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The Thirty-Nine Steps 4 5 by John Buchan 6 Penguin Readers Factsheets level E Teacher’s notes 1 2 3 The Thirty-nine Steps 4 5 by John Buchan 6 SUMMARY PRE-INTERMEDIATE ondon, May 1914. Europe is close to war. Spies are he was out of action, he began to write his first ‘shocker’, L everywhere. Richard Hannay has just arrived in as he called it: a story combining personal and political London from Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) in Africa to dramas. This book was The Thirty-nine Steps, published start a new life. One evening a man appears at his door in 1915. The novel marked a turning point in Buchan’s and asks for help. His name is Scudder and he is a literary career and introduced his famous adventuring THE THIRTY-NINE STEPS freelance spy, working alone. He has uncovered a German hero, Richard Hannay. The story was a great success with plot to murder the Greek Prime Minister in London and to the men in the First World War trenches. One soldier wrote steal the British plans for the outbreak of war. He is on the to Buchan, ‘The story is greatly appreciated in the midst trail of a ring of German spies, called the Black Stone. of mud and rain and shells, and all that could make trench Hannay takes Scudder into his house and learns his life depressing.’ secrets. German spies are in the street outside, watching Buchan continued to work for the intelligence services the house. during and after the war and Richard Hannay continued A few days later, Hannay returns to his flat after dinner his adventures in Greenmantle and other stories. and finds Scudder lying on the floor with a knife through Buchan’s later writing included a history of the First World his heart. If Hannay goes to the police, they will arrest him War, biographies of Julius Caesar and Augustus, novels for Scudder’s murder. He decides to carry on Scudder’s for children, poetry, histories and essays. He was elected work and his adventure begins. He escapes from the men to Parliament in 1927. In 1935 he was made Governor- watching the house and makes his way to Scotland. General of Canada and enjoyed five adventurous years The hunt for Hannay starts. He is chased across the there before his sudden death in an accident. great open landscapes of Scotland both by the police and by the German spies. He works alone, wearing disguises BACKGROUND AND THEMES and inventing stories to avoid capture. When he finally makes contact with the authorities and returns to London, John Buchan wrote his Hannay stories as entertainment - the mystery of the thirty-nine steps and the Black Stone is or, as he called them, ‘shockers’. He described a still unsolved . ‘shocker’ as an adventure where the events in the story are unlikely and the reader is only just able to believe that ABOUT JOHN BUCHAN they really happened. His experience of life, however, had already taught him that the most unlikely stories are more John Buchan was born in 1875 in Scotland and died in believable than the real facts. In his Hannay novels, 1940 in Canada. He was a man of tremendous energy and Buchan cleverly mixes the familiar and the frightening or wide-ranging interests. After an excellent student career the unexpected - an ordinary London street can become at Glasgow and Oxford universities, he worked first as a terrifying if men with guns are hiding in its doorways. A journalist and barrister and then served in the armed fisherman in baggy trousers and an old hat is an important forces in South Africa in 1902, helping to resettle the member of the Foreign Office. The ingredients of the country after the Boer War (between people of Dutch Hannay novels are simple: the government is being origin and the British). Here Buchan got his first threatened, Hannay’s life is in danger, but our hero saves experience of code-breaking and intelligence work. Back the situation and we are all safe again. in London, he became a partner in the publishing firm of Some of Buchan’s later adventure stories become more his friend, Thomas Nelson. All this time he was writing and like sermons - he uses a story to illustrate an important publishing short stories, histories, biographies and novels. moral point. Even in The Thirty-nine Steps, although the As war in Europe drew near, Buchan was drawn into exciting narrative is the point of the book, Buchan holds secret intelligence work. When war broke out in 1914, he up Richard Hannay as an example to his readers of an was ill in bed with a duodenal ulcer, an illness which ordinary man who puts his country’s interests before his remained with him all his life. To keep his mind calm while own safety. © Pearson Education 2000 level Penguin Readers Factsheets 3 Teacher’s notes Although Hannay describes himself as ordinary, he is Turnbull (see page 28). What does he do to his clothes, the typical English gentleman hero - well educated, rich, and his hands? What does he borrow from Turnbull? What advice does he remember from his old friend in Rhodesia? strong, fit and healthy, looking for fun and adventure. He Ask students to work in pairs. They choose a person for is equally at home talking to a workman as to a member Hannay to turn into - not somebody from the story. They of the government. He has a wide experience of life which decide how he changes his face, his clothes, his hair, his enables him to crack codes, live outdoors, impersonate voice and the way he acts. Each pair tells the class about others and find the location of the thirty-nine steps. their new Hannay. Spies have always been important in time of war, Chapters 7-8 particularly in finding out advance information about the Put students into groups of three. Ask them to look at enemy’s plans. By the time of the First World War (1914- page 54 of their books. They are Hannay, Marmaduke Jopley and the policeman. They act out the scene in the 18: Germany, Austria, the Ottoman Empire and Bulgaria road. (Tell Hannay to be gentle with the other students!) against Britain, France, Russia, Italy, Romania and Greece Chapters 9-10 - and later the USA), war plans were made in great detail. Put students into pairs. They imagine that they have to get It is interesting to note that by 1915 Britain had copies of some secret information from where they are now to a the three main German code-books, which remained in foreign country across water. The police are looking for use by Germany until 1917. them. They plan their journey. When pairs are ready, compare ideas across the class. Three film versions of The Thirty-nine Steps have been made. The first and most famous (and many would say ACTIVITIES AFTER READING THE BOOK the best) was made in 1935 by the master of suspense, Put students into small groups. Ask them to describe Alfred Hitchcock. Richard Hannay. What is his character? What words describe him? Why does he put himself into danger? Do you like him? Tell students to use their dictionaries to find Communicative activities new words. The following teacher-led activities cover the same sections Glossary of text as the exercises at the back of the reader, and supplement those exercises. For supplementary exercises It will be useful for your students to know the following new words. covering shorter sections of the book, see the photocopiable They are practised in the ‘Before You Read’ sections of exercises at Student’s Activities pages of this Factsheet. These are the back of the book. (Definitions are based on those in the Longman primarily for use with class readers but, with the exception of Active Study Dictionary.) discussion and pair/groupwork questions, can also be used Chapters 1-2 by students working alone in a self-access centre. politics (n) ideas and activities about how a country is governed Prime Minister (n) the leader of the government in some countries ACTIVITIES BEFORE READING THE BOOK with a parliament Put students into groups. Tell them that most of this book Chapters 3-4 takes place in the open hilly countryside of Scotland. The arrest (v) if the police arrest someone, they take them away because hero of the story is chased by his enemies. There are river they believe they are guilty of a crime valleys, a few groups of trees, and quiet houses. Ask code (n) a set of numbers or letters that say something secretly students to imagine that they are trying to cross a big area Sir (n) a title that is given to somebody if they are very successful THE THIRTY-NINE STEPS of countryside like this. The police are following them. telegram (n) a message sent by electrical signs Where will they hide? Where will they sleep? When will Chapters 5-6 they travel? How will they eat? detonator (n) a piece of equipment which makes a bomb (a box with a clock, which will destroy buildings) start ACTIVITIES AFTER READING A SECTION dynamite (n) a bomb (see above) is made of this Chapters 1-2 Chapters 7-8 Ask students to work in threes. They imagine that, instead Admiralty (n) the top-level office in the British navy (the people and ships that a country has for fighting a war) of changing clothes with the milkman, Hannay goes to the butler (n) someone whose job is to live in someone’s house and do police when he finds Scudder’s body.
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