Text interpretation, “The stone on the way”, aimed at 9th grade students. The questions propose a reflection on the topic addressed, as well as the analysis of linguistic resources used in the construction of the text.
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SCHOOL: DATE:
PROF: CLASS:
NAME:
Read this text:
The legend is told of a king who lived in a country overseas many years ago. He was very wise and spared no effort to teach his people good habits. He often did things that seemed strange and useless; but everything he did was to teach the people to be hardworking and cautious.
“Nothing good can come from a nation,” he said, “whose people complain and expect others to solve their problems. God gives the good things in life to those who deal with problems on their own.
One night, while everyone was sleeping, he placed a huge stone in the road that passed through the palace. Then he went to hide behind a fence and waited to see what happened.
First came a farmer with a cart loaded with seeds that he took to be milled at the mill.
– Who ever saw such carelessness? – he said annoyed, as he dodged his team and walked around the stone. – Why don't these sluggards have this stone removed from the road? - And he continued complaining about the uselessness of others, but without even touching the stone himself.
Soon after, a young soldier came singing along the road. The long feather of his cap billowed in the breeze, and a gleaming sword hung at his waist. He thought of the wonderful courage he would show in war.
The soldier didn't see the stone, but he tripped over it and crashed to the dusty ground. She got up, dusted off her clothes, took up her sword, and raged at the sluggards who had foolishly dropped a huge boulder on the road. Then he too walked away, not once thinking that he himself could remove the stone.
So the day went on. Everyone who passed by complained and grumbled about the stone placed in the road, but no one touched it.
Finally, at nightfall, the miller's daughter passed by. She was a hard worker, and was tired, as she had been busy at the mill from an early age.
But she told herself: “It's almost dark, someone could trip over this rock at night and be seriously injured. I'll get her out of the way.”
And she tried to drag the stone away. It was very heavy, but the girl pushed it, and pushed it, and pulled it, and bent it, until she got it out of its place. To her surprise, she found a box under the stone.
She lifted the box. It was heavy because it was full of something. There was on the lid the following words: “This box belongs to whoever removes the stone.”.
She opened the box and found it filled with gold.
The miller's daughter went home with a happy heart. When the farmer and the soldier and everyone else heard what had happened, they gathered around the place on the road where the stone was. They sifted through the dust of the road with their feet, hoping to find a piece of gold.
'My friends,' said the King, 'we often encounter obstacles and burdens in the way. We can complain loud and clear as we dodge them if we like, or we can pick them up and find out what they mean. Disappointment is usually the price of laziness.
Then the wise king mounted his horse and with a gentle good night he retired.
(Unknown author. The Book of Virtues. Ed. New Frontier, 1996).
Question 1 - Read back:
“One night, while everyone was sleeping, he placed a huge stone in the road that passed by the palace. Then he went to hide behind a fence, and waited to see what happened.”
Based on this passage, it can be said that the king's objective was:
Question 2 - Identify the climax of the story:
Question 3 - On the metaphorical plane, explain what “the stone in the way” means:
Question 4 – Mark the alternative in which the term underlined is used, in the context of the story, by the term in square brackets:
a) "...that he took it to milling at the plant." [ a king]
b) “…without thinking for a single time that he himself could remove the stone." [the soldier]
ç) "…Is it over there he opened the box and found it was full of gold.” [the young woman]
d) “… while we deviate their if we so prefer…”. [snags]
Question 5 - Watch:
“[…] he took the sword and was furious with the lazy ones who foolishly they had dropped a huge boulder on the road.”
The adverb underlined above indicates the circumstance of:
in time
b) doubt
c) mode
d) place
Question 6 – It can be said that there is a predominance of sequences in the text of the type:
a) narrative
b) descriptive
c) argumentative
d) injunctive
Question 7 – Watch:
“Often did things that seemed strange and useless […]”.
Often = Often
a) “[…] he said contrary, while he dodged his team and skirted the stone.”
b) “[…] he was furious with the sluggards who foolishly they had dropped a stone […]”.
c) "It's almost dark, someone could trip over this rock at night and get hurt gravely.”.
By Denyse Lage Fonseca – Graduated in Languages and specialist in distance education.
At answers are in the link above the header.