

In a play the main (also called major) and minor characters are often listed in the cast of characters at the beginning of the script. This list often includes a short description next to each character's name.

Occasionally one of the characters is a narrator, who sets the scene for the drama and may comment on what happens. Some characters, acting as foils, provide a sharp contrast to the qualities of the main characters. For instance, if the main character is lighthearted, the foil character might be serious.

YOUR TURN Read the dialogue between Scrooge and his nephew Fred in the beginning of Scene 1 of A Christmas Carol. How is Fred a foil for Scrooge?

CHARACTER

Fred. A Merry Christmas, Uncle! God save you!

Scrooge. Bah! Humbug!

Fred. Christmas a humbug, Uncle? I hope that's meant as a joke. Scrooge. Well, it's not. Come, come, what is it you want? Don't waste all the day, Nephew.

Fred. I only want to wish you a Merry Christmas, Uncle. Don't be cross.

Scrooge. What else can I be when I live in such a world of fools as this? Merry Christmas! Out with Merry Christmas!

—Charles Dickens, A Christmas Carol, Dramatization by Frederick Gaines

247 Dialogue

A play is composed almost entirely of dialogue, that is, conversation between the characters. Throughout the course of the play, the dialogue reveals the plot as well as the characters' personalities.

YOUR TURN How does the playwright use dialogue and stage directions to reveal character and guide the actors in this excerpt from The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street?

DIALOGUE

Steve. Go ahead, Tommy We'll be right back. And you'll see. That wasn't any ship or anything like it. That was just a ... meteor or something. Likely as not — (He turns to the group, now trying very hard to sound more optimistic than he feels.) No doubt it did have something to do with all this power failure and the rest of it. Meteors can do some crazy things. Like sunspots.

Don. (picking up the cue) Sure. That's the kind of thing—like sunspots. They raise Cain with radio reception all over the world. And this thing being so close—why there's no telling the sort of stuff it can do. (He wets his lips and smiles nervously) Go ahead, Charlie. You and Steve go into town and see if that isn't what's causing it all.

—Rod Serling,

The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street

248 The Active Reader: Skills and Strategies Reading Drama

You can bring a drama to life just by reading the script—if you know how to visualize. Interesting characters and dialogue, powerful themes, plots, and detailed stage directions can all work together to produce an exciting dramatic story. To get the most from every play, follow the reading strategies suggested here. How to Apply the Strategies

Read the play silently. Before you read the play aloud with others, read it to yourself. You should know the entire plot and the characters before you perform. You may have to reread the play a few times to fully understand what is happening.

Read the stage directions carefully. Stage directions tell you where and when each scene is happening. If you skip over them, you miss out on much of the play.

Get to know the characters. In drama, you get to know the characters through dialogue— the characters' own words. You can also visualize the characters as you read, picturing the set and props as the characters are moving about, speaking their lines.

Keep track of the plot. As in fiction, the plot of a drama centers on a main conflict that the characters try to resolve. Look for the conflict and let yourself become involved in the story. Watch for the action to build to a climax and then notice how that conflict is resolved.

Read the play aloud with others. As you read the part of a character, be ready with your character's lines and read only the words your character says. Do not read the stage directions aloud. Be sure to listen to other actors as they read their lines. In acting, listening is just as important as speaking.

Here's how Steve uses the strategies:

"I love being in plays. When I'm reading a script, I read all the stage directions and visualize how a character looks and acts. Sometimes I write down phrases that describe how my character might feel when he says his lines. I enjoy playing the part of someone who is different than me."

DRAMA A Christmas Carol

by CHARLES DICKENS

Dramatized by FREDERICK GAINES Connect toYour Life

How people lead their lives depends partly on the choices they make. In a small group, discuss characters you've read about in this book. How do their choices affect them? How do their choices affect the people around them? Do any of their choices change their attitudes and behavior? Why or why not? Build Background HISTORY

When Charles Dickens published A Christmas Carol in 1843, about one-third of the people in London, England, lived in poverty.

Factories had changed the face of London, with people flooding the city from rural areas. The city quickly became dirty and overcrowded. Wages were low and children were hungry. Jobs and housing were in short supply. The Poor Law of 1834 forced the homeless into workhouses that were little more than prisons.

By exposing the suffering of the poor in a vivid and sympathetic manner, Dickens convinced many readers that conditions had to be corrected.

WORDS TO KNOW Vocabulary Preview abundance anonymous charitable currency destitute emerge endeavor finale incoherent macabre mortal odious pledge provision reassurance solitude summon surplus transform welfare Focus Your Reading

LITERARY ANALYSIS STAGE DIRECTIONS

In adapting Dickens's novel into a play, Frederick Gaines chose to depict some of the poor people and conditions of London in his stage directions. Stage directions are notes in the scripts of plays. These directions are frequently in italics, and guide actors and readers by explaining the settings of scenes, the movements of actors, the rate and tone of the dialogue, and the sound effects. When you read a play, don't skip the stage directions. They give you information that you won't get any other way.

ACTIVE READING VISUALIZING When you read the script of a play rather than see the play performed on a stage, use the stage directions to help you visualize the play's setting, characters, and action. Try to imagine what you would see if you were watching the play performed on a stage.

READER'S NOTEBOOK As you read the stage directions in this play, pause to visualize the scenes that are being described. In your mind, try to position the characters in the correct places on the stage. Then draw or sketch the scenes.

250 A Christmas Carol

by Charles Dickens

Dramatized by Frederick Gaines

251 Characters Carolers, Families, Dancers First Boy Second Boy Third Boy Girl with a doll Ebenezer Scrooge Bob Cratchit, Scrooge's clerk Fred, Scrooge's nephew Gentleman Visitor Warder and Residents of the Poorhouse Sparsit, Scrooge's servant Cook Charwoman Jacob Marley Priest Leper First Spirit (the Spirit of Christmas Past) Jack Walton Ben Benjamin Child Scrooge Fan, Scrooge's sister Fezziwig Young Ebenezer Dick Wilkins Sweetheart of Young Ebenezer Second Spirit (the Spirit of Christmas Present) Poorhouse Children Mrs. Cratchit Several Cratchit Children Tiny Tim Beggar Children, Hunger and Ignorance Third Spirit (the Spirit of Christmas Yet to Come) Peter, a Cratchit child Boy Butcher Coachman Prologue

The play begins amid a swirl of street life in Victorian London. Happy groups pass; brightly costumed carolers and families call out to one another and sing "Joy to the World." Three boys and a girl are grouped about a glowing mound of coal. As the carolers leave the stage, the lights dim and the focus shifts to the mound of coals, bright against the dark. Slowly, the children begin to respond to the warmth. A piano plays softly as the children talk.

First Boy. I saw a horse in a window. (pause) A dapple ... gray and white. And a saddle, too ... red. And a strawberry mane down to here. All new. Golden stirrups. (People pass by the children, muttering greetings to one another)

Second Boy. Christmas Eve.

Third Boy. Wish we could go.

First Boy. So do I.

Third Boy. I think I'd like it.

First Boy. Oh, wouldn't I ... wouldn't I!

Second Boy. We're going up onto the roof. (The boys look at him quizzically.) My father has a glass. Telescope. A brass one. It opens up and it has twists on it and an eyepiece that you put up to look through. We can see all the way to the park with it.

Third Boy. Could I look through it?

Second Boy. Maybe ... where would you look?

(The Third Boy points straight up.) Why there?

Third Boy. I'd like to see the moon. (The boys stand and look upward as the girl sings to her doll. One of the boys makes a snow angel on the ground.)

Girl (singing). Christ the King came down one day, Into this world of ours, And crying from a manger bed, Began the Christmas hour.

(speaking) Christ the King, my pretty one, Sleep softly on my breast, Christ the King, my gentle one, Show us the way to rest.

(She begins to sing the first verse again. As snow starts to fall on the boy making the snow angel, he stands up and reaches out to catch a single flake.) Scene 1

SCROOGE IN HIS SHOP

The percussion thunders. Scrooge hurls himself through the descending snowflakes and sends the children scattering. They retreat, watching. Cratchit comes in. He takes some coal from the mound and puts it into a small bucket; as he carries it to a corner of the stage, the stage area is transformed from street to office. Scrooge's nephew Fred enters, talks with the children, gives them coins, and sends them away with a "Merry Christmas."

WORDS TO KNOW

transform (trans-term') v. To change the form or appearance of

Fred. A Merry Christmas, Uncle! God save you!

Scrooge. Bah! Humbug!

Fred. Christmas a humbug, Uncle? I hope that's meant as a joke.

Scrooge. Well, it's not. Come, come, what is it you want? Don't waste all the day, Nephew.

Fred. I only want to wish you a Merry Christmas, Uncle. Don't be cross.

Scrooge. What else can I be when I live in such a world of fools as this? Merry Christmas! Out with Merry Christmas! What's Christmas to you but a time for paying bills without money, a time for finding yourself a year

older and not an hour richer. If I could work my will, every idiot who goes about with "Merry Christmas" on his lips should be boiled with his own pudding and buried with a stake of holly through his heart.

Fred. Uncle!

Scrooge. Nephew, keep Christmas in your own way and let me keep it in mine.

Fred. But you don't keep it.

Scrooge. Let me leave it alone then. Much good may it do you. Much good it has ever done you. Fred. There are many things from which I might have derived good by which I have not profited, I daresay, Christmas among the rest. And though it has never put a scrap of gold in my pocket, I believe it has done me good and will do me good, and I say, God bless it!

Scrooge. Bah!

Fred. Don't be angry, Uncle. Come! Dine with us tomorrow.

Scrooge. I'll dine alone, thank you.

Fred. But why?

Scrooge. Why? Why did you get married?

Fred. Why, because I fell in love with a wonderful girl.

Scrooge. And I with solitude. Good afternoon.

Fred. Nay, Uncle, but you never came to see me before I was married. Why give it as a reason for not coming now?

Scrooge. Good afternoon.

Fred. I am sorry with all my heart to find you so determined; but I have made the attempt in homage to' Christmas, and I'll keep that good spirit to the last. So, a Merry Christmas, Uncle.

Scrooge. Good afternoon!

Fred. And a Happy New Year!

ACTIVE READER VISUALIZE Close your eyes and imagine the scene in Scrooge's shop. What do you see?

Scrooge. Good afternoon! (Fred hesitates as if to say something more. He sees that Scrooge has gone to get a volume down from the shelf, and so he starts to leave. As he leaves, the doorbell rings.) Bells. Is it necessary to always have bells? (The Gentleman Visitor enters, causing the doorbell to ring again.) Cratchit!

Cratchit. Yes, sir?

Scrooge. The bell, fool! See to it!

Cratchit. Yes, sir. (He goes to the entrance.)

Scrooge (muttering). Merry Christmas ... Wolves howling and a Merry Christmas ...

Cratchit. It's for you, sir. Scrooge. Of course it's for me. You're not receiving callers, are you? Show them in.

Cratchit. Right this way, sir. (The Gentleman Visitor approaches Scrooge.)

Scrooge. Yes, yes?

Gentleman Visitor. Scrooge and Marley's, I believe. Have I the pleasure of addressing Mr. Scrooge or Mr. Marley?

Scrooge. Marley's dead. Seven years tonight. What is it you want?

Gentleman Visitor. I have no doubt that his liberality' is well represented by his surviving partner. Here, sir, my card. (He hands Scrooge his business card.)

Scrooge. Liberality? No doubt of it? All right, all right, I can read. What is it you want? (He returns to his work.)

Gentleman Visitor. At this festive season of the year...

1. in homage to (hŏm'ĭj): in honor of.

2. liberality (lĭb ə-răl'ĭ-tē): generousness

WORDS TO KNOW solitude (sŏl'ĭ-tood) n. the state of being alone

Scrooge. It's winter and cold. (He continues his work and ignores the Gentleman Visitor.)

Gentleman Visitor. Yes ... yes, it is, and the more reason for my visit. At this time of the year it is more than usually desirable to make some slight provision for the poor and destitute who suffer greatly from the cold. Many thousands are in want of common necessaries; hundreds of thousands are in want of common comforts, sir.

Scrooge. Are there no prisons?

Gentleman Visitor. Many, sir.

Scrooge. And the workhouse?3 Is it still in operation?

3. workhouse: prison where prisoners are required to work.

Gentleman Visitor. It is; still, I wish I could say it was not.

Scrooge. The poor law is still in full vigor then?

Gentleman Visitor. Yes, sir.

Scrooge. I'm glad to hear it. From what you said, I was afraid someone had stopped its operation.

Gentleman Visitor. Under the impression that they scarcely furnish Christian cheer of mind or body to the multitude, a few of us are endeavoring to raise a fund to buy the poor some meat and drink and means of warmth. We choose this time because it is the time, of all others, when want is keenly felt and abundance rejoices. May I put you down for something, sir?

Scrooge (retreating into the darkness temporarily). Nothing.

Gentleman Visitor. You wish to be anonymous?

Scrooge. I wish to be left alone. Since you ask me what I wish, sir, that is my answer. I don't make merry myself at Christmas, and I can't afford to make idle people merry. I help support the establishments I have mentioned... they cost enough... and those who are poorly off must go there.

Gentleman Visitor. Many can't go there, and many would rather die.

ACTIVE READER EVALUATE What do you think the author wants you to feel about Scrooge?

Scrooge. If they would rather die, they had better do it and decrease the surplus population. That is not my affair. My business is. It occupies me constantly. (He talks both to the Gentleman Visitor and to himself while he thumbs through his books.) Ask a man to give up life and means ... fine thing. What is it, I want to know? Charity? ... (His nose deep in his books, he vaguely hears the dinner bell being rung in the workhouse; he looks up as if he has heard it but never focuses on the actual scene. The warder of the poorhouse stands in a pool of light at the far left, slowly ringing a bell.)

Warder. Dinner. All right. Line up. (The poorly clad, dirty residents of the poorhouse line up and file by to get their evening dish of gruel,4 wordlessly accepting it and going back to eat listlessly in the gloom. Scrooge returns to the business of his office. The procession continues for a moment, then the image of the poorhouse is obscured by darkness. The dejected Gentleman Visitor exits.)

4. gruel (groo'əl): a thin, watery food made by boiling ground grain in water or milk.

Scrooge. Latch the door, Cratchit. Firmly, firmly. Draft as cold as Christmas blowing in here. Charity! (Cratchit goes to the door, starts to close it, then sees the little girl with the doll. She seems to beckon to him; he

WORDS TO KNOW provision (prə-vĭzh'ən) n. a supplying of needs destitute (dĕs'tĭ-toot') n. people lacking the necessities of life endeavor (ĕn-dĕv'ər) v to try abundance (ə-bŭn'dəns) n wealth anonymous (ə-nŏn'ə-məs) adj. not having one's name known surplus (sûr'pləs) adj. extra; more than is needed

moves slowly toward her, and they dance together for a moment. Scrooge continues to work. Suddenly carolers appear on the platform, and a few phrases of their carol, "Angels We Have Heard on High," are heard. Scrooge looks up.) Cratchit! (As soon as Scrooge shouts, the girl and the carolers vanish and Cratchit begins to close up the shop.) Cratchit!

Cratchit. Yes, sir.

Scrooge. Well, to work then!

Cratchit. It's evening, sir.

Scrooge. Is it?

Cratchit. Christmas evening, sir.

Scrooge. Oh, you'll want all day tomorrow off, I suppose.

Cratchit. If it's quite convenient, sir.

Scrooge. It's not convenient, and it's not fair. If I was to deduct half a crown5 from your salary for it, you'd think yourself ill-used, wouldn't you? Still you expect me to pay a day's wage for a day of no work.

Cratchit. It's only once a year, sir.

Scrooge. Be here all the earlier morning.

Cratchit. I will, sir.

Scrooge. Then off, off.

Cratchit. Yes, sir! Merry Christmas, sir!

Scrooge. Bah! (As soon as Cratchit opens the door, the sounds of the street begin, very bright and loud. Cratchit is caught up in a swell of people hurrying through the street. Children pull him along to the top of an ice slide, and he runs and slides down it, disappearing in darkness as the stage suddenly is left almost empty. Scrooge goes around the room blowing out the candles, talking to himself.) Christmas Eve. Carolers! Bah! There. Another day. (He opens his door and peers out.) Black, very black. Now where are they? (The children are heard singing carols for a moment.) Begging pennies for their songs, are they? Oh, boy! Here, boy! (The little girl emerges from the shadows. Scrooge hands her a dark lantern, and she holds it while he lights it with an ember from the pile of coals.)

5. half a crown: until 1971, an amount of British money equal to 2½ shillings or one-eighth of a pound.

WORDS TO KNOW emerge (ĭ-mûrj') v. to come into sight

THINKING through the LITERATURE

1. What was your response to the meeting between Ebenezer Scrooge and his nephew, Fred?

2. Skim the stage directions. How is the mood—the feeling conveyed to the reader—outside Scrooge's office different from the mood within the office?

257 Scene 2

SCROOGE GOES HOME

Scrooge (talking to the little Girl). Hold it quiet! There. Off now. That's it. High. Black as pitch. Light the street, that's it. You're a bright lad! Good to see that. Earn your supper, boy. You'll not go hungry this night. Home. You know the way, do you? Yes, that's the way. The house of Ebenezer Scrooge. (As the two find their way to Scrooge's house, the audience sees and hears a brief image of a cathedral interior with a living creche and a large choir singing "Amen!"; the image ends in a blackout. The lights come up immediately, and Scrooge is at his door.) Hold the light up, boy, up. (The Girl with the lantern disappears.) Where did he go? Boy? No matter. There's a penny saved. Lantern's gone out. No matter. A candle saved. Yes, here's the key. (He turns with the key toward the door, and Marley's face swims out of the darkness. Scrooge watches, unable to speak. He fumbles for a match, lights the lantern, and swings it toward the figure, which melts away. Pause. Scrooge fits the key in the lock and turns it as the door suddenly is opened from the inside by the porter, Sparsit. Scrooge is startled, then recovers.) Sparsit?

Sparsit. Yes, sir?

Scrooge. Hurry, hurry. The door ... close it.

Sparsit. Did you knock, sir?

Scrooge. Knock? What matter? Here, light me up the stairs.

Sparsit. Yes, sir. (He leads Scrooge up the stairs. They pass the Cook on the way. Scrooge brushes by her, stops, looks back, and she leans toward him.)

Cook. Something to warm you, sir? Porridge?

Scrooge. Wha...? No. No, nothing.

Cook (waiting for her Christmas coin). Merry Christmas, sir. (Scrooge ignores the request and the Cook disappears. Mumbling, Scrooge follows Sparsit.)

Scrooge (looking back after the Cook is gone). Fright a man nearly out of his life ...Merry Christmas ... bah!

Sparsit. Your room, sir.

Scrooge. Hmmm? Oh, yes, yes. And good night.

Sparsit (extending his hand for his coin). Merry Christmas, sir.

Scrooge. Yes, yes ... (He sees the outstretched hand; he knows what Sparsit wants and is infuriated.) Out! Out! (He closes the door after Sparsit, turns toward his chamber, and discovers the Charwoman directly behind him.)

Charwoman. Warm your bed for you, sir?

Scrooge. What? Out! Out!

Charwoman. Aye, sir. (She starts for the door. Marley's voice is heard mumbling something unintelligible.)

Scrooge. What's that?

Charwoman. Me, sir? Not a thing, sir.

Scrooge. Then, good night.

Charwoman. Good night. (She exits, and Scrooge pantomimes shutting the door behind her. The voice of Marley over an offstage microphone whispers and reverberates: "Merry Christmas, Scrooge!" Silence. Scrooge hears the voice but cannot account for it. He climbs up to open a window and looks down. A cathedral choir singing "O Come, All Ye Faithful" is heard in the distance. Scrooge listens a moment, shuts the window and prepares for bed. As soon as

he has shut the sound out of his room, figures appear; they seem to be coming down the main aisle of a church, hearing gifts to the living creche. The orchestra plays "0 Come, All Ye Faithful" as the procession files out. Scrooge, ready for bed, warms himself before the heap of coals. As he pulls his nightcap from a chair, a small hand-bell tumbles off onto the floor. Startled, he picks it up and rings it for reassurance; an echo answers it. He turns and sees the little Girl on the street; she is swinging her doll, which produces the echo of his hell. Scrooge escapes to his bed; the Girl is swallowed up in the darkness. The bell sounds grow to a din, incoherent as in a dream, then suddenly fall silent. Scrooge sits up in bed, listens, and hears the chains of Marley coming up the stairs. Scrooge reaches for the hell pull to summon Sparsit. The bell responds with a gong, and Marley appears. He and Scrooge face one another.)

Scrooge. What do you want with me?

Marley (in a ghostly, unreal voice). Much.

Scrooge. Who are you?

Marley. Ask who I was.

Scrooge. Who were you?

Marley. In life, I was your partner, Jacob Marley.

Scrooge. He's dead.

Marley. Seven years this night, Ebenezer Scrooge.

Scrooge. Why do you come here?

Marley. I must. It is commanded me. I must wander the world and see what I can no longer share, what I would not share when I walked where you do.

Scrooge. And must go thus?

Marley. The chain? Look at it, Ebenezer, study it. Locks and vaults and golden coins. I forged it, each link, each day when I sat in these chairs, commanded these rooms. Greed, Ebenezer Scrooge, wealth. Feel them, know them. Yours was as heavy as this I wear seven years ago, and you have labored to build it since.

Scrooge. If you're here to lecture, I have no time for it. It is late; the night is cold. I want comfort now.

Marley. I have none to give. I know not how you see me this night. I did not ask it. I have sat invisible beside you many and many a day. I am commanded to bring you a chance, Ebenezer. Heed it!

Scrooge. Quickly then, quickly.

Marley. You will be haunted by three spirits.

Scrooge (scoffing). Is that the chance?

Marley. Mark it.

Scrooge. I do not choose to. Marley (ominously). Then you will walk where I do, burdened by your riches, your greed.

Scrooge. Spirits mean nothing to me.

Marley (slowly leaving). Expect the first tomorrow, when the bell tolls one, the second on the next night at the same hour, the third upon the next night when the last stroke of twelve has ended. Look to see me no more. I must wander. Look that, for your own sake, you remember what has passed between us.

Scrooge. Jacob... Don't leave me!... Jacob! Jacob!

Marley. Adieu,6 Ebenezer. (At Marley's last words a funeral procession begins to move across the stage. A boy walks in front; a priest follows, swinging a censer;7 sounds of

6. adieu (ə-dyoo): farewell.

7. censer: incense burner.

WORDS TO KNOW reassurance (rē'ə-shoor'əns) n. a restoring of confidence incoherent (ĭn'kō-hîr'ənt) adj. without connection or harmony summon (sŭm'ən) v. to call for or send for with authority or urgency; to order to come or appear

mourning and the suggestion of church music are heard. Scrooge calls out, "Jacob, don't leave me!" as if talking in the midst of a had dream. At the end of the procession is the little Girl, swinging her doll and singing softly.)

Girl. Hushabye, don't you cry, Go to sleep, little baby. When you wake, you shall have All the pretty little horses, Blacks and bays, dapples and grays, All the pretty little horses.

(She stops singing and looks up at Scrooge; their eyes meet, and she solemnly rings the doll in greeting. Scrooge pulls shut the bed curtains, and the Girl exits. The bell sounds are picked up by the bells of a Leper8 who enters, dragging himself along.)

Leper (calling out). Leper! Leper! Stay the way! Leper! Leper! Keep away! (He exits and the clock begins to chime, ringing the hours. Scrooge sits up in bed and begins to count the chimes.)

Scrooge. Eight ... nine ... ten ... eleven ... it can't be ... twelve. Midnight? No. Not twelve. It can't be. I haven't slept the whole day through. Twelve? Yes, yes, twelve noon. (He hurries to the window and looks out.) Black. Twelve midnight. (pause) I must get up. A day wasted. I must get down to the office. (Two small chimes are heard.) Quarter past. But it just rang twelve. Fifteen minutes haven't gone past, not so quickly. (Again two small chimes are heard.) A quarter to one. The spirit ...It's to come at one. (He hurries to his bed as the chimes ring again.) One.

8. Leper (lĕp'ər): a person who has leprosy, a skin disease once believed to be highly contagious. Scene 3

THE SPIRIT OF CHRISTMAS PAST

The hour is struck again by a large street clock, and the First Spirit appears. It is a figure dressed to look like the little girl's doll.

Scrooge. Are you the spirit whose coming was foretold to me?

First Spirit. I am.

Scrooge. Who and what are you?

First Spirit. I am the Ghost of Christmas Past.

Scrooge. Long past?

First Spirit. Your past.

Scrooge. Why are you here?

First Spirit. Your welfare. Rise. Walk with me.

Scrooge. I am mortal still. I cannot pass through air.

First Spirit. My hand. (Scrooge grasps the spirit's hand tightly, and the doll's bell rings softly. Scrooge remembers a scene from his past in which two boys greet each other in the street.)

First Voice. Halloo, jack!

Second Voice. Ben! Merry Christmas, Ben!

Scrooge. jack Walton. Young Jack Walton. Spirits ... ?

First Voice. Have a good holiday, Jack

Scrooge. Yes, yes, I remember him. Both of them. Little Ben Benjamin. He used to...

WORDS TO KNOW welfare (wĕl'fâr) n. well-being mortal (môr'tl) adj. of the earth; not a spirit

260 VIEW AND COMPARE

What does each of these interpretations of Scrooge tell you about his character? Which interpretation is closest to your own?

---see pictures

Fredric March in a televised musical version of A Christmas Carol (1954)

George C.Scott in a televised production of A Christmas Carol (1984)

Henry Winkler in an adaption called An American Christmas Carol (1979).

Bill Murray as Frank Cross, a character based on Ebenezer Scrooge, in an adaption called Scrooged (1988).

IBTIMME

First Voice. See you next term, Jack. Next ... term...

Scrooge. They ... they're off for the holidays and going home from school. It's Christmas time ... all of the children off home now ... No ... no, not all . . . there was one ... (The spirit motions for Scrooge to turn, and he sees a young boy playing with a teddy bear and talking to it.) Yes ... reading ... poor boy.

First Spirit. What, I wonder?

Scrooge. Reading? Oh, it was nothing. Fancy,9 all Fancy and make-believe and take-me- away. All of it. Yes, nonsense.

Child Scrooge. Ali Baba.10

Scrooge. Yes ...that was it ...

Child Scrooge. Yes, and remember ... and remember ... remember Robinson Crusoe?11

Scrooge. And the parrot!

Child Scrooge. Yes, the parrot! I love him best.

Scrooge (imitating the parrot). With his stripy green body and yellow tail drooping along and couldn't sing—awk—but could talk, and a thing like a lettuce growing out the top of his head ... and he used to sit on the very top of the tree—up there. Child Scrooge. And Robinson Crusoe sailed around the island, and he thought he had escaped the island, and the parrot said, the parrot said .

Scrooge (imitating the parrot). Robinson Crusoe, where you been? Awk! Robinson Crusoe, where you been?

Child Scrooge. And Robinson Crusoe looked up in the tree and saw the parrot and knew he hadn't escaped and he was still there, still all alone there.

Scrooge. Poor Robinson Crusoe.

Child Scrooge (sadly replacing the teddy bear). Poor Robinson Crusoe.

Scrooge. Poor child. Poor child.

First Spirit. Why poor?

Scrooge. Fancy ... Fancy ... (He tries to mask his feelings by being brusque.) It's his way, a child's way to... to lose being alone in ... in dreams, dreams ...Never matter if they are all nonsense, yes, nonsense. But he'll be all right, grow out of it. Yes. Yes, he did outgrow it, the nonsense. Became a man and left there, and he became, yes, he became a man and ... yes, successful ... rich! (The sadness returns.) Never matter ...never matter. (Fan runs in and goes to Child Scrooge.) Fan!

Fan. Brother, dear brother! (She kisses Child Scrooge.)

Child Scrooge. Dear, dear Fan.

Fan. I've come to bring you home, home for good and ever. Come with me, come now. (She takes his hand, and they start to run off, but the spirit stops them and signals for the light on them to fade. They look at the spirit, aware of their role in the spirit's "education- of Scrooge.)

Scrooge. Let me watch them go? Let them be happy for a moment! (The spirit says nothing. Scrooge turns away from them, and the light goes out.) A delicate, delicate child. A breath might have withered her.

First Spirit. She died a woman and had, as I remember, children.

Scrooge. One child.

First Spirit. Your nephew.

Scrooge. Yes, yes, Fred, my nephew. (Scrooge pauses, then tries to bluster through.) Well? Well, all of us have that, haven't we?

9. Fancy: illusion.

10. All Baba (à'le bä'bə): in the Arabian Nights, a poor woodcutter who discovers the treasure-filled cave of 40 thieves. 11. Robinson Crusoe: in the novel Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe, a shipwrecked sailor who survives for years on a small island.

Childhoods? Sadnesses? But we grow and we become men, masters of ourselves. (The spirit gestures for music to begin. It is heard first as from a great distance, then Scrooge becomes aware of it.) I've no time for it, Spirit. Music and all of your Christmas folderol.12- Yes, yes, I've learnt what you have to show me. (Fezziwig, Young Ebenezer, and Dick appear, busily preparing for a party.)

Fezziwig. Yo ho, there! Ebenezer! Dick!

Scrooge. Fezziwig! It's old Fezziwig that I 'prenticed13 under.

First Spirit. Your master?

Scrooge. Oh, aye, and the best that any boy could have. There's Dick Wilkins! Bless me. He was very much attached to me was Dick. Poor Dick. Dear, dear.

Fezziwig. Yo ho, my boys! No more work tonight. Christmas Eve, Dick! Christmas, Ebenezer! Let's have the shutters up before a man can say jack Robinson! (The music continues. Chandeliers are pulled into position, and mistletoe, holly, and ivy are draped over everything by bustling servants. Dancers fill the stage for Fezziwig's wonderful Christmas party. In the midst of the dancing and the gaiety servants pass back and forth through the crowd with huge platters of food. At a pause in the music, Young Ebenezer, who is dancing, calls out.)

Young Ebenezer. Mr. Fezziwig, sir, you're a wonderful master!

Scrooge and Young Ebenezer. A wonderful master!

Scrooge (echoing the phrase). A wonderful master! (The music changes suddenly, and the dancers jerk into distorted postures and then begin to move in slow motion. The celebrants slowly exit, performing a macabre dance to discordant sounds.)

First Spirit. Just because he gave a party? It was very small.

ACTIVE READER QUESTION Why does the author show Scrooge's happy days with his first master?

Scrooge. Small!

First Spirit. He spent a few pounds14 of your "mortal" money, three, four at the most. Is that so much that he deserves this praise?

Scrooge. But it wasn't the money. He had the power to make us happy, to make our service light or burdensome. The happiness he gives is quite as great as if it cost a fortune. That's what ... a good master is. First Spirit. Yes?

Scrooge. No, no, nothing.

First Spirit. Something, I think.

Scrooge. I should like to be able to say a word or two to my clerk just now, that's all.

First Spirit. But this is all past. Your clerk, Cratchit, couldn't be here.

Scrooge. No, no, of course not, an idle thought. Are we done?

First Spirit (motioning for the waltz music to begin). Nearly.

Scrooge (hearing the waltz and remembering it). Surely it's enough. Haven't you tormented me enough? (Young Ebenezer is seen waltzing with his Sweetheart.)

First Spirit. I only show the past, what it promised you. Look. Another promise.

Scrooge. Oh. Oh, yes. I had forgotten ... her.

12. folderol (fŏl'də-rŏl"): foolishness, nonsense.

13. 'prenriced: short for apprenticed, here meaning -learned a trade while working."

14. pounds: basic British units of money, each equal to 20 shillings.

WORDS TO KNOW macabre (mə-kä'brə) adl. suggesting the horror of death and decay

Don't they dance beautifully? So young, so young. I would have married her if only ...

Sweetheart. Can you love me, Ebenezer? I bring no dowry15 to my marriage, only me, only love. It is no currency that you can buy and sell with, but we can live with it. Can you? (She pauses, then returns the ring Scrooge gave her as his pledge.) I release you, Ebenezer, for the love of the man you once were. Will that man win me again, now that he is free?

Scrooge (trying to speak to her). If only you had held me to it. You should not have let me go. I was young; I did love you.

Sweetheart (speaking to Young Ebenezer). We have never lied to one another. May you be happy in the life you have chosen. Good-bye. (She runs out. Young Ebenezer slowly leaves.)

Scrooge. No, no, it was not meant that way...! First Spirit. You cannot change now what you would not change then. I am your mistakes, Ebenezer Scrooge, all of the things you could have done and did not.

Scrooge. Then leave me! I have done them. I shall live with them. As I have, as I do; as I will.

First Spirit. There is another Christmas, seven years ago, when Marley died.

Scrooge. No! I will not see it. I will not! He died. 1 could not prevent it. I did not choose for him to die on Christmas Day.

First Spirit. And when his day was chosen, what did you do then?

Scrooge. I looked after his affairs.

First Spirit. His business.

Scrooge. Yes! His business! Mine! It was all that I had, all that I could do in this world. I have nothing to do with the world to come after.

First Spirit. Then I will leave you.

Scrooge. Not yet! Don't leave me here! Tell me what I must do! What of the other spirits?

First Spirit. They will come.

Scrooge. And you? What of you?

First Spirit. I am always with you. (The little Girl appears with her doll; she takes Scrooge's hand and gently leads him to bed. Numbed, he follows her. She leans against the foot of the bed, ringing the doll and singing. The First Spirit exits as she sings.)

Girl. When you wake, you shall have All the pretty little horses, Blacks and bays, dapples and grays, All the pretty little horses.

(She rings the doll, and the ringing becomes the chiming of Scrooge's bell. The Girl exits. Scrooge sits upright in bed as he hears the chimes.)

Scrooge. A minute until one. No one here. No one's coming. (A larger clock strikes one o'clock.)

15. dowry: the property a bride brings to her husband when they marry.

WORDS TO KNOW currency (kûr'ən-sē) n. money pledge (plĕj) n. something given to guarantee fulfillment of a promise

264 Scene 4

THE SPIRIT OF CHRISTMAS PRESENT

A light comes on. Scrooge becomes aware of it and goes slowly to it. He sees the second spirit, the Spirit of Christmas Present, who looks like Fezziwig.

Scrooge. Fezziwig!

Second Spirit. Hello, Scrooge.

Scrooge. But you can't he ...not Fezziwig.

Second Spirit. Do you see me as him?

Scrooge. I do.

Second Spirit. And hear me as him?

Scrooge. I do.

Second Spirit. I wish I were the gentleman, so as not to disappoint you.

Scrooge. But you're not...?

Second Spirit. No, Mr. Scrooge. You have never seen the like of me before. I am the Ghost of Christmas Present.

Scrooge. But .. .

Second Spirit. You see what you will see, Scrooge, no more. Will you walk out with me this Christmas Eve?

Scrooge. But I am not yet dressed.

Second Spirit. Take my tails, dear boy, we're leaving.

Scrooge. Wait!

Second Spirit. What is it now?

Scrooge. Christmas Present, did you say?

Second Spirit. I did.

Scrooge. Then we are traveling here? In this town? London? Just down there? Second Spirit. Yes, yes, of course.

Scrooge. Then we could walk? Your flying is ... well, too sudden for an old man. Well?

Second Spirit. It's your Christmas, Scrooge; I am only the guide.

Scrooge (puzzled). Then we can walk? (The spirit nods.) Where are you guiding me to?

Second Spirit. Bob Cratchit's.

Scrooge. My clerk?

Second Spirit. You did want to talk to him? (Scrooge pauses, uncertain how to answer.) Don't worry, Scrooge, you won't have to.

Scrooge (trying to change the subject, to cover his error). Shouldn't be much of a trip. With fifteen bob16 a week, how far off can it be?

Second Spirit. A world away, Scrooge, at least that far. (Scrooge and the spirit start to step off a curb when a funeral procession enters with a child's coffin, followed by the poorhouse children, who are singing. Seated on top of the coffin is the little girl. She and Scrooge look at one another.) That is the way to it, Scrooge. (The procession follows the coffin offstage; Scrooge and the spirit exit after the procession. As they leave, the lights focus on Mrs. Cratchit and her children. Mrs. Cratchit sings as she puts Tiny Tim and the other children to bed, all in one bed. She pulls a dark blanket over them.)

Mrs. Cratchit (singing). When you wake, you shall have All the pretty little horses, Blacks and bays, dapples and grays, All the pretty little horses.

16. bob: a British slang term for shilling.

To sleep now, all of you. Christmas tomorrow. (She kisses them and goes to Bob Cratchit, who is by the hearth.) How did our little Tiny Tim behave?

Bob Cratchit. As good as gold and better. He told me, coming home, that he hoped the people saw him in church because he was a cripple and it might be pleasant to them to remember upon Christmas Day who made the lame to walk and the blind to see.

Mrs. Cratchit. He's a good boy. (The Second Spirit and Scrooge enter. Mrs. Cratchit feels a sudden draft.) Oh, the wind. (She gets up to shut the door.)

Second Spirit. Hurry. (He nudges Scrooge in before Mrs. Cratchit shuts the door.)

Scrooge. Hardly hospitable is what I'd say. Second Spirit. Oh, they'd say a great deal more, Scrooge, if they could see you.

Scrooge. Oh, they should, should they?

Second Spirit. Oh yes, I'd think they might.

Scrooge. Well, I might have a word for them ...

Second Spirit. You're here to listen.

Scrooge. Oh. Oh yes, all right. By the fire?

Second Spirit. But not a word.

Bob Cratchit (raising his glass). My dear, to Mr. Scrooge. I give you Mr. Scrooge, the founder of the feast.

Mrs. Cratchit. The founder of the feast indeed! I wish I had him here! I'd give him a piece of my mind to feast upon, and I hope he'd have a good appetite for it.

Bob Cratchit. My dear, Christmas Eve.

Mrs. Cratchit. It should be Christmas Eve, I'm sure, when one drinks the health of such an odious, stingy, hard, unfeeling man as Mr. Scrooge. You know he is, Robert! Nobody knows it better than you do, poor dear.

Bob Cratchit. I only know one thing on Christmas: that one must be charitable.

Mrs. Cratchit. I'll drink to his health for your sake and the day's, not for his. Long life to him! A Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. He'll be very merry and very happy, I have no doubt.

Bob Cratchit. If he cannot he, we must be happy for him. A song is what is needed. Tim!

Mrs. Cratchit. Shush! I've just gotten him down, and he needs all the sleep he can get.

Bob Cratchit. If he's asleep on Christmas Eve, I'll be much mistaken. Tim! He must sing, dear; there is nothing else that might make him well.

Tiny Tim. Yes, Father?

Bob Cratchit. Are you awake?

Tiny Tim. just a little.

Bob Cratchit. A song then! (The children awaken and, led by Tiny Tim, sit up to sing "What Child Is This?" As they sing, Scrooge speaks.)

Scrooge. (He holds up his hand; all stop singing and look at him.) I ...I have seen enough. (When the spirit signals to the children, they leave the stage, singing the carol quietly. Tiny Tim remains, covered completely by the dark blanket, disappearing against the black.) Tiny Tim ...will he live?

Second Spirit. He is very ill. Even song cannot keep him whole through a cold winter.

Scrooge. But you haven't told me!

Second Spirit (imitating Scrooge). If he be like to die, he had better do it and decrease the surplus population. (Scrooge turns away) Erase, Scrooge, those words from your thoughts. You are not the judge. Do not judge, then. It may be that in the sight of heaven you are more worthless and less fit to live than millions like this poor man's child. Oh God! To hear an insect on a leaf pronouncing that there is too

WORDS TO KNOW odious (ō'dē-əs) adj. causing or deserving strong dislike charitable (chăr'ĭ-tə-bəll) adj. generous in giving

much life among his hungry brothers in the dust. Good-bye, Scrooge.

Scrooge. But is there no happiness in Christmas Present?

Second Spirit. There is.

Scrooge. Take me there.

Second Spirit. It is at the home of your nephew ...

Scrooge. No!

Second Spirit (disgusted with Scrooge). Then there is none.

Scrooge. But that isn't enough . . . You must teach me!

Second Spirit. Would you have a teacher, Scrooge? Look at your own words.

Scrooge. But the first spirit gave me more ... !

Second Spirit. He was Christmas Past. There was a lifetime he could choose from. I have only this day, one day, and you, Scrooge. I have nearly lived my fill of both. Christmas Present must be gone at midnight. That is near now. (He speaks to two beggar children who pause shyly at the far side of the stage. The children are thin and wan; they are barefoot and wear filthy rags.) Come. (They go to him.)

Scrooge. Is this the last spirit who is to come to me?

Second Spirit. They are no spirits. They are real. Hunger, Ignorance. Not spirits, Scrooge, passing dreams. They are real. They walk your streets, look to you for comfort. And you deny them. Deny them not too long, Scrooge. They will grow and multiply, and they will not remain children.

Scrooge. Have they no refuge, no resource?

Second Spirit (again imitating Scrooge). Are there no prisons? Are there no workhouses? (tenderly to the children) Come. It's Christmas Eve. (He leads them offstage.) Scene 5

THE SPIRIT OF CHRISTMAS YET TO COME

Scrooge is entirely alone for a long moment. He is frightened by the darkness and feels it approaching him. Suddenly he stops, senses the presence of the third spirit, turns toward him, and sees him. The spirit is bent and cloaked. No physical features are distinguishable.

Scrooge. You are the third. (The spirit says nothing.) The Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come. (The spirit says nothing.) Speak to me. Tell me what is to happen—to me, to all of us. (The spirit says nothing.) Then show me what I must see. (The spirit points. Light illumines the shadowy recesses of Scrooge's house.) I know it. I know it too well, cold and cheerless. It is mine. (The cook and the charwoman are dimly visible in Scrooge's house.) What is . . . ? There are . . . thieves! There are thieves in my rooms! (He starts forward to accost them, but the spirit beckons for him to stop.) I cannot. You cannot tell me that I must watch them and do nothing. I will not. It is mine still. (He rushes into the house to claim his belongings and to protect them. The two women do not notice his presence.)

Cook. He ain't about, is he? (The Charwoman laughs.) Poor ol' Scrooge 'as met 'is end.17 (She laughs with the Charwoman.)

Charwoman. An' time for it, too; ain't been alive in deed for half his life.

Cook. But the Sparsit's nowhere, is he ... ?

Sparsit (emerging from the blackness). Lookin' for someone, ladies? (The Cook shrieks, but the Charwoman treats the matter more practically, anticipating competition from Sparsit.)

Charwoman. There ain't enough but for the two of us!

Sparsit. More 'an enough ... if you know where to look.

Cook. Hardly decent is what I'd say, hardly decent, the poor old fella hardly cold and you're thievin' his wardrobe. Sparsit. You're here out of love, are ya?

ACTIVE READER VISUALIZE Close your eyes and imagine the scene. What do you see? How does what you see make you feel?

Charwoman. There's no time for that. (Sparsit acknowledges Scrooge for the first time, gesturing toward him as if the living Scrooge were the corpse. Scrooge stands as if rooted to the spot, held there by the power of the spirit.)

Sparsit. He ain't about to bother us, is he?

Charwoman. Ain't he a picture?

Cook. If he is, it ain't a happy one. (They laugh.)

Sparsit. Ladies, shall we start? (The three of them grin and advance on Scrooge.) Cook?

Cook (snatching the cuff links from the shirt Scrooge wears). They're gold, ain't they?

Sparsit. The purest, madam.

Charwoman. I always had a fancy for that nightcap of his. My old man could use it. (She takes the nightcap from Scrooge's head. Sparsit playfully removes Scrooge's outer garment, the coat or cloak that he has worn in the previous scenes.)

Sparsit. Bein' a man of more practical tastes, I'll go for the worsted18 and hope the smell ain't permanent. (The three laugh.) Cook, we go round again.

Cook. Do you think that little bell he's always ringing at me is silver enough to sell? (The three of them move toward the nightstand, and Scrooge cries out.)

Scrooge. No more! No more! (As the spirit directs Scrooge's attention to the tableau19 of the three thieves standing poised over the silver bell, Scrooge bursts out of the house, clad only in his nightshirt.) I cannot. I cannot. The room is ... too like a cheerless place that is familiar. I won't see it. Let us go from here. Anywhere. (The spirit directs his attention to the Cratchit house; the children are sitting together near Mrs. Cratchit, who is sewing a coat. Peter reads by the light of the coals.)

Peter. "And he took a child and set him in the midst of them."

Mrs. Cratchit (putting her hand to her face). The light tires my eyes so. (pause) They're better now. It makes them tired to try to see by firelight, and I wouldn't show reddened eyes to your father when he comes home for the world. It must be near his time now.

Peter. Past it, I think, but he walks slower than he used to, these last few days, Mother.

Mrs. Cratchit. I have known him to walk with .. I have known him to walk with Tiny Tim upon his shoulder very fast indeed. (She catches herself, then hurries on.) But he was 17. 'as met 'is end: Cockney dialect for "has met his end." Cockneys (residents of the East End of London) drop the letter h when pronouncing words.

18. worsted: a smooth woolen fabric.

19. tableau (tăb'lō') a portion of a play in which the actors momentarily freeze in their positions for dramatic effect.

very light to carry and his father loved him, so that it was no trouble, no trouble. (She bears Bob Cratchit approaching.) Smiles, everyone, smiles.

Bob Cratchit (entering). My dear, Peter ... (He greets the other children by their real names.) How is it coming?

Mrs. Cratchit (handing him the coat). Nearly done.

Bob Cratchit. Yes, good, I'm sure that it will be done long before Sunday.

Mrs. Cratchit. Sunday! You went today then, Robert?

Bob Cratchit. Yes. It's ... it's all ready. Two o'clock. And a nice place. It would have done you good to see how green it is. But you'll see it often. I promised him that, that I would walk there on Sunday ... often.

Mrs. Cratchit. We mustn't hurt ourselves for it, Robert.

Bob Cratchit. No. No, he wouldn't have wanted that. Come now. You won't guess who I've seen. Scrooge's nephew, Fred. And he asked after us and said he was heartily sorry and to give his respect to my good wife. How he ever knew that, I don't know.

Mrs. Cratchit. Knew what, my dear?

Bob Cratchit. Why, that you were a good wife.

Peter. Everybody knows that.

Bob Cratchit. I hope that they do. "Heartily sorry," he said, "for your good wife, and if I can be of service to you in any way—" and he gave me his card—"that's where I live"—and Peter, I shouldn't be at all surprised if he got you a position.

Mrs. Cratchit. Only hear that, Peter!

Bob Cratchit. And then you'll be keeping company with some young girl and setting up for yourself.

Peter. Oh, go on. Bob Cratchit. Well, it will happen, one day, but remember, when that day does come—as it must—we must none of us forget poor Tiny Tim and this first parting in our family.

Scrooge. He died! No, no! (He steps back and the scene disappears; he moves away from the spirit.) THINKING through the LITERATURE

1. What do you think Scrooge felt when he saw Sparsit, the charwoman, and the cook laughing over his corpse and dividing his belongings? Explain.

2. What thoughts came to mind when you read Scrooge's reaction to news of Tiny Tim's death?

3. Why do you think Tiny Tim's death affects Scrooge so deeply?

270 VIEW AND COMPARE

Observe three of the spirits who visited Scrooge. Which has a more powerful impact on the viewer?

---see pictures

The Spirit of Christmas Present from A Christmas Carol (1938).

The ghost of Jacob Marley from A Christmas Carol (1938).

The Spirit of Christmas Yet to Come from A Christmas Carol (1938).

271 Scene 6

THE SPIRIT OF CHRISTMAS PRESENT

Scrooge. Because he would not ... no! You cannot tell me that he has died, for that Christmas has not come! I will not let it come! I will he there ...It was me. Yes, yes, and I knew it and couldn't look. I won't be able to help. I won't. (pause) Spirit, hear me. I am not the man I was. I will not be that man that I have been for so many years. Why show me all of this if I am past all hope? Assure me that I yet may change these shadows you have shown me. Let the boy live! I will honor Christmas in my heart and try to keep it all the year. I will live in the Past, the Present, and the Future. The spirits of all three shall strive within me. I will not shut out the lessons that they teach. Oh, tell me that I am not too late! (A single light focuses on the little girl, dressed in a blue cloak like that of the Virgin Mary. She looks up, and from above a dove is slowly lowered in silence to her; she takes it and encloses it within her cloak, covering it. As soon as she does this, a large choir is heard singing "Gloria!" and the hells begin to ring. Blackout. When the lights come up again, Scrooge is in bed. The third spirit and the figures in the church have disappeared. Scrooge awakens and looks around his room.) The curtains! They are mine and they are real. They are not sold. They are here. I am here; the shadows to come may be dispelled. They will be. I know they will be. (He dresses himself hurriedly.) I don't know what to do. I'm as light as a feather, merry as a boy again. Merry Christmas! Merry Christmas! A Happy New Year to all the world! Hello there! Whoop! Hallo! What day of the month is it? How long did the spirits keep me? Never mind. I don't care. (He opens the window and calls to a boy in the street below.) What's today?

Boy. Eh?

Scrooge. What's the day, my fine fellow?

Boy. Today? Why, Christmas Day!

Scrooge. It's Christmas Day! I haven't missed it! The spirits have done it all in one night. They can do anything they like. Of course they can. Of course they can save Tim. Hallo, my fine fellow!

Boy. Hallo!

Scrooge. Do you know the poulterers20 in the next street at the corner?

Boy. I should hope I do.

Scrooge. An intelligent boy. A remarkable boy. Do you know whether they've sold the prize turkey that was hanging up there? Not the little prize; the big one.

Boy. What, the one as big as me?

Scrooge. What a delightful boy! Yes, my bucko! Boy. It's hanging there now.

Scrooge. It is? Go and buy it.

Boy. G'wan!

Scrooge. I'm in earnest! Go and buy it and tell 'em to bring it here that I may give them the direction where to take it. Come back with the butcher and I'll give you a shilling.21 Come back in less than two minutes and I'll give you half a crown!

Boy. Right, guy! (He exits.)

Scrooge. I'll send it to Bob Cratchit's. He shan't know who sends it. It's twice the size of Tiny Tim and such a Christmas dinner it will make. (Carolers suddenly appear singing "Hark! The Herald Angels Sing." Scrooge leans out the window and joins them in the song.) I must dress, I must. It's Christmas

20. poulterers (pŏl'tər-ərz): people who sell poultry. 21. shilling: a British coin. Five shillings equal a crown.

ACTIVE READER CONNECT How is this holiday celebration like ones you have attended? How is it different?

Day! I must be all in my best for such a day. Where is my China silk shirt? (The boy and the butcher run in with the turkey.) What? Back already? And such a turkey. Why, you can't carry that all the way to Cratchit's. Here, boy, here is your half a crown and here an address in Camden Town. See that it gets there. Here, money for the cab, for the turkey, and for you, good man! (The boy and the butcher, delighted, catch the money and run out. Scrooge sees the gentleman visitor walking by the window.) Halloo, sir!

Gentleman Visitor (looking up sadly, less than festive). Hello, sir.

Scrooge. My dear sir, how do you do? I hope you succeeded yesterday. It was very kind of you to stop by to see me.

Gentleman Visitor (in disbelief). Mr. Scrooge?

Scrooge. Yes, that is my name, and I fear it may not be pleasant to you. Allow me to ask your pardon, and will you have the goodness to add this (throwing him a purse) to your good work!

Gentleman Visitor. Lord bless me! My dear Mr. Scrooge, are you serious?

Scrooge. If you please, not a penny less. A great many back payments are included in it, I assure you. Will you do me that favor?

Gentleman Visitor. My dear sir, I don't know what I can say to such generosity ...

Scrooge. Say nothing! Accept it. Come and see me. Will you come and see me?

Gentleman Visitor. I will.

Scrooge. Thank 'ee. I am much obliged to you. I thank you fifty times. God bless you and Merry Christmas!

Gentleman Visitor. Merry Christmas to you, sir!

Scrooge (running downstairs, out of his house, and onto the street). Now which is the way to that nephew's house. Girl! Girl!

Girl (appearing immediately). Yes, sir? Scrooge. Can you find me a taxi, miss?

Girl. I can, sir. (She rings her doll, and a coachman appears.)

Scrooge (handing the coachman a card). Can you show me the way to this home? Coachman. I can, sir.

Scrooge. Good man. Come up, girl. (They mount to the top of the taxi. This action may be stylistically suggested.) Would you be an old man's guide to a Christmas dinner?

Girl. I would, sir, and God bless you!

Scrooge. Yes, God bless us every one! (raising his voice almost in song) Driver, to Christmas! (They exit, all three singing "Joy to the World." Blackout. The lights come up for the finale at Fred's house. The Cratchits are there with Tiny Tim. All stop moving and talking when they see Scrooge standing in the center, embarrassed and humble.) Well, I'm very glad to be here at my nephew's house! (He starts to cry.) Merry Christmas! Merry Christmas!

All (softly). Merry Christmas. (They sing "Deck the Halls," greeting one another and exchanging gifts. Scrooge puts Tiny Tim on his shoulders.)

Tiny Tim (shouting as the carol ends). God bless us every one!

Scrooge (to the audience). Oh, yes! God bless us every one!

WORDS TO KNOW finale (fə-năl'ē) n. the concluding part

274 THINKING through the LITERATURE Connect to the Literature

1. What Do You Think?

After reading this play, what is the first thing you would say to a friend about it?

Comprehension Check

What kind of person is Scrooge in the first scene?

What event most changed Scrooge during the visits of the three spirits?

What does Scrooge do for Bob Cratchit's family at the end of the play? Think Critically

2. ACTIVE READING VISUALIZING

Review the sketches of scenes you made in your READER'S NOTEBOOK. What details in the stage directions most influenced your visualization of each scene?

3. Why do you think the Spirit of Christmas Present appeared to Scrooge as his old master Fezziwig?

Think About:

how Fezziwig treated Scrooge

Scrooge's feelings toward Fezziwig

how Scrooge treated Bob Cratchit

4. Bob Cratchit and his wife differ on their attitudes toward Scrooge. What does this tell you about each character?

5. Which spirit do you think has the greatest influence in motivating Scrooge to change his life? Explain.

6. How did you react to Scrooge's change of heart in the final scene? Do you think it will be a lasting change? Why or why not? Extend Interpretations

7. What If Imagine that Scrooge had not had such a sad, lonely childhood. How do you think his story would have been different?

8. Connect to Life Charles Dickens wrote about many serious problems of his time. How would you compare the problems of poor people today with the problems of poor people in Dickens's time? Explain. Literary Analysis

STAGE DIRECTIONS All plays have stage directions—instructions included in the script to help performers, directors, and stage crew put on the play, and to help readers visualize the action. Stage directions can suggest setting, lighting, music, sound effects, movement of actors, and how dialogue is spoken.

Activity Make a chart like the one below. Use it to record the major points you learned from the stage directions about aspects of the play, such as Scrooge's character, Scrooge's past, Scrooge's shop, Bob Cratchit's character, and the Cratchit family.

What I learned about ...

Scrooge's character

Through stage directions

Scrooge hurls himself through the descending snowflakes and sends the children scattering.

REVIEW: PLOT Plot is the series of events that move a story forward. An event might be an action, reaction, or decision. A typical plot structure has four stages—exposition, rising action, climax, and falling action. Which key events in A Christmas Carol help advance the plot?

275 CHOICES and CHALLENGES Writing

Plotting Drama Using the four stages of a typical plot structure, write a plot summary for A Christmas Carol. Remember, the exposition introduces characters and setting. Identifying the central conflict will help you find the rising action, which continues until the climax. Falling action is the part of the story where conflicts are often resolved. You may want to begin by making a plot chart, like the one on page 16, and then fill in key events that advance the plot. Place your Summary in your Working Portfolio.

Writing Handbook See p. R58: Summary. Speaking & Listening

Oral Summary Further develop the plot summary you prepared for the "Writing" option on this page. Use it as the basis for an oral summary that you'll present to the class. Write the summary in your own words, and include quotes from the play when effective. Be sure that your summary is clear so the audience can follow along.

Speaking and Listening Handbook See p. R103: Oral Summaries. Research & Technology

Research the history of carols and caroling. Try to find recordings of some of the carols mentioned in A Christmas Carol. Extend your inquiry to include the holiday customs of other countries or religions. Is singing or caroling an important part of celebrations in other cultures? If so, how? Vocabulary and Spelling

EXERCISE: SYNONYMS/ANTONYMS On your paper, write S if the words are synonyms and A if they are antonyms. 1. finale—ending 2. pledge—promise 3. surplus—lack 4. destitute—wealthy 5. transform—change 6. solitude—isolation 7. summon—dismiss 8. provision—arrangement 9. mortal—human 10. charitable—stingy 11. welfare—well-being 12. reassurance—discouragement 13. abundance—plenty 14. currency—money 15. emerge—disappear 16. endeavor—try 17. anonymous—known 18. incoherent—understandable 19. macabre—pleasant 20. odious—hateful

SPELLING STRATEGY: WORDS ENDING IN A SILENT e When a suffix beginning with a vowel is added to a word ending in a silent e, the e is usually dropped, as in reassurance.

1. Add the suffixes to these words. reassure + ance = relate + ion = fame + ous = create + ive = amaze + ing =

2. Use each of the spelling words in a complete sentence.

Spelling Handbook See p. 30.

276 CHOICES and CHALLENGES

Grammar in Context: Action Verbs

Playwright Frederick Gaines uses action verbs in his vivid adaption of Dickens's A Christmas Carol:

The percussion thunders. Scrooge hurls himself through the descending snowflakes and sends the children scattering. They retreat, watching.

Compare these sentences: The percussion sounds like thunder and The percussion thunders. The second sentence, which uses an action verb, has fewer words and is more forceful than the first.

Apply to Your Writing Choosing action verbs to express your ideas will make your writing more concise and effective.

WRITING EXERCISE Rewrite each sentence using an action verb.

Example: Original In bed at night Scrooge is afraid of the darkness.

Rewritten Afraid of the darkness, Scrooge trembled under the bed sheets.

1. Bob Cratchit was a devoted clerk.

2. Nevertheless, his family was poor.

3. At Christmas, many children are hungry.

4. This is the Spirit of Christmas Past.

Connect to the Literature Reread the accompanying stage directions at the beginning of Scene 2 on page 258. Starting with "As the two find ... ," make a list of action verbs.

Grammar Handbook See p. R80. Using Verbs Correctly.

Charles Dickens 1812-1870

"Dickens's own childhood provided material for a number of his works."

Social Crusader Charles Dickens had intended to write a pamphlet called "An Appeal to the People of England, on Behalf of the Poor Man's Child," but instead he decided to get his idea across by using the form of a story. When A Christmas Carol came out in December 1843, about 6,000 copies were sold in just a few days. Since then, A Christmas Carol has become a classic holiday tradition.

Unhappy Childhood Dickens's own childhood provided material for a number of his works. When Dickens was 12, his father was imprisoned for debt, and Dickens had to leave school and go to work in a rat-infested factory. The hopelessness and the shame he experienced there affected him deeply. One of his novels, David Copperfield, was based partly on his experiences in that factory. In such other novels as Oliver Twist and Little Dorrit, Dickens draws on childhood memories to depict the plight of the poor in a society that values wealth.

AUTHOR ACTIVITY

From Novel to Play You have read an adaptation of a novel by one of England's favorite authors. Read Dickens's novel A Christmas Carol, and then compare and contrast it with Frederick Gaines's dramatized version. What is lost in the dramatized version? What is gained? Which did you enjoy more?

SHORT STORY The Scholarship Jacket

by MARTA SALINAS Connect toYour Life

It's Not Right! Have you ever been treated unfairly? Have you ever had to stand up for your beliefs against someone who seemed more powerful than you? With two or three classmates, discuss an example of prejudice you have experienced, or know about. Build Background

SOCIAL STUDIES

Hispanic Americans are an important segment of the U.S. population. Many have family ties to Mexico, Puerto Rico, Cuba, or the Spanish- speaking countries of Central America. Others are members of families that have lived in the United States for hundreds of years.

The more than 27 million Hispanic Americans have made many contributions to American history and culture. "The Scholarship Jacket" is about a Mexican-American girl who lives in Texas. The story tells how she deals with the possibility of losing an award she deserves.

WORDS TO KNOW Vocabulary Preview agile coincidence despair dismay muster falsify fidget gaunt muster resign valedictorian vile

Focus Your Reading

LITERARY ANALYSIS THEME

A story's theme is the message or moral it expresses about human nature or life in general. Usually, a theme is not directly stated. The reader must figure it out by making logical inferences based on details in the story. As you read the story, think about how the theme of "The Scholarship Jacket" is revealed through Martha's experiences.

ACTIVE READING CONNECTING

When you use the strategy of connecting in reading a story, you look for elements that you can relate to your own knowledge and experience. While reading "The Scholarship Jacket," take note of things that you can connect with your own life. Do any of the characters resemble people you know? Which details, events, and emotions seem familiar? Which are unfamiliar?

READER'S NOTEBOOK As you read the story, jot down details that remind you of your own life, as well as details that seem unfamiliar.

278 The Scholarship Jacket

by Marta Salinas

The small Texas school that I went to had a tradition carried out every year during the eighth-grade graduation: a beautiful gold and green jacket (the school colors) was awarded to the class valedictorian, the student who had maintained the highest grades for eight years. The scholarship jacket had a big gold S on the left front side and your name written in gold letters on the pocket.

My oldest sister, Rosie, had won the jacket a few years back, and I fully expected to also. I was fourteen and in the eighth grade. I had been a straight A student since the first grade and this last year had looked forward very much to owning that jacket. My father was a farm laborer who couldn't earn enough money to feed eight children, so when I was six I was given to my grandparents to raise. We couldn't participate in sports at school because there were registration fees, uniform costs, and trips out of town; so, even though our family was quite agile and athletic there would never be a school sports jacket for us. This one, the scholarship jacket, was our only chance.

In May, close to graduation, spring fever had struck as usual with a vengeance.1 No one paid any attention in class; instead we stared out the windows and at each other, wanting to speed up the last few weeks of school. I despaired every time I looked in the mirror. Pencil thin, not a curve anywhere. I was called "beanpole" and "string bean," and I knew that's what I looked like. A flat chest, no hips, and a brain; that's what I had. That really wasn't much for a fourteen-year-old to work with, I thought, as I absent-mindedly wandered from my history class to the gym. Another hour of sweating in basketball and displaying my toothpick legs was coming up. Then I remembered my P.E. shorts were still in a hag under my desk where I'd forgotten them. I had to walk all the way back and get them. Coach Thompson was a real bear if someone wasn't dressed for P.E. She had said I was a good forward and even tried to talk Grandma into letting me join the team once. Of course Grandma said no.

I was almost back at my classroom door when I heard voices raised in anger as if in some sort of argument. I stopped. I didn't mean to eavesdrop,2 I just hesitated, not knowing

1. with a vengeance (vĕn'jəns): to an extreme degree.

2. eavesdrop (ēvz'drŏp')to listen secretly to a private conversation of others.

WORDS TO KNOW valedictorian (văl'ĭ-dĭk-tôr'ē-ən) n. student with highest academic rank in a class agile (ăj'əl) adj. quick and light in movement despair (dĭ-spâr) v. to lose hope

---see picture

Refrato de muchacha [Portrait of a girl] (1929), Frida Kahlo. Oil on canvas, 46½" x 31½", collection of the Dolores Olmedo Patino Foundation, Museo Frida Kahlo, Mexico City.

what to do. I needed those shorts and I was going to be late, but I didn't want to interrupt an argument between my teachers. I recognized the voices: Mr. Schmidt, my history teacher, and Mr. Boone, my math teacher. They seemed to be arguing about me. I couldn't believe it. I still remember the feeling of shock that rooted me flat against the wall as if I were trying to blend in with the graffiti written there.

"I refuse to do it! I don't care who her father is, her grades don't even begin to compare to

Martha's. I won't lie or falsify records. Martha has a straight A-plus average and you know it." That was Mr. Schmidt and he sounded very angry. Mr. Boone's voice sounded calm and quiet.

"Look. Joann's father is not only on the Board, he owns the only store in town: we could say it was a close tie and—"

The pounding in my ears drowned out the rest of the words, only a word here and there filtered through. " Martha is Mexican... resign... won't do it . " Mr. Schmidt came

WORDS TO KNOW falsify (fôl'sə-fī) v. to make false by adding to or changing resign (rĭ-zīn') v. to give up (a job or an award, for instance)

rushing out and luckily for me went down the opposite way toward the auditorium, so he didn't see me. Shaking, I waited a few minutes and then went in and grabbed my bag and fled from the room. Mr. Boone looked up when I came in but didn't say anything. To this day I don't remember if I got in trouble in P.E. for being late or how I made it through the rest of the afternoon. I went home very sad and cried into my pillow that night so Grandmother wouldn't hear me. It seemed a cruel coincidence that I had overheard that conversation.

The next day when the principal called me into his office I knew what it would be about. He looked uncomfortable and unhappy. I decided I wasn't going to make it any easier for him, so I looked him straight in the eyes. He looked away and fidgeted with the papers on his desk.

"Martha," he said, "there's been a change in policy this year regarding the scholarship jacket. As you know, it has always been free." He cleared his throat and continued. "This year the Board has decided to charge fifteen dollars, which still won't cover the complete cost of the jacket."

I stared at him in shock, and a small sound of dismay escaped my throat. I hadn't expected this. He still avoided looking in my eyes.

"So if you are unable to pay the fifteen dollars for the jacket it will be given to the next one in line." I didn't need to ask who that was.

Standing with all the dignity I could muster, I said, "I'll speak to my grandfather about it, sir, and let you know tomorrow." I cried on the walk home from the bus stop. The dirt road was a quarter mile from the highway, so by the time I got home, my eyes were red and puffy.

"Where's Grandpa?" I asked Grandma, looking down at the floor so she wouldn't ask me why I'd been crying. She was sewing on a quilt as usual and didn't look up.

"I think he's out back working in the bean field."

I went outside and looked out at the fields. There he was. I could see him walking between the rows, his body bent over the little plants, hoe in hand. I walked slowly out to him, trying to think how I could best ask him for the money. There was a cool breeze blowing and a sweet smell of mesquite3 fruit in the air, but I didn't appreciate it. I kicked at a dirt clod. I wanted that jacket so much. It was more than just being a valedictorian and giving a little thank you speech for the jacket on graduation night. It represented eight years of hard work and expectation. I knew I had to be honest with Grandpa; it was my only chance. He saw my shadow and looked up.

He waited for me to speak. I cleared my throat nervously and clasped my hands behind my back so he wouldn't see them shaking. "Grandpa, I have a big favor to ask you," I said in Spanish, the only language he knew. He still waited silently. I tried again. "Grandpa, this year the principal said the scholarship jacket is not going to be free. It's going to cost fifteen dollars, and I have to take the money in tomorrow, otherwise it'll be given to someone else." The last words came out in an eager rush. Grandpa straightened up tiredly and leaned his chin on the hoe handle. He looked out over the field that was filled with the tiny green bean plants. I waited, desperately hoping he'd say I could have the money. He turned to me and asked quietly, "What does a scholarship jacket mean?"

3. mesquite (mĕ-skēt'): small spiry tree native hot, dry regions of North America.

WORDS TO KNOW coincidence (kō-ĭn'sĭ-dəns) n. accidental sequence of events that seems planned fidget (fĭj'ĭt) v. to behave nervously or restlessly dismay (dĭs-mā') n. loss of courage in the face of trouble muster (mŭs'tər) v to call forth, to summon up

I answered quickly; maybe there was a chance. "It means you've earned it by having the highest grades for eight years and that's why they're giving it to you." Too late I realized the significance of my words. Grandpa knew that I understood it was not a matter of money. It wasn't that. He went back to hoeing the weeds that sprang up between the delicate little bean plants. It was a time-consuming job; sometimes the small shoots were right next to each other. Finally he spoke again as I turned to leave, crying.

"Then if you pay for it, Marta, it's not a scholarship jacket, is it? Tell your principal I will not pay the fifteen dollars."

I walked back to the house and locked myself in the bathroom for a long time. I was angry with Grandfather even though I knew he was right, and I was angry with the Board, whoever they were. Why did they have to change the rules just when it was my turn to win the jacket? Those were the days of belief and innocence.

It was a very sad and withdrawn girl who dragged into the principal's office the next day. This time he did look me in the eyes.

"What did your grandfather say?"

I sat very straight in my chair.

"He said to tell you he won't pay the fifteen dollars."

The principal muttered something I couldn't understand under his breath and walked over to the window. He stood looking out at something outside. He looked bigger than usual when he stood up; he was a fall, gaunt man with gray hair, and I watched the hack of his head while 1 waited for him to speak.

"Why?" he finally asked. "Your grandfather has the money. He owns a two-hundred acre ranch."

I looked at him, forcing my eyes to stay dry. "I know, sir, but he said if I had to pay for it, then it wouldn't be a scholarship jacket." I stood up to leave. "I guess you'll just have to give it to Joann." I hadn't meant to say that, it had just slipped out. I was almost to the door when he stopped me.

"Martha—wait."

I turned and looked at him, waiting. What did he want now? I could feel my heart pounding loudly in my chest and see my blouse fluttering where my breasts should have been. Something bitter and vile tasting was coming up in my mouth; I was afraid I was going to be sick. I didn't need any sympathy speeches. He sighed loudly and went back to his big desk. He watched me, biting his lip.

"Okay. We'll make an exception in your case. I'll tell the Board, you'll get your jacket."

I could hardly believe my ears. I spoke in a trembling rush. "Oh, thank you, sir!" Suddenly 1 felt great. I didn't know about adrenalin in those days, but I knew something was pumping through me, making me feel as tall as the sky. I wanted to yell, jump, run the mile, do something. I ran out so I could cry in the hall where there was no one to see me.

At the end of the day, Mr. Schmidt winked at me and said, "I hear you're getting the scholarship jacket this year."

His face looked as happy and innocent as a baby's, but I knew better. Without answering I gave him a quick hug and ran to the bus. I cried on the walk home again, but this time because I was so happy. I couldn't wait to tell Grandpa and ran straight to the field. I joined him in the row where he was working, and without saying anything I crouched down and started pulling up the weeds with my hands. Grandpa worked alongside me for a few minutes, and he didn't ask what had

WORDS TO KNOW vile (vīl) adj. disgusting, unpleasant

happened. After I had a little pile of weeds between the rows, I stood up and faced him. "The principal said he's making an exception for me, Grandpa, and I'm getting the jacket after all. That's after I told him what you said."

Grandpa didn't say anything; he just gave me a pat on the shoulder and a smile. He pulled out the crumpled red handkerchief that he always carried in his back pocket and wiped the sweat off his forehead.

"Better go see if your grandmother needs any help with supper."

I gave him a big grin. He didn't fool me. I skipped and ran back to the house whistling some silly tune.

RELATED READING GRADUATION MORNING

by Pat Mora

for Anthony

She called him Lucero,1 morning star, snared him with sweet coffee, pennies, Mexican milk candy, brown bony hugs.

Through the years she'd cross the Rio Grande to clean his mother's home. "Lucero, mi2 lucero," she'd cry, when she'd see him running toward her in the morning, when she pulled stubborn cactus thorns from his small hands, when she found him hiding in the creosote.3

Though she's small and thin, black sweater, black scarf, the boy in the white graduation robe easily finds her at the back of the cathedral, finds her amid the swirl of sparkling clothes, finds her eyes.

Tears slide down her wrinkled cheeks. Her eyes, luceros, stroke his face.

1. lucero (loo-sĕ'rō) Spanish: bright star.

2. mi (mē) Spanish: my.

3. creosote (krē'ə-sōt'): creosote bushes, shrubs found in Mexico and the southwestern United States.

1. What Do You Think? How did you feel when you came to the end of the story? If this had happened to you, would you feel like Martha felt?

Comprehension Check

What are Mr. Boone and Mr. Schmidt arguing about? Why does Martha's grandfather refuse to pay for the jacket?

How does the principal respond when Martha will not pay the 15 dollars? Think Critically

2. How do Mr. Schmidt and Mr. Boone differ? What does Martha mean to each of them as a person?

3. Why do you think the principal changes his mind?

4. When at last Martha knows that she will get the jacket, what else has she won?

Think About:

Martha's conflicting feelings in the principal's office

the ways different adults act toward her

the amount of control she has over the decisions being made

5. Martha's grandfather says very little, but his words are very important. What does he teach Martha? How? Support your answers with examples or quotes from the story.

Grandpa refuses to pay for the jacket

6. ACTIVE READING CONNECTING

Look over the notes you took in your READER'S NOTEBOOK and compare them with a classmate's notes. Then discuss how the details in the story helped you relate to Martha's experience. Extend Interpretations

7. The Writer's Style Consider the kinds of words and sentences Marta Salinas uses in this passage: "There was a cool breeze blowing and a sweet smell of mesquite fruit in the air, but I didn't appreciate it. I kicked at a dirt clod. I wanted that jacket so much:" How does Salinas's style help you get to know her main character better? Literary Analysis

THEME A theme is a message or moral about life or human nature expressed in a literary work. In most cases, readers must infer themes. (Remember, inferring consists of making logical guesses based on evidence.)

One way to infer a story's theme is to decide what general statement could be supported by the experiences of the main character. Look for clues to the theme of The Scholarship Jacket" in key words and phrases, in dialogue, and in the ways that characters change as a result of the events in the story. Paired Activity Working with a partner, identify an important theme in 'The Scholarship Jacket:' Look back at the text together, and jot down details of Martha's experiences that support the theme you've chosen. Compare your ideas with those of another pair of classmates.

Theme What other stories have you read in this book that share a similar theme with "The Scholarship Jacket"? Think of other characters who faced a difficult choice or situation, maybe one that they thought was unfair. Write down the names of the characters and the stories they appear in. Identify the theme of each story, and analyze the ways in which each theme is similar to that of "The Scholarship Jacket:' Research & Technology

La Causa! Cesar Chavez was a Mexican-American leader who worked to improve the lives of migrant workers. Find out about his life and about the United Farm Workers of America, the union that he helped found. Then write a brief biography of Chavez. Include any photographs you come across in your study. Keep a list of your sources, and write a bibliography to go with your biography. Exchange your completed work with a classmate. Share opinions of Cesar Chavez based on what you've read.

Writing Handbook See p. R56: Works Cited. Art Connection

Look at Frida Kahlo's painting Retrato de muchacha on page 280. What are your impressions of the girl in the painting? How do they compare with your impressions of Martha in the story? Vocabulary

EXERCISE: MEANING CLUES On a separate sheet of paper, write the answer that best demonstrates the meaning of each vocabulary word.

1. coincidence a. setting a date for a party b. running into a friend far from home c. learning about a solar eclipse

2. agile a. learning a difficult song b. climbing a rock face easily c. finishing a job early

3. despair a. playing with the dog b. painting a brightly colored mural c. staring silently at a wall

4. falsify a. make a fake ID b. correct what someone else says c. speak in another language

5. resign a. put up a new sign b. change your mind c. quit a job or leave a position

Vocabulary Handbook See p. R24: Context Clues.

Grammar in Context: Consistent Verb Tense

In this excerpt Martha, the narrator of "The Scholarship Jacket," describes her meeting with the principal of her school about the jacket.

The next day when the principal called me into his office I knew what it would be about. He looked uncomfortable and unhappy. I decided I wasn't going to make it any easier for him, so I looked him straight in the eyes. He looked away and fidgeted with the papers on his desk.

Because Martha is describing an incident from the past, she uses verbs in the past tense. The past tense is the basic time of the story. Martha uses other tenses only where they are logical, for example, when reporting the dialogue spoken by the characters. Otherwise, she uses the past tense consistently.

Apply to Your Writing Student writers sometimes shift tenses illogically without being aware of it. When you revise your writing, check to be sure that you have not made any illogical shifts in tense.

WRITING EXERCISE Rewrite the following sentences to make the verb tenses consistent.

Example: Original I couldn't wait to tell Grandpa, so I run straight to the field.

Rewritten I couldn't wait to tell Grandpa, so I ran straight to the field.

1. I joined him, and without saying anything, I crouch down and started pulling up the weeds.

2. Grandpa worked alongside me for a few minutes, and he doesn't ask what happened.

3. After I have a little pile of weeds between the rows, I stood up and face him.

4. Grandpa doesn't say anything; he just gave me a pat on the shoulder and a smile.

5. I skipped and run back to the house, whistling some silly tune.

Connect to the Literature Martha encountered prejudice. Recall a time when you believe that you were treated unfairly. Write five sentences about what you remember. Be careful to use past-tense verbs consistently.

Grammar Handbook See p. R80: Using Verbs Correctly.

Marta Salinas born 1949

"What does a scholarship jacket mean?"

Young Author Born in Coalinga, California, Marta Salinas received an M.F.A. in creative writing from the University of California at Irvine. She has published several short stories in journals and anthologies. "The Scholarship Jacket" originally appeared in Nosotras: Latina Literature Today.

AUTHOR ACTIVITY

Interview imagine that you are going to interview Marta Salinas about the story you have read. Make a list of questions you would like to ask her.

AUTOBIOGRAPHY The Noble Experiment

from I Never Had It Made

by JACKIE ROBINSON as told to ALFRED DUCKETT Connect toYour Life

What do you think causes people to feel prejudice? Build Background

In the 1940s, African Americans faced many barriers created by prejudice. Segregation kept blacks from using schools, restaurants, and hospitals used by whites. In baseball, the Negro League was completely separate from the white league. Jackie Robinson would help change that. FocusYour Reading

LITERARY ANALYSIS AUTOBIOGRAPHY An autobiography is the story of a person's life, written by that person. In this excerpt, Jackie Robinson tells of Branch Rickey's plan to hire Robinson as a player.

WORDS TO KNOW Vocabulary Preview cynical eloquence incredulous insinuation integrated retaliate shrewdly speculating taunt ultimate

When you summarize, you restate in your own words the main ideas and important details of something you've read. A summary should be shorter than the original work. Jot down important details in your READER'S NOTEBOOK. Thesewill help you summarize the selection later on.

---see picture

Jackie Robinson steals home during a Braves-Dodgers game at Ebbets Field in Brooklyn, August 22, 1948. UPI/Beettnann.

from I Never Had It Made The Noble Experiment

by Jackie Robinson as told to Alfred Duckett

In 1910 Branch Rickey was a coach for Ohio Wesleyan. The team went to South Bend, Indiana, for a game. The hotel management registered the coach and team but refused to assign a room to a black player named Charley Thomas. In those days college ball had a few black players. Mr. Rickey took the manager aside and said he would move the entire team to another hotel unless the black athlete was accepted. The threat was a bluff because he knew the other hotels also would have refused accommodations to a black man. While the hotel manager was thinking about the threat, Mr. Rickey came up with a compromise. He suggested a cot be put in his own room, which he would share with the unwanted guest. The hotel manager wasn't happy about the idea, but he gave in.

Years later Branch Rickey told the story of the misery of that black player to whom he had given a place to sleep. He remembered that Thomas couldn't sleep.

"He sat on that cot," Mr. Rickey said, "and was silent for a long time. Then he began to cry, tears he couldn't hold back. His whole body shook with emotion. I sat and watched him, not knowing what to do until he began tearing at one hand with the other—just as if he were trying to scratch the skin off his hands with his fingernails. I was alarmed. I asked him what he was trying to do to himself.

"'It's my hands,' he sobbed. 'They're black. If only they were white, I'd be as good as anybody then, wouldn't I, Mr. Rickey? If only they were white."

"Charley," Mr. Rickey said, "the day will come when they won't have to be white."

Thirty-five years later, while I was lying awake nights, frustrated, unable to see a future, Mr. Rickey, by now the president of the Dodgers, was also lying awake at night, trying to make up his mind about a new experiment.

He had never forgotten the agony of that black athlete. When he became a front-office executive in St. Louis, he had fought, behind the scenes, against the custom that consigned black spectators to the Jim Crow section of the Sportsman's Park, later to become Busch Memorial Stadium. His pleas to change the rules were in vain. Those in power argued that if blacks were allowed a free choice of seating, white business would suffer.

Branch Rickey lost that fight, but when he became the boss of the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1943, he felt the time for equality in baseball had come. He knew that achieving it would be

terribly difficult. There would be deep resentment, determined opposition, and perhaps even racial violence. He was convinced he was morally right, and he shrewdly sensed that making the game a truly national one would have healthy financial results. He took his case before the startled directors of the club, and using persuasive eloquence, he won the first battle in what would be a long and bitter campaign. He was voted permission to make the Brooklyn club the pioneer in bringing blacks into baseball.

Winning his directors' approval was almost insignificant in contrast to the task which now lay ahead of the Dodger president. He made certain that word of his plans did not leak out, particularly to the press. Next, he had to find the ideal player for his project, which came to be called "Rickey's noble experiment." This player had to be one who could take abuse, name- calling, rejection by fans and sportswriters and by fellow players not only on opposing teams but on his own. He had to be able to stand up in the face of merciless persecution and not retaliate. On the other hand, he had to be a contradiction in human terms; he still had to have spirit. He could not be an "Uncle Tom."1 ---see picture

Jackie Robinson after he signed a contract with the Brooklyn Dodgers, April 10, 1947 AP/Wide World Photos.

His ability to turn the other cheek had to be predicated2on his determination to gain acceptance. Once having proven his ability as player, teammate, and man, he had to be able to cast off humbleness and stand up as a full- fledged participant whose triumph did not carry the poison of bitterness.

1. Uncle Tom: an offensive term for a black person who is regarded as trying overly hard to please white people; originally from the novel Uncle Tonis Cabin, written by Harriet Beecher Stowe in 1851.

2. predicated (prĕd'ĭ-kā'tĭd): based.

WORDS TO KNOW shrewdly (shrood'lē) adv wisely, in a clever way eloquence (ĕl'ə-kwəns) n. forceful, convincing speech retaliate (rĭ-tăl'ē-āt') at I v to get revenge; get even

Unknown to most people and certainly ;, to me, after launching a major scouting program, Branch Rickey had picked me as that player. The Rickey talent hunt went beyond national borders. Cuba, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Venezuela, and other countries where dark-skinned people lived had been checked out. Mr. Rickey had learned that there were a number of black players, war veterans mainly, who had gone to these countries, despairing of finding an opportunity in their own country. The manhunt had to be camouflaged. If it became known he was looking for a black recruit for the Dodgers, all hell would have broken loose. The gimmick he used as a cover-up was to make the world believe that he was about to establish a new Negro league. In the spring of 1945 he called a press conference and announced that the Dodgers were organizing the United States League, composed of all black teams. This, of course, made blacks and prointegration whites indignant. He was accused of trying to uphold the existing segregation and, at the same time, capitalize on black players. Cleverly, Mr. Rickey replied that his league would be better organized than the current ones. He said its main purpose, eventually, was to be absorbed

into the majors. It is ironic that by coming very close to telling the truth, he was able to conceal that truth from the enemies of integrated baseball. Most people assumed that when he spoke of some distant goal of integration, Mr. Rickey was being a hypocrite on this issue as so many of baseball's leaders had been.

Black players were familiar with this kind of hypocrisy. When I was with the Monarchs, shortly before I met Mr. Rickey, Wendell Smith, then sports editor of the black weekly Pittsburgh Courier, had arranged for me and two other players from the Negro league to go to a tryout with the Boston Red Sox. The tryout had been brought about because a Boston city councilman had frightened the Red Sox management. Councilman Isadore Muchneck threatened to push a bill through banning Sunday baseball unless the Red Sox hired black players. Sam Jethroe of the Cleveland Buckeyes, Marvin Williams of the Philadelphia Stars, and I had been grateful to Wendell for getting us a chance in the Red Sox tryout, and we put our best efforts into it. However, not for one minute did we believe the tryout was sincere. The Boston club officials praised our performance, let us fill out application cards, and said, "So long." We were fairly certain they wouldn't call us, and we had no intention of calling them.

Incidents like this made Wendell Smith as cynical as we were. He didn't accept Branch Rickey's new league as a genuine project, and he frankly told him so. During this conversation, the Dodger boss asked Wendell whether any of the three of us who had gone to Boston was really good major league material. Wendell said I was. I will be forever indebted to Wendell because, without his even knowing it, his recommendation was in the end partly responsible for my career. At the time, it started a thorough investigation of my background.

In August 1945, at Comiskey Park in Chicago, I was approached by Clyde Sukeforth, the Dodger scout. Blacks have had to learn to protect themselves by being cynical but not cynical enough to slam the door on potential opportunities. We go through life walking a tightrope to prevent too much disillusionment. I was out on the field when Sukeforth called my name and beckoned. He told me the Brown Dodgers were looking for top ballplayers, that Branch Rickey had heard about me and sent him to watch me throw from the hole3 He had come at an unfortunate time. I had hurt my shoulder a couple of days before that, and I wouldn't be doing any throwing for at least a week.

Sukeforth said he'd like to talk with me anyhow. He asked me to come to see him after the game at the Stevens Hotel.

Here we go again, I thought. Another time- wasting experience. But Sukeforth looked like a sincere person, and I thought I might as well listen. I agreed to meet him that night. When we met, Sukeforth got right to the point. Mr. Rickey wanted to talk to me about the

3. throw from the hole: to throw from deep in the infield to first base. integrated (ĭn'tĭ-grā'tĭd) adj. open to people of all races or ethnic groups without restriction; desegregated cynical (sĭn'ĭlkəl) adj. mistrustful of others' sincerity

possibility of becoming a Brown Dodger. If I could get a few days off and go to Brooklyn, my fare and expenses would be paid. At first I said that I couldn't leave my team and go to Brooklyn just like that. Sukeforth wouldn't take no for an answer. He pointed out that I couldn't play for a few days anyhow because of my bum arm. Why should my team object?

I continued to hold out and demanded to know what would happen if the Monarchs fired me. The Dodger scout replied quietly that he didn't believe that would happen.

I shrugged and said I'd make the trip. I figured I had nothing to lose.

Branch Rickey was an impressive-looking man. He had a classic face, an air of command, a deep, booming voice, and a way of cutting through red tape and getting down to basics. He shook my hand vigorously and, after a brief conversation, sprang the first question.

"You got a girl?" he demanded.

It was a hell of a question. I had two reactions: why should he be concerned about my relationship with a girl; and, second, while I thought, hoped, and prayed I had a girl, the way things had been going, I was afraid she might have begun to consider me a hopeless case. I explained this to Mr. Rickey and Clyde.

Mr. Rickey wanted to know all about Rachel. I told him of our hopes and plans.

"You know, you have a girl," he said heartily. "When we get through today, you may want to call her up because there are times when a man needs a woman by his side."

My heart began racing a little faster again as I sat there speculating. First he asked me if I really understood why he had sent for me. I told him what Clyde Sukeforth had told me.

"That's what he was supposed to tell you," Mr. Rickey said. "The truth is you are not a candidate for the Brooklyn Brown Dodgers. I've sent for you because I'm interested in you as a candidate for the Brooklyn National League Club. I think you can play in the major leagues. How do you feel about it?"

My reactions seemed like some kind of weird mixture churning in a blender. I was thrilled, scared, and excited. I was incredulous. Most of all, I was speechless.

"You think you can play for Montreal?" he demanded.

I got my tongue back. "Yes," I answered.

Montreal was the Brooklyn Dodgers' top farm club. The players who went there and made it had an excellent chance at the big time.

I was busy reorganizing my thoughts while Mr. Rickey and Clyde Sukeforth discussed me briefly, almost as if I weren't there. Mr. Rickey was questioning Clyde. Could I make the grade?

Abruptly, Mr. Rickey swung his swivel chair in my direction. He was a man who conducted himself with great drama. He pointed a finger at me. "I know you're a good ballplayer," he barked. "What I don't know is whether you have the guts."

I knew it was all too good to be true. Here was a guy questioning my courage. That virtually amounted to him asking me if I was a coward. Mr. Rickey or no Mr. Rickey, that was an insinuation hard to take. I felt the heat coming up into my cheeks.

WORDS TO KNOW speculating (spĕk'yə-lā-tĭng) adj. thinking about different possibilities; guessing what might happen speculate v incredulous (ĭn-krĕj'ə-ləs) adj. unable or unwilling to believe something insinuation (ĭn-sĭn'yoo-ā'shən) n. a suggestion or hint intended to insult

Before I could react to what he had said, he leaned forward in his chair and explained.

I wasn't just another athlete being hired by a ball club. We were playing for big stakes. This was the reason Branch Rickey's search had been so exhaustive. The search had spanned the globe and narrowed down to a few candidates, then finally to me. When it looked as though I might he the number-one choice, the investigation of my life, my habits, my reputation, and my character had become an intensified study.

"I've investigated you thoroughly, Robinson," Mr. Rickey said.

One of the results of this thorough screening were reports from California athletic circles that I had been a "racial agitator"4 at UCLA. Mr. Rickey had not accepted these criticisms on face value. He had demanded and received more information and came to the conclusion that if I had been white, people would have said, "Here's a guy who's a contender, a competitor."

After that he had some grim words of warning. "We can't fight our way through this, Robinson. We've got no army. There's virtually nobody on our side. No owners, no umpires, very few newspapermen. And I'm afraid that many fans will be hostile. We'll be in a tough position. We can win only if we can convince the world that I'm doing this because you're a great ballplayer and a fine gentleman."

He had me transfixed as he spoke. I could feel his sincerity, and I began to get a sense of how much this major step meant to him. Because of his nature and his passion for justice, he had to do what he was doing. He continued. The rumbling voice, the theatrical gestures were gone. He was speaking from a deep, quiet strength.

--- see picture

(From left) Gil Hodges, Gene Hermanski, Branch Rickey, and Jackie Robinson at Yankee Stadium during the World Series, October 4, 1949. The Bettmann Archive. 4. racial agitator (ăj'ĭ-tā'tər): a negative term used for someone who tries to stir up trouble between the races.

"So there's more than just playing," he said. "1 wish it meant only hits, runs, and errors— only the things they put in the box score. Because you know—yes, you would know, Robinson, that a baseball box score is a democratic thing. It doesn't tell how big you are, what church you attend, what color you are, or how your father voted in the last election. It just tells what kind of baseball player you were on that particular day."

I interrupted. "But it's the box score that really counts—that and that alone, isn't it?"

"It's all that ought to count," he replied. "But it isn't. Maybe one of these days it will be all that counts. That is one of the reasons I've got you here, Robinson. If you're a good enough man, we can make this a start in the right direction. But let me tell you, it's going to take an awful lot of courage."

He was back to the crossroads question that made me start to get angry minutes earlier. He asked it slowly and with great care.

"Have you got the guts to play the game no matter what happens?"

"I think I can play the game, Mr. Rickey," I said.

The next few minutes were tough. Branch Rickey had to make absolutely sure that T knew what I would face. Beanballs5 would be thrown at me. 1 would be called the kind of names which would hurt and infuriate any man. I would be physically attacked. Could I take all of this and control my temper, remain steadfastly loyal to our ultimate aim?

He knew I would have terrible problems and wanted me to know the extent of them before I agreed to the plan. I was twenty-six years old, and all my life—back to the age of eight when a little neighbor girl called me a nigger—I had believed in payback, retaliation.

The most luxurious possession, the richest treasure anybody has, is his personal dignity. I looked at Mr. Rickey guardedly, and in that second I was looking at him not as a partner in a great experiment, but as the enemy—a white man. I had a question, and it was the age-old one about whether or not you sell your birthright.

"Mr. Rickey," I asked, "are you looking for a Negro who is afraid to fight hack?"

I never will forget the way he exploded.

"Robinson," he said, "I'm looking for a ballplayer with guts enough not to fight back."

After that, Mr. Rickey continued his lecture on the kind of thing I'd he facing.

He not only told me about it, but he acted out the part of a white player charging into me, blaming me for the "accident" and calling me all kinds of foul racial names. He talked about my race, my parents, in language that was almost unendurable. "They'll taunt and goad you," Mr. Rickey said. "They'll do anything to make you react. They'll try to provoke a race riot in the ballpark. This is the way to prove to the public that a Negro should not be allowed in the major league. This is the way to frighten the fans and make them afraid to attend the games."

5. beanballs: pitches thrown purposefully at a hatter's head. ultimate (ŭl'tə-mĭt) adj. final; most important taunt (tônt) v. to make fun of; jeer

If hundreds of black people wanted to come to the ballpark to watch me play and Mr. Rickey tried to discourage them, would I understand that he was doing it because the emotional enthusiasm of my people could harm the experiment? That kind of enthusiasm would be as bad as the emotional opposition of prejudiced white fans.

Suppose I was at shortstop. Another player comes down from first, stealing, flying in with spikes high, and cuts me on the leg. As I feel the blood running down my leg, the white player laughs in my face.

"How do you like that, nigger boy?" he sneers.

Could I turn the other cheek? I didn't know how I would do it. Yet I knew that I must. I had to do it for so many reasons. For black youth, for my mother, for Rae, for myself. I had already begun to feel I had to do it for Branch Rickey.

I was offered, and agreed to sign later, a contract with a $3,500 bonus and $600-a- month salary. I was officially a Montreal Royal. I must not tell anyone except Rae and my mother.

--- see picture

The pennant-winning 1949 Brooklyn Dodgers team. Jackie Robinson is second from the right in the third row.

1. What Do You Think?

What is your impression of Jackie Robinson? What kind of a person was he?

Comprehension Check

What was Rickey's intention when he recruited Jackie Robinson? What challenges would Robinson face if he became a major-league player? Think Critically

2. ACTIVE READING SUMMARIZING Review the notes you made in your READER'S NOTEBOOK. Then summarize Branch Rickey's plan to integrate major- league baseball.

3. What is your opinion of Rickey's plan?

Think About:

his reasons for wanting to carry out the plan

how and why he kept it secret

the final results of the plan

4. What does Robinson mean when he says of African Americans, "We go through life walking a tightrope to prevent too much disillusionment"?

5. Rickey interpreted reports that Robinson had been a "racial agitator" at UCLA to mean that Robinson was "a contender, a competitor:" What made him think that?

6. Consider the difficulties both Rickey and Robinson faced. Who showed the greater courage? Give reasons for your answer. Extend Interpretations

7. What If ? Imagine that Jackie Robinson had not been such a strong, self-controlled person or such an exceptional athlete. How might Rickey's plan have turned out differently?

8. Connect to Life Many saw Jackie Robinson as a role model for young people. Should we expect professional athletes to be role models, or should we judge them only on their athletic performance? Literary Analysis

AUTOBIOGRAPHY

An autobiography is a form of nonfiction in which a person tells the story of his or her own life. An autobiography is usually written from the first-person point of view. The writer tells about past events from the perspective of being older and wiser. Therefore, autobiographies often provide revealing insights into the writer's attitudes toward the events that shaped and changed his or her life. Autobiographies also help the reader understand the society in which the writer lived.

Group Activity With a small group, discuss one of the following two points. When you have finished, gather with a group that has chosen the other point and discuss how both points together contribute to the autobiography.

Point 1: Robinson's attitude toward the important event in his life described in "The Noble Experiment"

Point 2: The society in which Robinson's and Rickey's integration of major-league baseball took place

Summarize Take notes on the key events and main ideas in "The Noble Experiment." Then, turn those notes into a summary. Your summary should be about 500 words in length. It should include the main idea and significant details of the piece. Express the ideas and details in your own words, showing that you understand the story's meaning. Type up your summary using a word processing program, and bring it to class. Place your summary in your Working Portfolio.

Writing Handbook See p. R58: Summary. Speaking & Listening

Interview If you had an opportunity to interview Jackie Robinson and Branch Rickey, what questions would you ask them? Identify topics you think they would want to talk about, based on their background. Work with two other students to develop thoughtful interview questions and responses. Practice and then stage an interview with Robinson and Rickey for your class.

Speaking and Listening Handbook See p. R109: Conducting Interviews. Research & Technology

SOCIAL STUDIES

Jackie Robinson experienced prejudice and discrimination in breaking the "color barrier" in major-league baseball. Find out more about segregation policies, such as the Jim Crow laws, that existed during Robinson's lifetime. How did these policies affect African- American athletes in the 1940s and 1950s? How were major-league sports affected after these laws changed? Vocabulary

EXERCISE: SYNONYMS On your paper, write the Word to Know that is the best substitute for each italicized word or phrase below. 1. Branch Rickey cleverly devised a cover story for the press.

2. Robinson was disbelieving when Rickey said he wanted him to play for the Brooklyn National League Club.

3. The majority of newspapermen guessing about Rickey's plans had been wrong.

4. Many blacks felt very mistrustful of the sincerity of the promises made by whites.

5. Some ballplayers on other teams would make fun of Robinson and try to anger him.

6. Robinson was not allowed to get even.

7. The goal of the experiment was to have desegregated major leagues.

8. Sometimes a sportswriter would make a suggestion in his column intended to insult Robinson's character.

9. Several ministers spoke with forceful verbal skill about the evils of prejudice.

10. The final result of Rickey's "noble experiment" was highly successful.

Vocabulary Handbook See p. R26: Synonyms and Antonyms.

WORDS TO KNOW cynical eloquence incredulous insinuation integrated retaliate shrewdly speculating taunt ultimate

Grammar in Context: Active Voice and Passive Voice

Notice the use of verbs in the active voice to express Mr. Rickey's fear that the fans will harass Jackie Robinson.

They'll taunt and goad you.... They'll do anything to make you react. They'll try to provoke a race riot in the ballpark.

Compare this sentence written in the passive voice with the original sentence above: You will be taunted and goaded by them. Verbs in the active voice emphasize the doer of the action. Verbs in the passive voice take emphasis away from the doer of an action and make sentences wordy.

Apply to Your Writing Generally use verbs in the active voice to make your writing stronger and more concise.

WRITING EXERCISE Rewrite each sentence, changing the verbs from the passive voice to the active voice.

Example: Original The Boston Red Sox were threatened by a councilman.

Rewritten A councilman threatened the Boston Red Sox.

1. A passion for justice was shown by Branch Rickey.

2. Robinson's performance was praised by Boston club officials.

3. Robinson was approached by Clyde Sukeforth, the Dodger scout.

4. Many black athletes had been discouraged by years of lies and disappointments.

Alfred Duckett 1917-1984

"I wasn't just another athlete being hired by a ball club. We were playing for big stakes."

—Jackie Robinson

Fan and Writer It seems natural that Alfred Duckett would want to tell Jackie Robinson's story, since Duckett was born in Brooklyn, New York, and was a baseball fan as well as a journalist. Robinson and Duckett worked together to write / Never Had It Made: An Autobiography Besides writing books, Duckett also wrote poetry, magazine articles, and speeches.

Full Life Duckett cofounded Equal Opportunities magazine and served as director of Associated Negro Press International. He appeared on national television programs and lectured in many schools, churches, and universities. He also cowrote some of the speeches of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Until his death in 1984, Duckett ran a public relations firm in Chicago, Illinois.

AUTHOR ACTIVITY

Read the rest of Jackie Robinson's autobiography, I Never Had It Made. Create a time line of Robinson's accomplishments and give a report on his experiences in baseball and his other achievements.

POETRY Casey at the Bat

by ERNEST LAWRENCE THAYER Connect toYour Life

Answer these questions, then discuss your answers with the class.

My favorite athlete is

What I admire most about him or her is

When a game is "on the line," I expect him or her to

I was disappointed in him or her when Build Background

SOCIAL STUDIES

Baseball began in the United States in the mid-1800s. By the early 1900s the sport was so popular that people began calling it America's national pastime.

In the light of the nation's continuing enthusiasm for baseball, it is small wonder that "mighty Casey" has remained a popular figure for more than 100 years. As you read this poem, think about what has changed in baseball since 1888, when the poem was written, and what has remained the same.

---see picture

A cartoon showing baseball players and fans reacting to an umpire's call. Culver Pictures FocusYour Reading

LITERARY ANALYSIS SOUND DEVICES

Poets often use sound devices, such as repetition, rhyme, and rhythm, in their poems.

Repetition of a sound, word, phrase, or line can be used for emphasis.

Rhyme is a repetition of sounds at the end of words.

Rhythm is a pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables in the lines of a poem.

ACTIVE READING QUESTIONING

Good readers ask questions both before they read a work and while they are reading it. "Casey at the Bat" is a narrative poem—poetry that tells a story. Before you read the poem, look at it to get an idea of what it's about. What is the setting? Who are the characters? What is the conflict that gets the plot moving?

READER'S NOTEBOOK

As you read "Casey at the Bat," think about the setting, the conflict, and the characters. Jot down details that help you identify these elements. Also note any questions that occur to you.

299 Casey at the Bat

by Ernest Lawrence Thayer

It looked extremely rocky for the Mudville nine that day; The score stood two to four, with but an inning left to play. So, when Cooney died at second, and Burrows did the same, A pallor1 wreathed the features of the patrons of the game.

A straggling few got up to go, leaving there the rest, With that hope which springs eternal within the human breast. For they thought: "If only Casey could get a whack at that," They'd put even money now, with Casey at the hat.

But Flynn preceded Casey, and likewise so did Blake, And the former was a pudd'n, and the latter was a fake. So on that stricken multitude a deathlike silence sat; For there seemed but little chance of Casey's getting to the bat.

But Flynn let drive a "single," to the wonderment of all. And the much-despised Blakey "tore the cover off the ball." And when the dust had lifted, and they saw what had occurred, There was Blakey safe at second, and Flynn a-huggin' third.

Then from the gladdened multitude went up a joyous yell— It rumbled in the mountaintops, it rattled in the del1;2 It struck upon the hillside and rebounded on the flat; For Casey, mighty Casey, was advancing to the bat.

1. pallor (păl'ər): extreme paleness.

2. dell: valley.

There was ease in Casey's manner as he stepped into his place, There was pride in Casey's bearing and a smile on Casey's face; And when responding to the cheers he lightly doffed his hat, No stranger in the crowd could doubt 'twas Casey at the hat.

Ten thousand eyes were on him as he rubbed his hands with dirt, Five thousand tongues applauded when he wiped them on his shirt; Then when the writhing3 pitcher ground the ball into his hip, Defiance glanced in Casey's eye, a sneer curled Casey's lip.

And now the leather-covered sphere came hurtling through the air, And Casey stood a-watching it in haughty grandeur there. Close by the sturdy batsman the ball unheeded sped; "That ain't my style," said Casey. "Strike one," the umpire said.

From the benches, filled with people, there went up a muffled roar, Like the beating of the storm waves on the stern and distant shore. "Kill him! Kill the umpire!" shouted someone on the stand; And it's likely they'd have killed him had not Casey raised his hand.

With a smile of honest charity great Casey's visage4 shone; He stilled the rising tumult,5 he made the game go on; He signaled to the pitcher, and once more the spheroid flew; But Casey still ignored it, and the umpire said, "Strike two."

"Fraud!" cried the maddened thousands, and the echo answered "Fraud!" But one scornful look from Casey and the audience was awed; They saw his face grow stern and cold, they saw his muscles strain, And they knew that Casey wouldn't let the ball go by again.

The sneer is gone from Casey's lips, his teeth are clenched in hate, He pounds with cruel vengeance his bat upon the plate; And now the pitcher holds the ball, and now he lets it go, And now the air is shattered by the force of Casey's blow.

Oh, somewhere in this favored land the sun is shining bright, The band is playing somewhere, and somewhere hearts are light; And somewhere men are laughing, and somewhere children shout, But there is no joy in Mudville: Mighty Casey has struck out.

3. writhing (rīth'ĭng): twisting, as in pain or embarrassment.

4. visage (vĭz'ĭj): face.

5. tumult (too'mŭlt): a disorderly disturbance.

302 THINKING through the LITERATURE Connect to the Literature 1. What Do You Think?

When you reached the end of the poem, how did you feel about Casey? How did you feel about the crowd?

Comprehension Check

At the beginning of the poem, how many runs does the Mudville team have? What inning is it?

How does Casey react to the first two pitches thrown to him?

Think Critically

2. What is your impression of Casey as he steps up to the plate? How might he have impressed the crowd?

3. How do you feel about Casey's response to his team's situation in the game?

Think About:

his attitude as he steps up to the plate

his "smile of honest charity" after the first strike is called

his attitude after the second strike is called

4. ACTIVE READING QUESTIONING

Look over the notes you took in your READER'S NOTEBOOK. With two other classmates, review the details and questions you wrote down. Answer any questions that are not answered in your notes. Extend Interpretations

5. The Writer's Style A writer's use of exaggeration or overstatement for emphasis is called hyperbole. One example of hyperbole in this poem occurs in the description of the crowd's yell: "It rumbled in the mountaintops, it rattled in the der What does hyperbole add to "Casey at the Bat"?

6. Connect to Life Think of a real-life situation in which success or failure has depended upon the performance of a single person. What goes through a person's mind at a moment like that? Literary Analysis

SOUND DEVICES Repetition, rhyme, and rhythm are three of the sound devices used in poetry. Repetition is a repeating sound, word, phrase, or line. Rhyme is a repetition of sounds at the end of words. (In many poems, lines end with rhyming words.) Rhythm is a pattern of stressed (΄) and unstressed (˘) syllables in a poem's lines.

These sound devices can intensify the emotional effect of a poem. All three can be heard in the following lines from "Casey at the Bat":

---see sample

Activity Much of the energy and excitement of "Casey at the Bat" comes from the poet's use of repetition, rhyme, and rhythm. With a partner, copy the poem on a sheet of paper. On the copy, mark the rhythm, identify the rhyme scheme, and note any repetitions. Then, using your marked-up copy as a script, read the poem to your classmates.

Response to Literature

Imagine that you work for a literary magazine and have just been asked to write an interpretation of "Casey at the Bat" Because this is a narrative poem (a poem that tells a story), you can read the poem like a story, noting the sequence of events that move it along. What do these events tell you about Casey's character and his relationship with his fans? Use examples from the poem in your interpretation. Place your response in your Working Portfolio.

Writing Workshop See p. 506: Basics in a Box. Speaking & Listening

Film Review View the film version of "Casey at the Bat!' Then discuss how the images, dialogue, and sound work together to tell the story, and explain how they affect the viewer. Research & Technology

Record-Setters Consult a sports records book, almanac, or encyclopedia to find the names of baseball players whose accomplishments have made history. Choose one player to research in-depth. What team did he play for? What do his fellow players say about him? What are his stats? Who previously held the record he broke?

Reading for INFORMATION

Before you begin, read "Out of the Ballpark" on p. 305. Ernest Lawrence Thayer 1863-1940

"I evolved 'Casey' from the situation I had seen so often in baseball .. ."

Early Years Although Ernest Lawrence Thayer wrote many poems for newspapers, he is remembered for just one: "Casey at the Bat." Thayer was educated at Harvard University, where he served as editor of its humor magazine, the Lampoon. After graduation, he joined the staff of the San Francisco Examiner, where in 1887 he began writing a poem for each Sunday issue. "Casey at the Bat" was first printed in the paper in 1888.

Origin of "Casey" Thayer said, "I evolved 'Casey' from the situation I had seen so often in baseball—a crack batsman coming to the bat with the bases filled, and then fallen down:' Although he insisted that no particular person was the model for Casey, many ballplayers claimed to be the unfortunate hero of the poem. By the time of Thayer's death in 1940, "Casey at the Bat" had become an American favorite.

304 Reading or INFORMATION

NEWSPAPER ARTICLE

Real World Link to "Casey at the Bat"

Sports Out of the Ballpark

SPECIAL REPORT by Avery Foster

In the summer of 1998, Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa raced to break the single season home run record set by Roger Maris in 1961. The two sluggers found themselves caught up in a surge of publicity. Thousands of cameras flashed each time they swung the bat. The nightly news never missed reporting a game. Suddenly, baseball was the subject everyone was talking about. 1 Had one of them hit one out today? Did you hear that it smashed through a billboard? At times the media frenzy seemed to overwhelm Sosa and McGwire. Often, however, they coped with their success by drawing attention away from themselves. The skill it took to smash the ball out of the park day after day was extraordinary, but the ability to homer was not the most extraordinary thing about these two power hitters.

Reading for Information

Making Generalizations & Drawing Conclusions When writers make broad general statements based on several pieces of specific information, they are making generalizations. "Elephants are large" and "Anita gets up early" are examples of generalizations. An overgeneralization is a statement too broad to be true, for example, "It never rains in California."

YOUR TURN Use the questions below to learn more about making generalizations.

1 Words such as everyone, no one, always, and never often tell you that a statement is an overgeneralization. In these two sentences, what words reveal that these statements are overgeneralizations?

305 Better Than Babe Ruth

2 If McGwire wanted to brag about himself, he certainly could. In 1998, he towered over the rest of the league in both stats and stature. His powerful bat would have put him in the history books even if he hadn't surpassed Roger Maris's 61 home runs. For three seasons in a row he hit at least 50 homers (1996, 1997, and 1998), and his home run ratio was an astonishing one homer per 11.2 at bats. That means that if you chose to spend a beautiful summer afternoon watching McGwire at bat, you would have a better chance of seeing him smash one out than you would if you were watching any other player in history, including Babe Ruth.

When he signed with the Cardinals in the fall of 1997, McGwire was already making a name for himself away from the ballpark. At the televised press conference announcing the deal, he pledged to donate $1 million per year of his Cardinals salary to help abused children. More impressive than that pledge was what happened to the big guy when he tried to talk about his reasons for setting up the Mark McGwire Charitable Foundation. He couldn't. There was only silence. And then he starred to cry. The sight instantly endeared him to the public. Here was a giant of a man who broke into tears when he thought about what was happening to defenseless children. 3 It was a theme to which McGwire would return again and again throughout 1998. Breaking the record for the most home runs in a season was exhilarating, but the chance to help children affected McGwire more profoundly.

Right fielder Sammy Sosa trailed McGwire in total home runs for most of the season, but he too could rocket the ball out of the park. At 613" and 200 lbs., Sosa is not small by any means, but his performance in 1998 emphasized that smashing the ball out of the stadium also required excellent skill and timing. People were amazed when Sosa hit homer number 66 and pulled ahead of McGwire for only the second time during the season.

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McGwire reacts to his 61st home run of the 1998 season.

306 ---see picture

McGwire follows through to hit a single against the Milwaukee Brewers.

Not only had the two sluggers battled to break the record of 61 home runs in a single season, they were continuing the battle. Strength of Character

Besides a place in the record books, the home run race offered Sosa an opportunity to reveal his strength of character. Out of the batting box, he demonstrated the respect and humility that were the very model of sportsmanship. If he finished the season with the most home runs, Sammy said, he would be happy. If McGwire finished with more, he added, he still would be happy! It astonished everyone that Sosa and McGwire seemed to get along so well together. Again and again Sosa maintained that McGwire was a great player and he wished him the best. In an age when many sports superstars couldn't care less about being an example for others, the conduct of the Cubs right fielder was refreshing.

Reading for Information continued

After writers gather information and combine it with their own ideas and prior knowledge, they make decisions about what they've learned. This is called drawing conclusions. Readers draw conclusions by making inferences about the details in the works they read.

YOUR TURN Use the questions below to learn more about drawing conclusions.

2 The writer begins this paragraph with a conclusion drawn from his research. What specific information does he provide in the rest of the paragraph to support the conclusion? Does the conclusion make sense?

3 What conclusion can you draw about McGwire, based on the specific information in this paragraph?

Growing up in the Dominican Republic, Sosa's first job as a kid was shining shoes, and he has never forgotten where he came from. By founding the Sammy Sosa Charitable Foundation, Sosa began helping his country, with the goal of providing aid for children's healthcare in his hometown of San Pedro. His country needed him most, however, when tragedy struck in September of 1998. Hurricane Georges swept quickly through the Caribbean, wreaking havoc on the Dominican Republic and leaving thousands home less. Rising to the occasion, Sosa turned the constant publicity from the home run race into a daily opportunity for raising disaster relief funds. In the process, he sent three planeloads of food and medical supplies to the Dominican Republic and joined other Dominican baseball players in a pledge to help out any way possible. 5

Sosa may not have set the final home run record, but he proved himself an excellent ballplayer and an excellent human being. The entire nation watched with excitement as two legendary players chased one of the most glorious records in baseball. There will never be another season like it. Sosa and McGwire, by reaching out to help others, drew everyone into their success. With equal parts skill and heart, they propelled themselves into sports history.

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Sosa takes a big swing.

Reading for Information continued

4 Writers may state their conclusion as a topic sentence before the information that supports it or as a summing up after the information. Read this paragraph. Where is the conclusion? Restate it in your own words.

5 There are three overgeneralizations in this paragraph. Rewrite them to make them valid generalizations.

Research & Technology

Activity Link: "Casey at the Bat," p. 304.

Find out more about Roger Mads, a previous holder of the single season home run record. What characterized him as a player? What was he known for outside the ballpark? What controversy is associated with his record? Write a paragraph in which you make a generalization about Maris's accomplishments and draw a conclusion based on a group of facts.

308 Building Vocabulary

Analyzing Word Parts: Affixes

The words mistrust and excitable each have an affix—a word part that can he attached to base words to make new words. Affixes added to the beginning of words are called prefixes; those added to the end are called suffixes. mistrust

prefix mis- means "not" base word: trust excitable

base word: excite suffix -able means "capable of being" The next day when the principal called me into his office I knew what it would be about. He looked uncomfortable and unhappy. I decided I wasn't going to make it any easier for him, so I looked him straight in the eyes. He looked away and fidgeted with the papers on his desk.

—Marta Salinas, "The Scholarship Jacket"

Both words share the prefix un-, which means "not." Can you figure out their meaning? Strategies for Building Vocabulary

Below are some common prefixes and suffixes used in forming English words.

1 Recognize Common Affixes Knowing the meanings of some of the most common affixes can help you understand the meanings of unfamiliar words. Some of the most common prefixes and suffixes are listed in the charts below, along with their meanings.

2 Analyze Words You can use your knowledge of prefixes, suffixes, and base words to analyze the meanings of words you don't know. Think about the word resealable, for example. The prefix re- means "again? The base word seal means "to close tightly? The suffix -able means "capable of? Therefore, resealable means "capable of being closed tightly again?

Prefix Meaning Examples

co-, com-,con- with, together costar, compress, conjunction

dis- the absence of disagree

e-, ex- opposite of, out, away from emigrate, exchange

em-, en- to provide with, to cause to be empower, enrich

im-, in-, il-, ir- not inoperable, imperfect, illogical, irresponsible

re- again, back recharge, review

trans- across, change transact, transcontinental

un- not, opposite unbearable, unhook, unnoticed

Suffix Meaning Examples

-able, -ible likely to be, capable of being adorable, flexible

-ance an act or state of appearance

-ate characterized by, to cause to become passionate, activate

-er, -or one who driver, visitor

-ion an act or state of creation, eruption -ive tending to, performing an act of reflective, selective

-ous full of, characterized by joyous, poisonous

EXERCISE Divide each word into a base word and a prefix or suffix. Then define the word.

1. transform

2. destitution

3. enable

4. inefficient

5. endurance