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The MessengerBy Lois Lowry

Name:_________________________________8th Grade Literature

Book # ______

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Lois Lowry

Norwegian-American novelist Lois Ann Hammersberg Lowry excels fables for young readers. The second of three children of Katharine Gordon Landis Hammersberg and army oral surgeon Major Robert E. Hammers¬berg of La Crosse, Wisconsin, she was born into an Episcopalian household in Honolulu, Hawaii, on March 20, 1937. Her parents named her after two paternal aunts. At age four, she survived the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor, an attack that sent her father to the Pacific island of Tinian and to a hospital ship for the duration of World War II. Until 1945, she, her elder sister, Helen, and their mother lived at her grandmother's home near an Amish village on College Street in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, where Lowry's brother, Jon, was born. The grandfather, a cook named Fleta Jordan, and a fourth-grade teacher helped Lowry cope with war fears and separation until the family reunion in an American compound in Tokyo in 1948.

While Lowry attended Meguro Junior High in the Shibuya ward ofTokyo and at Curtis High School on Staten Island, New York, she read classic fiction and filled notebooks with original fiction and verse. In 1952, she studied at the Packer Collegiate Institute in Brooklyn Heights. On December 6, 1962, her sister, Helen Boyd, died at age 28 of cancer in Washington, D.C. The loss influenced the author's characterization in A Summer for Dying, a novel about a girl realizing the imminent death of her sister. Her brother, Dr. Jon R. Hammersberg, became a doctor in Staunton, Virginia.

In her sophomore year at Brown University, the author quit school and married naval officer Donald Grey Lowry, father of their children, Alix, Benjamin, Grey, and Kristin. The family lived in California, Connecticut, Florida, South Carolina, and Massachusetts, where Donald entered Harvard Law School. While living in Portland, Maine, in 1972, Lowry completed a BA in English literature from the University of Southern Maine. During graduate coursework, she studied photography. After a divorce, she settled in Cambridge, Massachusetts, where she worked as a free-lance photographer and fiction writer, beginning with the eight-¬volume Anastasia Krupnik series in 1979. In 1980, Lowry wrote the semi-autobiographical novel Autumn Street, which focuses on Pennsylvania life during World War II.

Lowry established a steady output of 33 novels in 30 years. She also submitted articles, photos, and short fiction to Downeast, Redbook, and Yankee, and composed a photo memoir, Looking Back (1988). Her son, Ben, became a fighter pilot during the Gulf War and died in a jet plane crash and explosion in Texas on January 30, 1995. One of her daughters suffers from neurological disease. She still lives in Cambridge with her long-time partner, Martin Small. She enjoys grandmotherhood, needlework, and gardening during summers at a 19th-¬century farmhouse in Sanbornton, New Hampshire.

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Genre: Cautionary Tale

Cautionary tale: a brief, action-centered narrative intended to alert the unwary to a danger or threat. Lowry's cautionary tale reveals the hardening of hearts in a formerly open community that no longer welcomes outsiders.

List some movies you’ve seen or books you read that may be cautionary tales. Choose one and then summarize what happens in the story.

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Messenger Vocabulary

1. skitter2. saucy3. solemnity4. disdained5. random

6. profuse 7. deceits 8. weaponry 9. lesions 10. protrude

11. bravado 12. stalwart 13. tapestry 14. regroup15. hamper

You can often figure out the meaning of a new word by looking at its context – the words around it. Sometimes an example helps you understand a new word.

The forest had several varieties of conifers, including pines, firs, spruces, and hemlocks.

The clue in this sentence is the word including. It lets you know that an example, or several examples, will follow. Using this clue, you could figure out that a conifer is a kind of tree. The following clue words are often used with examples.

For example like including such as

Directions: Think of examples that will make the meaning of the Messenger Vocabulary Words clear. Write an “example” sentence to give a clue to the meaning of the word. Use a dictionary if necessary.

1.______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

2.______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

3.______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

4.______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

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5.______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

6.______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

7.______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

8._____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

9.______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

10._____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

11._____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

12._____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

13._____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

14._____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

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15._____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

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Messenger Literary Focus: Ch.1-3Directions: Active reading helps to keep your mind focused on the material and prevents it from wandering. Fill in the chart below with connections, comments, predictions, and questions as you read. Do two per chapter.

Connections: Comments: Predictions: Question & Answer:

How do the events from these chapters relate to your own experiences, other things you read or other things you know?

What are your thoughts and opinions?

What do you think might happen?

What are you wondering about? & What did you find out?

Page #

Method Active Reading Log

ConnectionCommentPrediction

Question/AnswerConnectionCommentPrediction





Question/Answer

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Picture the Text: Illustrate an important or memorable scene from the chapters you just read and record a caption in the space below. Your illustration must be colored and should take up the entire space. You may use cutouts from magazines or photos from the computer.

Caption:_______________________________________________________

3 SignpostsDirections: Identify three signposts from your reading and explain why each moment is important.

3 Signposts Why is this Important? What does it help us understand?

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Page #








Question/Answer

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Caption:_______________________________________________________



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Messenger Writing PromptsTrue Name Business Letter

Suppose that you are a resident of Village and of the age to receive your true name. This name will ultimately be chosen by Leader and other elders in Village, but you are allowed to suggest to them the name that you would prefer. Compose a business letter in which you introduce yourself and your strengths, suggest a name, and persuade them that this role would be the best use of your talents for the benefit of the community.

Your grade will be based on correctly formatting a business letter (heading, inside address, salutation, body, closing,

and signature) stating your appeal clearly (for example, “I believe that my true name should be ____”) supporting your opinion (for example, “I would make a good ____ because...” and “I could

really help the community with ___ by becoming ____...”) Aim for at least three good reasons the committee should give you your true name.

proofreading your letter for any errors and turning in a clean, error-free copy

Due

A properly formatted business letter should look like this:

1. The heading includes your address and the date. Write the heading at least one inch from the top of the page at the left-hand margin.

2. The inside address includes the name and address of the person or organization you are writing to.

3. The salutation is the greeting. Always put a colon after the salutation.

4. The body is the main part of the letter. Do not indent the paragraphs in your letter; instead, skip a line after each one.

a. The beginning introduces you to your audience. Tell about yourself, your interests, skills, etc.

b. The middle introduces your request and supports it.

c. The end asks the reader to do something about your request.

5. The closing comes after the body. Use Yours truly or Sincerely to close a business letter. Capitalize only the first word of the closing and put a comma after it.

6. The signature ends the letter. If you are using a computer, leave four spaces after the closing; then type your name. Write your signature in the space between the closing and the typed name.

Messenger Literary Focus: Ch.7-9

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John SmithRoom 303Auburn Junior High SchoolSeptember 15, 2013

4 to 7 spacesLeader1 Main StreetVillage, Forest double spaceDear Leader: double spaceMy name is John Smith and I am... _____________________________________________________________________________________ double spaceI believe the best true name for me would be... ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ double spaceI will help the community by... and so I hope you will choose to give me the name... __________________________________________ double spaceSincerely,

4 spaces

John Smith

Directions: Active reading helps to keep your mind focused on the material and prevents it from wandering. Fill in the chart below with connections, comments, predictions, and questions as you read. Do two per chapter.






Page #








Question/Answer

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Caption:_______________________________________________________



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Messenger Literary Focus: Character ChartMessenger Character

Who is this? Static or Dynamic (how)?Flat or Round?

Matty

Seer

Leader

Mentor

The new-comer

Trademaster

Definition of Connotation vs. Denotation

Words can have several meanings. The literal meanings, the denotation, are direct, realistic, and often found in the dictionary. What the word suggests or implies, the connotation, is symbolic.. For example, the denotations of the word snake might be "reptile," "scaly," or "without legs." Connotations of the word, however, might include "treachery," "evil," or "betrayal."

Character What Is the Denotation of the Character’s

Name? What Does the Name LITERALLY Mean?

What is the Connotaion of the Character’s

name? What does this character’s name

SYMBOLIZE?Seer

Leader

Mentor

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The new-comer

Trademaster







Page #







Question/Answer

15


Question/Answer


Caption:_______________________________________________________



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Messenger Literary Focus: Ch.13-15 Directions: Active reading helps to keep your mind focused on the material and prevents it from wandering. Fill in the chart below with connections, comments, predictions, and questions as you read. Do two per chapter.






Page #






Question/AnswerConnectionComment

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PredictionQuestion/Answer


Question/Answer


Caption:_______________________________________________________



18







Page #







19



Question/Answer


Caption:_______________________________________________________



20







Page #







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Question/Answer


Caption:_______________________________________________________



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Messenger Writing Prompts

Write a response/reaction to the following Writing Prompts or Quotes from the novel. Include significant words, phrases, or sentences from the story. Explain the quote in context. Tell what was going on, who said it, why they said it. The chapter and page number pinpoints each entry so you can re-read the passage in which it appears.

It's all an illusion. (Chapter 1, p. 5)

That's why we have the Museum, Matty, to remind us of how we came, and why: to start fresh, and begin a new place from what we had learned and carried from the old. (Chapter 4, p. 29)

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Messenger Writing Prompts

Write a response/reaction to the following Writing Prompts or Quotes from the novel. Include significant words, phrases, or sentences from the story. Explain the quote in context. Tell what was going on, who said it, why they said it. The chapter and page number pinpoints each entry so you can re-read the passage in which it appears.

“No,” she said. “But I felt him.” (chapter 14, p. 127)

“Stumbling and bleeding, he wished briefly that he had brought some kind of weapon. But what would have protected him against Forest itself? It was a force too huge to fight with a knife or a club.” (p.161)

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Messenger Close Reading w/Passage from the novelChapter 14 (Page 118)

To his amazement, Kira said no. Not no to leaving—he hadn’t suggested that to her, not yet—but a definite, unarguable no to the idea of a straightened, whole leg.

“This is who I am, Matty,” she said. “it is who I have always been.” She looked at him fondly. But her voice was firm. It was evening. The fire glowed in the fireplace and

she had lit the oil lamps. Matty wished that the blind man were in the room with them, playing his instrument, because the soft, intricate chords always brought a peace to their evenings together and he wanted Kira to hear the music, to feel the comfort it brought.

He had not yet told her that she was to return with him. During their supper together, as Kira chattered about the changes in the old village, how much better things were now, he had only half listened. In his mind he had been weighing what to tell her and when and how. There was so little time; and he needed, Matty know, to present it to her in a decisive and convincing way.

Close Reading: Three Levels of Questions Level One – Literal – Questions can be answered by skimming the text

“Who?” “What?” “When?” “Where?” – answer is on the lines

Level Two – Inferential – Questions require the reader to make an educated guess supported by the text “How? “Why?” – answer is between the lines

Level Three – Thematic – Questions connect the text with real and universal themes – answer is beyond the lines.

Part 1: Answer each leveled question.Level One – What did Kira say “no” to?

Level Two – Why doesn’t Kira want Matty to straighten her leg?

Level Three – What would you tell Matty? Explain your answer?

Part 2: Create a question for each level based upon the passage above.Level One –

Level Two-

Level Three –Messenger Poetry-Classic Literature Connection

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“The New Colossus" is a sonnet by American poet Emma Lazarus (1849–87), written in 1883. In 1903, the poem was engraved on a bronze plaque and mounted inside the lower level of the pedestal of the Statue of Liberty

History of the poem Emma Lazarus wrote “The New Colossus” to inspire others to donate money for the Statue of Liberty’s pedestal. The final lines of the poem were so inspirational, they were later inscribed on the pedestal itself. Raised in New York City, where she studied languages, Lazarus published a book of poems and translations when she was 17. Later, drawing on her Jewish heritage, she wrote works showing America as a refuge for people persecuted in Europe.

Read the poem and then answer the questions that follow:

“The New Colossus"

Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame, With conquering limbs astride from land to land; Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame. "Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp!" cries she(9) With silent lips. "Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, The wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"

1. Look at line 9. What does it say? What does it mean? Why is it important?

2. Which words in lines 3-5 from the poem tell who or what sentence 9 is about?

3. Paraphrase line 9, using a sentence structure that is more like everyday speech.

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4. What thoughts and feelings about the Statue of Liberty are expressed in the lyric

poem?

5. What is the overall impression that is created? Explain.

6. Compare and Contrast Messenger to “The New Colossus”.

Messenger and “The New Colossus”

Alike Different

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Messenger Non-Fiction Connection

The Ulma Family

During the Nazi Occupation of Poland, many Jews had to escape from the Nazis in order to save their lives. They were discriminated, their properties were confiscated, and majority of them were sent to concentration camps. Many of the Jews sought refuge in Christian households, but they were only given a few days to stay out of fear of reprisals. One family showed complete hospitality to the endangered Jews to the point of risking their lives out of performing this act of charity.

Jozef and Wiktoria Ulma lived in Markowa. They were poor peasants who owned a fruit orchard. They were married in 1937 and had six children: four boys and two girls. Jozef was known to be sympathetic to the Jews and have sheltered a great number of Jews since the start of the war. Many Jews came to be sheltered since the house of the Ulmas was far from the village and it gave them a sense of safety. The last Jews they sheltered were six members of the Szallow family and the Goldman sisters. The eight Jews hid in the attic of the Ulmas for many months.

One time, the Nazi police searched every house in Markowa for sheltered Jews. The police discovered the Jews hidden in the Ulma household. First, the policemen only took a photograph of the house then left them in peace. In March 23, the police began to plan a crime.

The next day, at dawn, the police came to the Ulma household. German police surrounded the house. Then, shots were heard. First to be killed were the eight Jews. Then, Jozef and Wiktoria were taken to the garden of their house and killed. Wiktoria was nine-months pregnant at that time. The last ones to be killed were the six children. The oldest child was Stasia, eight, and the youngest was Marysia, one. Many villagers were forced to watch the massacre as a sign of warning for those who shelter Jews.

Father Stanislaw Jamrozek, the postulator of the canonization cause of the family, said the request for canonization was initiated by Markowa residents, “who still cherish the memory of their murdered neighbors.”

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Messenger Non-Fiction Connection

Jose Sanchez del Rio

Jose Sanchez del Rio was only thirteen when the religious persecution in Mexico broke out. He wanted to fight for Christianity, but because of his young age, his mother would allow him to join the fight. Jose begged to be allowed to be a young soldier for Christ. His mother objected saying that he might be killed.

Jose was allowed to be the flag bearer of the troops. In a battle on February 5, 1928, the General’s horse was shot. Jose leapt off his own horse saying, “My General, take my horse and save yourself. If they kill me, I won’t be missed, but you would!” Then the young soldier crawled to a strategic position and began shooting until he used his last cartridge. He was captured and taken to his home town of Sahuayo, and put in the sacristy of the church as his jail.

One of Jose’s childhood friends, Marcial Maciel, said, “One of the windows looked out on the street and from there we could hear him sing, ‘To heaven, to heaven, to heaven I want to go,’ while awaiting his sentence. Rafael Picazo, who controlled the village of Sahuayo, put as a condition to release him that he deny his faith. He would not renounce his faith.

In order to terrorize him, the soldiers made him watch the hanging of one of the other captured Cristeros. Jose encouraged the man, saying “Lazaro, you will be in Heaven before me. Prepare a place for me. Tell Christ the King I shall be with him soon.”

Daily, Jose recited the rosary and sang songs of faith. From prison, he wrote a beautiful letter to his mother telling her that he was resigned to the Will of God. Jose’s father attempted to ransom his son, but was unable to raise the money in time.

On February 10, 1928, Jose was brutally tortured and the skin of the soles of his feet was 29

sheered off; he was then forced to walk on salt, The young boy screamed with pain but would not give in. They stabbed him with their knives, and each time he was stabbed, he cried out, “Viva Cristo Rey!” When he was asked of the words he would like to tell his father, he said, “Tell him I shall see him in heaven.” Finally, he was shot to death.

Messenger Independent Research

What does it mean to be a martyr?Due Date:

Choose a person who is considered by historians, the media, or the general population to be a martyr. This person may be a historical figure or a person from modern culture.

Research this person. You may use the internet for research and resources. Focus on the following things when researching:

1. Background Information about the Martyr…2. What cause did this person believe in or represent…3. How did he/she die…4. Why did he/she sacrifice himself/herself…5. What IMPACT does this person had/has on the world today…

Take notes. These may be checked.

Present what you have learned about your martyr to the class. You have several options here:

1. Write a one page paper about your martyr (double-spaced.)2. Create a 4 Slide Power Point presentation.3. Create a PREZI Presentation.

You may give a brief, informal presentation about your martyr with the class. No pressure…just share your project and tell us a little bit about the person you have chosen.

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Messenger Sentence Study/Grammar Connection

Add the comma(s) where you think they need to go in each sentence.

Chapter 10, Page 83.

1. The meeting to discuss and vote on the petition began in the orderly careful way such meetings had always been handled.

2. Leader stood on the platform read the petition in his strong clear voice and opened the meeting to a debate.

3. Matty could see the woman he had met on the path standing beside a tall light-haired boy who must be Vladik.

4. Small children bored played along the edge of the pine grove.

5. Matty had once been like them when he was new here and hadn’t liked the meeting or debates.

6. He had not even brought Frolic, who usually accompanied Matty everywhere.

7. Today the puppy was left at home whimpering behind the closed door as they walked away.

8. It was frighteningly obvious now with the population gathered that something terrible was happening.

9. At Trade Mart it had been evening dark and Matty had been so interested in the proceedings that he had not noticed many individuals only those who went to the platform like Mentor and woman who had been so oddly cruel to her husband as they started home.

10. Now though it was bright daylight.

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Messenger Essential Question: Theme

Messenger exhibits something common, or universal, in human situations - orphaning, crippling, loneliness, and alienation that limit individuals. It also focuses on human failings which eventually strip Village of its charity, or love.

Look over and evaluate each of the themes below. Write a ½ page about which theme you think best represents Messenger and explain why.

hospitality synergy materialism disorder risk self-sacrifice martyrdom community reclamation change loss charity memories refugees

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