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7th Grade ELA: Pirate Text Set

Directions: Read and annotate the connected texts in this packet. As you read, look for evidence of what ​ pirate life was like. Once you have read all of the texts, complete the questions that follow in a complete paragraph, then choose one writing prompt to write a full essay. Responses should be turned into your teacher, and can be completed on paper or digitally.

Text 1: “Yo Ho (A Pirate’s Life for Me)” By Xavier Atencio ​

Yo ho, yo ho, a pirate's life for me Yo ho, yo ho, a pirate's life for me We pillage plunder, we rifle and loot We're beggars and blighters and ne'er Drink up me 'earties1, yo ho do-well cads4 We kidnap and ravage and don't give a hoot Drink up me 'earties, yo ho Drink up me 'earties, yo ho Aye, but we're loved by our mommies and dads Yo ho, yo ho, a pirate's life for me Drink up me 'earties, yo ho We extort and pilfer2, we filch and sack Drink up me 'earties, yo ho Maraud and embezzle and even highjack Drink up me 'earties, yo ho

Yo ho, yo ho, a pirate's life for me We kindle and char and in flame and ignite Drink up me 'earties, yo ho We burn up the city, we're really a fright Drink up me 'earties, yo ho

We're rascals and scoundrels, we're villains and knaves3 Drink up me 'earties, yo ho We're devils and black sheep, we're really bad eggs Drink up me 'earties, yo ho

1 Pronunciation of “hearties,” which was another term for shipmates 2 To steal 3 A dishonest or unscrupulous man 4 A man who behaves dishonorably, especially toward a woman

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Text 2: “Female Pirates You Should Know About” By Kristy Puchko

When you think of pirates, you're likely picturing bearded or peg-legged scalawags with names like , Barbarossa, and . While most pirates were men, there were women in these ranks of raiders who were just as merciless, notorious, and feared. Spanning the globe and centuries, we introduce you to the infamous she-pirates of the seven seas.

Anne Bonny Born Anne Cormac in 1698, this Irish lass with luscious red locks and a dangerous temper became an icon of The Golden Age of (1650s-1730s) after marrying small-time pirate James Bonny. Anne's respectable father disowned her over the marriage, so she and her new husband moved to a portion of nicknamed the Pirates Republic, a sanctuary of sorts for scalawags. But the Bonnys were not happily married for long.

They divorced, and she took up with Calico Jack Rackham, first as his girlfriend, then as his first mate of the ship Revenge. In October of 1720, she and the rest of Rackham's crew were captured despite Bonny and her buddy 's valiant attempts to fight off the advancing English forces. Bonny blamed Rackham for their capture. Her last words to him in prison are recorded as, "Sorry to see you there, but if you'd fought like a man, you would not have been hang'd like a Dog."

He was hanged, but Bonny's pregnancy earned her a stay in prison. However, no historical record of her death sentence was found. Some speculate that her affluent father paid a handsome price to have her set free.

Mary Read Best mate of was Mary Read, an Englishwoman born of a sea captain's widow. While Bonny was said to wear clothes that identified her as female, Read had a long history of masquerading as male that dates back to her youth. Her mother would dress Read as her late older brother to wheedle money from the dead boy's paternal grandmother. Years later, she joined the British military as Mark Read. She found love with a Flemish soldier, but upon his untimely death Read headed to the . As fate would have it, her ship was taken by pirates, who pushed her to join their ranks.

Dressing as a man, Read set sail with Anne Bonny and Calico Jack on the Revenge in 1720. Some stories suggest that only Bonny and Jack knew of Read's womanhood, and only because the latter grew jealous when the former flirted with "Mark." Later that year, a third in their crew would learn Read's secret, and she claimed him as her husband.

When the Revenge was captured by pirate hunter Captain , Read joined Bonny in "pleading the belly." But pregnancy from her unnamed husband would not save her. She died on April 28th 1721, from a

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violent fever in her prison cell. No record is made of the burial of a baby. Some suspect Read and the infant died during childbirth.

Sadie the Goat American pirate of the 19th century, earned her unusual nickname for her violent modus operandi5. On the streets of , Sadie won a reputation as a merciless mugger by head-butting her victims. It's said that Sadie was chased out of Manhattan when a fellow female tough, Gallus Mag, brawled with her, biting off Sadie's ear.

To flee the city, she wrangled a new gang to steal a sloop6 in the spring of 1869. With a Jolly Roger7 flapping above them, Sadie and her crew became pirates that swept the Hudson and Harlem Rivers for booty8. She'd lead raids on the farmhouses and posh mansions that dotted the river's side, occasionally kidnapping folks for ransom. By the end of summer these raids became too risky as the farmers took to firing upon the sloop as it drew near. So, Sadie the Goat returned to the mainland, where she made peace with Gallus Mag, who returned to Sadie her lost ear which had been pickled for posterity.

Known now as "Queen of the Waterfront," Sadie took her dismembered ear and placed it in a locket, which she wore around her neck for the rest of her days.

Queen Teuta of Illyria One the earliest recorded female pirates was actually a pirate queen. Once her husband Agron died in 231 BC, Teuta of Illyria became queen regent, as her stepson Pinnes was too young to rule. During her four years of reign over the Ardiaei tribe of what is now the Western Balkans, Teuta encouraged piracy as a means of fighting back against Illyria's domineering neighbors. This not only meant the plundering of Roman ships, but also the capturing of Dyrrachium and Phoenice. Her pirates spread out from the Adriatic Sea into the Ionian Sea, terrorizing the trade route of Greece and Italy. While Teuta's seafaring tribesman brought her kingdom great wealth and power, they also won her a great enemy.

Romans sent representatives to Teuta for a diplomatic meeting. She scoffed at their pleas, insisting that her tribe sees piracy as a part of lawful trade. From there diplomacy went out the window. It's unknown what the Roman reps said next. But one ambassador was killed, while the other was imprisoned. So began a war between Rome and Illyria that lasted from 229 BC to 227 BC, when Teuta was forced to surrender on terms that cut down her power and forced her tribe to pay annual tribute to Rome.

Though she continued to rail against Roman rule, she lost her throne. The rest of her life was lost to history.

5 a particular way or method of doing something, especially one that is characteristic or well-established 6 a one-masted sailboat with a fore-and-aft mainsail and a jib 7 Traditional name for the skull and crossbones flag that is associated with pirates 8 valuable stolen goods, especially those seized in war

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Sayyida al Hurra A contemporary and ally of the Turkish pirate Barbarossa, Sayyida al-Hurra was a pirate queen and was the last woman awarded the title of al Hurra (Queen), following the death of her husband who had ruled Tétouan, . In fact, her real name is unknown. Sayyida al Hurra is a title that translates to “noble lady who is free and independent; the woman sovereign who bows to no superior authority.”

She ruled from 1515-1542, controlling the western with her pirate fleet while Barbarossa roamed the eastern side. Al Hurra's inspiration to take to piracy came from a wish for revenge against the "Christian enemy" she felt had wronged her years before when Catholic monarchs Ferdinand and Isabella ran her Muslim family out of . She was a feared figure for the Spanish and Portuguese, whose historical records are peppered with paperwork involving reports about her exploits and ransoms.

At the height of her power, al-Hurra remarried to the king of Morocco, yet refused to give up her seat of power in Tétouan. But in 1542, she was given no choice when her son-in-law overthrew her. The Yemen Times weighs in on her final chapter, writing, "She was stripped of her property and power and her subsequent fate is unknown."

Ching Shih One of the most feared pirates of all time was this menace of the China Sea. Born in humble beginnings as Shi Xiang Gu, she was captured by pirates. In 1801, she married the notorious Chinese pirate (a.k.a. Cheng I), who came from a long line of fearsome thieves. Yi's Red Flag Fleet was immense, made up of 300 ships and somewhere between 20,000 and 40,000 men. But all this was at risk of falling apart when he died on November 16th, 1807.

Gu became known as Ching Shih, which meant widow of Zheng. She was quick to seek the backing of her in-laws in her bid for leadership of the Red Flag Fleet. To help her maintain the day-to-day concerns of a sprawling pirate army, Ching Shih enlisted the help of Chang Pao, a fisherman's son who had been adopted by Yi. They proved a great team, and by 1810 the Red Fleet is said to have grown to 1800 sailing vessels and 80,000 crew members. To manage so many, Ching Shih essentially set up her own government to establish laws and even taxes. Yet she was no soft touch. Breaking her laws lead to decapitation. She was revered and feared as far away as Great Britain.

In 1810, Ching Shih and her fleet considered getting out of the piracy business when amnesty was offered. However, to get it a pirate must bend the knee before government officials. This was considered a sign of shameful surrender, but Ching Shih found a clever way to compromise. With Pao (her first mate) and 17 women and children in tow, she marched into the office of official Zhang Bai Ling, and asked that he marry her and her first mate. He did, and the newlyweds knelt to thank him. Ching Shih retired with her dignity and all her ill-gotten loot, which some have suggested makes her the most successful pirate of all time. She lived to the age of 69.

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Text 3: excerpt from ​ by J.M. Barrie

Prior to this excerpt, and his band of pirates have attacked Peter Pan and his friends, capturing several boys and one girl, Wendy. The pirates have brought the prisoners back to their ship, the .

One green light squinting over Kidd's Creek, which is near the mouth of river, marked where the , the Jolly Roger, lay, low in the water; a rakish-looking9 craft foul to the hull, every beam in her detestable, ​ ​ like ground strewn with mangled feathers. She was the cannibal of the seas, and scarce needed that watchful eye, for she floated immune in the horror of her name. She was wrapped in the blanket of night, through which no sound from her could have reached the shore. There was little sound. A few of the pirates leant over the bulwarks, drinking in the miasma10 of the night; others sprawled by barrels over games of dice and cards; and the exhausted four who had carried the little house lay prone on the deck, where even in their sleep they rolled skillfully to this side or that out of Hook's reach, lest he should claw them mechanically in passing. Hook trod the deck in thought. O man unfathomable. It was his hour of triumph. Peter had been removed for ever from his path, and all the other boys were in the brig, about to walk the plank. It was his grimmest deed since the days when he had brought Barbecue to heel; and knowing as we do how vain a tabernacle is man, could we be surprised had he now paced the deck unsteadily, bellied out by the winds of his success? But there was no elation in his gait, which kept pace with the action of his sombre mind. Hook was profoundly dejected. He was often thus when communing with himself on board ship in the quietude of the night. It was because he was so terribly alone. This inscrutable man never felt more alone than when surrounded by his dogs. They were socially inferior to him. Hook was not his true name. To reveal who he really was would even at this date set the country in a blaze; but as those who read between the lines must already have guessed, he had been at a famous public school; and its traditions still clung to him like garments, with which indeed they are largely concerned. Thus it was offensive to him even now to board a ship in the same dress in which he grappled her, and he still adhered in his walk to the school's distinguished slouch. But above all he retained the passion for good form… …His dogs thinking him out of the way for a time, discipline instantly relaxed; and they broke into a bacchanalian11 dance, which brought him to his feet at once, all traces of human weakness gone, as if a bucket of water had passed over him. “Quiet, you scugs,” he cried, “or I'll cast anchor in you;” and at once the din was hushed. “Are all the children chained, so that they cannot fly away?” “Ay, ay.”

9 speedy-looking 10 putrid mist 11 drunken

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“Then hoist them up.” The wretched prisoners were dragged from the hold, all except Wendy, and ranged in line in front of him. For a time he seemed unconscious of their presence. He lolled at his ease, humming, not unmelodiously, snatches of a rude song, and fingering a pack of cards. Ever and anon12 the light from his cigar gave a touch of colour to his face. “Now then, bullies,” he said briskly, “six of you walk the plank to-night, but I have room for two cabin boys. Which of you is it to be?” “Don't irritate him unnecessarily,” had been Wendy's instructions in the hold; so Tootles stepped forward politely. Tootles hated the idea of signing under such a man, but an instinct told him that it would be prudent to lay the responsibility on an absent person; and though a somewhat silly boy, he knew that mothers alone are always willing to be the buffer. All children know this about mothers, and despise them for it, but make constant use of it. So Tootles explained prudently, “You see, sir, I don't think my mother would like me to be a pirate. Would your mother like you to be a pirate, Slightly?” He winked at Slightly, who said mournfully, “I don't think so,” as if he wished things had been otherwise. “Would your mother like you to be a pirate, Twin?” “I don't think so,” said the first twin, as clever as the others. “Nibs, would—” “Stow this gab,” roared Hook, and the spokesmen were dragged back. “You, boy,” he said, addressing John, “you look as if you had a little pluck in you. Didst never want to be a pirate, my hearty?” Now John had sometimes experienced this hankering at maths. prep.; and he was struck by Hook's picking him out. “I once thought of calling myself Red-handed Jack,” he said diffidently. “And a good name too. We'll call you that here, bully, if you join.” “What do you think, Michael?” asked John. “What would you call me if I join?” Michael demanded. “Blackbeard Joe.” Michael was naturally impressed. “What do you think, John?” He wanted John to decide, and John wanted him to decide. “Shall we still be respectful subjects of the King?” John inquired. Through Hook's teeth came the answer: “You would have to swear, 'Down with the King.'” Perhaps John had not behaved very well so far, but he shone out now. “Then I refuse,” he cried, banging the barrel in front of Hook. “And I refuse,” cried Michael. “Rule Britannia!”13 squeaked Curly.

12 occasionally 13 Another word for England

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The infuriated pirates buffeted them in the mouth; and Hook roared out, “That seals your doom. Bring up their mother. Get the plank ready.” They were only boys, and they went white as they saw Jukes and Cecco preparing the fatal plank. But they tried to look brave when Wendy was brought up. No words of mine can tell you how Wendy despised those pirates. To the boys there was at least some glamour in the pirate calling; but all that she saw was that the ship had not been tidied for years. There was not a porthole on the grimy glass of which you might not have written with your finger “Dirty pig”; and she had already written it on several. But as the boys gathered round her she had no thought, of course, save for them. “So, my beauty,” said Hook, as if he spoke in syrup, “you are to see your children walk the plank.” Fine gentlemen though he was, the intensity of his communings had soiled his ruff, and suddenly he knew that she was gazing at it. With a hasty gesture he tried to hide it, but he was too late. “Are they to die?” asked Wendy, with a look of such frightful contempt that he nearly fainted. “They are,” he snarled. “Silence all,” he called gloatingly, “for a mother's last words to her children.” At this moment Wendy was grand. “These are my last words, dear boys,” she said firmly. “I feel that I have a message to you from your real mothers, and it is this: 'We hope our sons die like English gentlemen.'” Even the pirates were awed, and Tootles cried out hysterically, “I am going to do what my mother hopes. What are you to do, Nibs?” “What my mother hopes. What are you to do, Twin?” “What my mother hopes. John, what are—” But Hook had found his voice again. “Tie her up!” he shouted. It was Smee who tied her to the mast. “See here, honey,” he whispered, “I'll save you if you promise to be my mother.” But not even for Smee would she make such a promise. “I would almost rather have no children at all,” she said disdainfully [scornfully]. It is sad to know that not a boy was looking at her as Smee tied her to the mast; the eyes of all were on the plank: that last little walk they were about to take. They were no longer able to hope that they would walk it manfully, for the capacity to think had gone from them; they could stare and shiver only. Hook smiled on them with his teeth closed, and took a step toward Wendy. His intention was to turn her face so that she should see the boys one by one. But he never reached her, he never heard the cry of anguish he hoped to wring from her. He heard something else instead…

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Paragraph Responses For each of the questions below, respond in a complete paragraph that includes a claim and text evidence.

1. Based on the actions described in stanzas 1-4, what is the tone of “Yo Ho (A Pirate’s Life for Me)”? How does the tone shift with the line, “Aye, but we're loved by our mommies and dads”? ​ 2. The song “Yo Ho (A Pirate’s Life for Me)” describes and celebrates pirates as cads, or men who ​ behave dishonorably, especially toward women. How did that celebration of pirates as cads play into the life of women pirates that is described in “Female Pirates You Should Know About”? Evidence should come from the article “Female Pirates You Should Know About.” 3. How does Wendy’s point of view contrast with the points of view of the boys she was captured with? Why might Wendy and the boys have a different point of view?

Writing Prompts Select one of the writing prompts below to write a full essay.

Argumentative Writing Prompt: You have read three texts about the lives and actions of pirates. Should ​ pirates be seen as glamorized historical figures or reprehensible villains? Be sure to use evidence from at ​ least two of the texts provided. ​

Explanatory Writing Prompt: All of the texts you have read provide details about how pirates lived. Write ​ about what you have learned life was like for pirates. Develop your essay by providing clear details and relevant evidence from at least two of the texts provided. ​ ​

Narrative Writing Prompt: Most stories we have about pirates are about men. Choose at least one of the ​ women pirates described in “Female Pirates You Should Know About,” and write your own historical fiction story about that woman pirate. Be sure to use what you have learned about the historical time period and location (none of these pirates would have cell phones or modern technology).

Extension Activity (optional assignment, unless stated otherwise by your teacher)

Compare and contrast what you have learned in social studies class about the Age of Exploration to the life of pirates from this text set.

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