the modern short story focus and motivate the jilting … · first published story, “maria...

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The Modern Short StoryThe Jilting of Granny Weatherall Short Story by Katherine Anne Porter

did you know? Katherine Anne Porter . . .• was a distant relative

of the frontiersman Daniel Boone.

• taught singing and dancing as a teenager to help support her family.

Meet the Author

Katherine Anne Porter has been called a “writer’s writer”; in her lifetime she was more popular with critics and her fellow writers than with the public. She wrote mostly short fiction, a form with which it was difficult to build a popular reputation. What’s more, all of her 27 short stories, including those technically classified as novellas (short novels), could fit into a single book. Still, Porter’s work is celebrated for its nearly flawless consistency and style. Each one of her stories is a polished gem reflecting a hard truth about human experience.

Survival and Resiliency She was born Callie Russell Porter on a scrappy dirt farm in central Texas, where she dreamed of becoming an actress. She had the good looks, the drive, and the talent for performing but lacked the stamina. A two-year bout with tuberculosis permanently dashed her dreams of acting. However, while recuperating at a sanitorium, Porter befriended a journalist who helped her start writing for newspapers.

Living in Denver in 1918, Porter was again stricken by illness,

this time by the deadly flu epidemic that swept the globe after World War I, killing 550,000 people in the United States and at least 25

million worldwide.

This second brush with death inspired an idea that was later to become part of her novella Pale Horse, Pale Rider (1939). After her recovery, convinced of her true calling, Porter left Denver for the New York literary scene and the wider world.

Deep in the Heart of Texas Like many writers of her generation, Porter traveled widely, living in Mexico, Bermuda, Germany, Switzerland, and France, as well as New York for much of the 1920s and 1930s. Some of these places inspired her fiction: her time in Mexico enriched her first published story, “Maria Concepción” (1922), and several others, while pre–World War II Berlin informed “The Leaning Tower” (1944). But for the most part, foreign travel provided what Porter called a “constant exercise of memory” and brought her closer to her native land. Some of her best fiction—notably, “Noon Wine” (1937), “Old Mortality” (1939), and a series called “The Old Order” (1955)—takes place in Texas. Many of these stories, and “The Jilting of Granny Weatherall” (1929) in particular, include a dynamic grandmother based on Porter’s own who raised her until age 11 and exerted a strong influence. Porter even took her grandmother’s name after she divorced her first husband and began life on her own.

Katherine Anne Porter 1890–1980

Living in Denver in 1918, Porwas again stricken by illne

this time by the deadlyflu epidemic that swethe globe after WorlWar I, killing 550,0people in the UniteStates and at least 2

million worldwide.

Go to thinkcentral.com. KEYWORD: HML11-1034Author Online

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RL 1 Cite textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text. RL 3 Analyze the impact of the author’s choices regarding how to develop and relate elements of a story. RL 5 Analyze how an author’s choices concerning how to structure specific parts of a text contribute to its overall structure and meaning as well as its aesthetic impact.

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Focus and Motivate

RL 1 Cite textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text. RL 3 Analyze the impact of the author’s choices regarding how to develop and relate elements of a story. RL 5 Analyze how an author’s choices concerning how to structure specific parts of a text contribute to its overall structure and meaning as well as its aesthetic impact. W 3 Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective technique, well-chosen details, and well-structured event sequences. L 3a Vary syntax for effect, consulting references for guidance as needed; apply an understanding of syntax to the study of complex texts when reading. L 4c Consult general and specialized reference materials, both print and digital, to determine or clarify a word’s precise meaning. L 5b Analyze nuances in the meaning of words with similar denotations.

about the authorPorter was just two when her mother died. Her father, bereft and directionless, relied on his own mother to lead the family. Porter’s strong, resourceful grandmother became the model for her literary heroines. Her father pro-vided a template for weak male characters.

RESOURCE MANAGER UNIT 5Plan and Teach, pp. 263–270Summary, pp. 271–272†‡*Text Analysis and Reading

Skill, pp. 273–276†*Vocabulary, pp. 277–279*Grammar and Style, p. 282

DIAGNOSTIC AND SELECTION TESTSSelection Tests, pp. 281–284

BEST PRACTICES TOOLKITPersonal Word List, p. E2Making Inferences, p. A13Outline, p. B19Character Traits Web, p. D7Plot Diagram, p. D10Sequence Chain, p. B21

TECHNOLOGY Teacher One Stop DVD-ROM

Student One Stop DVD-ROMAudio Anthology CD

GrammarNotes DVD-ROMExamView Test Generator on the Teacher One Stop

See resources on the Teacher One Stop DVD-ROM and on thinkcentral.com.

* Resources for Differentiation † Also in Spanish ‡ In Haitian Creole and Vietnamese

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Teach

What makes a memory linger?That perfect first date. The humiliating moment you realized you had failed your driving test. The elated, screaming crowd jumping to its feet as the last seconds of the big game ticked away. Whether pleasant or painful, there are some memories you just can’t shake. In this story, as Granny Weatherall lies on her deathbed, she’s haunted by an event that still affects her almost as powerfully as it did when she experienced it as a young woman.QUICKWRITE Write a paragraph about a memory of your own that you can still recall in crisp detail. What images, feelings, sounds, or smells come to mind? Why do you think this moment lingers in your memory?

text analysis: stream of consciousnessThe very first paragraph of this story plunges readers directly into the thoughts of its protagonist. This literary technique, stream of consciousness, presents the main events of a story, or the plot, using a character’s seemingly unconnected thoughts, responses, and sensations. Rather than offering a logical account of events, it presents a series of associative connections, with one impression giving rise to another. Use these strategies to help you keep track of the plot:• Remember that you are seeing the “inside” or internal

development of the main character. The depictions of people and events you find there may not be completely reliable.

• Look for quotation marks to determine when Granny is speaking aloud and when she is not.

• Keep track of the twists and turns of Granny’s thoughts to understand what she is reacting to.

• Keep in mind that the plot of this story moves back and forth between the present and the past.

reading skill: clarify sequenceIn this narrative, Porter shuffles together the past and the present to depict the distorted way Granny perceives the sequence of events. Porter achieves this effect in part through the use of flashback, in which she relates events that happened before the beginning of the story’s “now” time. As you travel through Granny’s memory, use a timeline to untangle the sequence of the main events in her life.

Jilting by George

Examination byDr. Harry

vocabulary in contextPorter uses these words to take readers into the mind of a woman on her deathbed. Complete each phrase with a word from the list.

word list

amethystassign

dwindleembroidered

plague

1. kept an elaborately _____ blanket on the sickbed 2. had a valuable _____ ring to pass on to her daughter 3. felt her time _____ as she got weaker and weaker

Complete the activities in your Reader/Writer Notebook.

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What makes a MEMORY linger?Lead into the paragraph by asking students to identify memories that have affected their behavior, such as getting lost in a crowd as a child. Invite volunteers to share experiences, then urge all students to recall memories as they complete the QUICKWRITE.

vocabulary in contextDIAGNOSE WORD KNOWLEDGE Have all students complete Vocabulary in Context. Check their word choices against the following:amethyst (BmPE-thGst) n. a purple-colored

quartz used as a gemstoneassign (E-sFnP) n. a person to whom property is

transferred in a will or other legal documentdwindle (dwGnPdl) v. to become steadily less;

to shrink

embroidered (DmQbroiPdErd) adj. decorated with stitched designs embroider v.

plague (plAg) v. to annoy; harass

PRETEACH VOCABULARY Preteach vocabulary with this copy master. Read each item aloud.

RESOURCE MANAGER—Copy MasterVocabulary Study p. 277

Model the Skill: clarify seQuence

Tell students that writers signal flashbacks and returns to sequence by using time order words, words that refer to memory, or characterizations that show a speaker’s muddled thinking.GUIDED PRACTICE Have students revisit stories they have already read, such as “Winter Dreams” on page 978, to find events that appear out of sequence.

RESOURCE MANAGER—Copy Master Clarify Sequence p. 275

R E A D I N G S K I L L

Model the Skill: stream of consciousness

To help students understand stream-of-consciousness writing, compare this style of writing to a conversation among friends. Note that new topics come up naturally as they talk, and that the conversation may move between the same topics again and again as friends remember details and ask more questions. Tell students that this free, undirected association is also found in stream-of-consciousness writing, which follows the internal development, or con-nections within a character’s mind. GUIDED PRACTICE Have trios converse for five minutes, with one student recording when and how topics change. Ask students to trace how each new topic arose.

T E X T A N A L Y S I S

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Jilting

Katherine Anne Porter

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She flicked her wrist neatly out of Doctor Harry’s pudgy careful fingers and pulled the sheet up to her chin. The brat ought to be in knee breeches.1 Doctoring around the country with spectacles on his nose! “Get along now, take your schoolbooks and go. There’s nothing wrong with me.” a

Doctor Harry spread a warm paw like a cushion on her forehead where the forked green vein danced and made her eyelids twitch. “Now, now, be a good girl, and we’ll have you up in no time.”

“That’s no way to speak to a woman nearly eighty years old just because she’s down. I’d have you respect your elders, young man.”

“Well, Missy, excuse me.” Doctor Harry patted her cheek. “But I’ve got to warn you, haven’t I? You’re a marvel, but you must be careful or you’re going to be good and sorry.”

“Don’t tell me what I’m going to be. I’m on my feet now, morally speaking. It’s Cornelia. I had to go to bed to get rid of her.”

Her bones felt loose, and floated around in her skin, and Doctor Harry floated like a balloon around the foot of the bed. He floated and pulled down his waistcoat and swung his glasses on a cord. “Well, stay where you are, it certainly can’t hurt you.”

1. knee breeches: short pants formerly worn by young boys.

of Granny Weatherall

The

a STREAM OF CONSCIOUSNESSIn lines 1–4, how does Porter create the effect that you, the reader, are “inside” Granny’s mind? Explain how your intimacy with this character affects your impression of her.

Analyze VisualsWhat does this unusual portrait suggest about its subject’s thoughts or state of mind? Explain, citing details.

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Practice and ApplysummaryThis short story opens with 80-year-old Granny Weatherall nearing death. As her daughter Cornelia and Doctor Harry discuss her condition, Granny slips in and out of her memories. She recalls the challenges of managing the farm and four children after her husband’s death. She thinks of her life’s good moments but inevitably returns to a painful memory, her jilting by George. When death approaches, Granny hopes for a sign from God and feels again jilted that it does not arrive.

for english language learners Culture: Clarify Clarify that Granny Weather-all’s name is not “Missy.” When Doctor Harry addresses her this way (line 10), he is using a diminutive for “young woman.” Discuss why Doctor Harry calls Granny “Missy” and what she probably thinks of this form of address.

for struggling readers In combination with the Audio Anthology CD, use one or more Targeted Passages (pp. 1036, 1039, 1040, 1042, and 1044) to ensure that stu-dents focus on key story events and concepts. Targeted passages are also good for English language learners.1 Targeted Passage [Lines 1–18]

This passage establishes Granny’s character, age, and physical condition.

read with a purposeHelp students set a purpose for reading. Tell them to determine the reasons that explain Granny Weatherall’s hostile feelings.

a stream ofconsciousness

Possible answer: With her words “The brat . . . knee britches” (line 2), readers are plunged, with no preparation, directly into Granny’s thoughts. Readers immediately know what she is thinking, while the doctor has no idea.IF STUDENTS NEED HELP . . . Compare Granny’s internal monologue to a televi-sion voiceover, in which the character’s thoughts, while inaccessible to other characters, are spoken as narration.

Targeted Passage1

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Analyze VisualsPossible answer: The head is open at the top, and there seem to be clouds floating out of it. The image suggests that the woman’s thoughts are drifting away, like wispy clouds, instead of remaining contained in her head. In addition, the woman’s face is pursed, as though she were trying to remember something that she cannot quite recall. About the Art Old Woman With Hair in the Clouds by American artist Stephen F. Hayes (born 1955) captures the minute detail of an older woman’s face. Bright white light on the woman’s forehead and hair, as well as hair that merges with the clouds, suggests the mental deterioration that Granny Weatherall is experiencing.

revisit the big QUESTIONWhat makes a MEMORY linger?Discuss In lines 2–4, what do the comments about Doctor Harry in these lines reveal about Granny’s memories of him? How do these memories affect her response to his treatment and advice? Possible answer: She is so much older than he that she can remember him as a little boy—or at least remember other little boys who resemble him. This memory makes her disdainful of him and leads to a lack of confidence in his treatment.

• Whose thoughts are revealed in lines 2–4? What do they reveal about the person who is having them? (lines 1–4)

• What is the physical condition of that person? How do you know? (lines 10–12)

• What do the person’s continued thoughts reveal about her age and personality? (lines 15–18)

for struggling readersDevelop Reading Fluency Play the Audio Anthology CD for students. Tell them to pay attention to the difference between nar-ration and dialogue. Later, ask students to describe how the reader on the CD delivered Granny Weatherall’s thoughts, as opposed to the words she says to others. Ask: is there a noticeable difference between the two?





2. milk-leg: a painful swelling of the leg experienced by some women after giving birth. 3. stone-china . . . whirligigs (hwûrQlG-gGgzP): jars made of thick pottery with blue spiral designs.

“Get along and doctor your sick,” said Granny Weatherall. “Leave a well woman alone. I’ll call for you when I want you. . . . Where were you forty years ago when I pulled through milk-leg2 and double pneumonia? You weren’t even born. Don’t let Cornelia lead you on,” she shouted, because Doctor Harry appeared to float up to the ceiling and out. “I pay my own bills, and I don’t throw my money away on nonsense!”

She meant to wave good-by, but it was too much trouble. Her eyes closed of themselves, it was like a dark curtain drawn around the bed. The pillow rose and floated under her, pleasant as a hammock in a light wind. She listened to the leaves rustling outside the window. No, somebody was swishing newspapers: no, Cornelia and Doctor Harry were whispering together. She leaped broad awake, thinking they whispered in her ear. b

“She was never like this, never like this!” “Well, what can we expect?” “Yes, eighty years old. . . .”

Well, and what if she was? She still had ears. It was like Cornelia to whisper around doors. She always kept things secret in such a public way. She was always being tactful and kind. Cornelia was dutiful; that was the trouble with her. Dutiful and good: “So good and dutiful,” said Granny, “that I’d like to spank her.” She saw herself spanking Cornelia and making a fine job of it.

“What’d you say, Mother?”Granny felt her face tying up in hard knots.“Can’t a body think, I’d like to know?”“I thought you might want something.”“I do. I want a lot of things. First off, go away and don’t whisper.”She lay and drowsed, hoping in her sleep that the children would keep out and

let her rest a minute. It had been a long day. Not that she was tired. It was always pleasant to snatch a minute now and then. There was always so much to be done, let me see: tomorrow.

Tomorrow was far away and there was nothing to trouble about. Things were finished somehow when the time came; thank God there was always a little margin over for peace: then a person could spread out the plan of life and tuck in the edges orderly. It was good to have everything clean and folded away, with the hair brushes and tonic bottles sitting straight on the white embroidered linen: the day started without fuss and the pantry shelves laid out with rows of jelly glasses and brown jugs and white stone-china jars with blue whirligigs3 and words painted on them: coffee, tea, sugar, ginger, cinnamon, allspice: and the bronze clock with the lion on top nicely dusted off. The dust that lion could collect in twenty-four hours! The box in the attic with all those letters tied up, well, she’d have to go through that tomorrow. All those letters—George’s letters and John’s letters and her letters to them both—lying around for the children to find afterwards made her uneasy. Yes, that would be tomorrow’s business. No use to let them know how silly she had been once.

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b STREAM OF CONSCIOUSNESSWhat insight do lines 25–30 give you into Granny Weatherall’s character? What do they tell you about her physical condition?

embroidered (DmQbroiPdErd) adj. decorated with stitched designs embroider v.

Language CoachWord Definitions Drowsed (line 43) means “slept lightly.” Why is drowsed more effective than slept would be?


V O C A B U L A R Y

differentiated instruction


tiered discussion promptsIn lines 47–56, use these prompts to help students understand Granny’s character:

Connect How do you respond to the saying “A neat desk is the sign of an ordered mind”? Accept all thoughtful responses. Interpret What kind of house has Granny always run, and why? Possible answer: She has run an orderly, clean, disciplined house because order and cleanness give her great peace of mind (lines 50–56). Synthesize What details of housekeeping provide metaphors for how Granny ap-proaches life? What predictions can you make about how she will approach death? Possible answer: Making a bed neatly is a metaphor for leaving nothing that should be done undone. The dust-free clock and care-fully arranged rows of jars suggest Granny’s need to control her life. She will probably try to organize her affairs carefully before death.

own the wordembroidered: Remind students that embroidered refers to something that has been “decorated with stitched designs.”

for english language learnersLanguage CoachWord Definitions Answer:“Drowsed” gives the impression that someone is still conscious, and being a little awake allows Granny to still think about things. Ask students to explain why snatch(line 45) is a better choice than take.

for english language learnersCulture: Connect Define these household items from Granny’s: comfort items: pillow(line 26), hammock (line 27); cooking items: jelly glasses . . . allspice (lines 52–54); hygiene items: hair brushes and tonic bottles (line 51); daily necessities: clock (line 54)Students can record new words on their Per-sonal Word List.

BEST PRACTICES TOOLKITPersonal Word List p. E2

b stream ofconsciousness

Possible answer: Granny is suspicious of others, used to being in control, and easily annoyed. Her hallucinations show that her health is rapidly deteriorating.

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While she was rummaging around she found death in her mind and it felt clammy and unfamiliar. She had spent so much time preparing for death there was no need for bringing it up again. Let it take care of itself now. When she was sixty she had felt very old, finished, and went around making farewell trips to see her children and grandchildren, with a secret in her mind: This is the very last of your mother, children! Then she made her will and came down with a long fever. That was all just a notion like a lot of other things, but it was lucky too, for she had once for all got over the idea of dying for a long time. Now she couldn’t be worried. She hoped she had better sense now. Her father had lived to be one hundred and two years old and had drunk a noggin of strong hot toddy4 on his last birthday. He told the reporters it was his daily habit, and he owed his long life to that. He had made quite a scandal and was very pleased about it. She believed she’d just plague Cornelia a little. c

“Cornelia! Cornelia!” No footsteps, but a sudden hand on her cheek. “Bless you, where have you been?”

“Here, Mother.”“Well, Cornelia, I want a noggin of hot toddy.” d“Are you cold, darling?”“I’m chilly, Cornelia. Lying in bed stops the circulation. I must have told you

that a thousand times.”Well, she could just hear Cornelia telling her husband that Mother was getting

a little childish and they’d have to humor her. The thing that most annoyed her was that Cornelia thought she was deaf, dumb, and blind. Little hasty glances and tiny gestures tossed around her and over her head saying, “Don’t cross her, let her have her way, she’s eighty years old,” and she sitting there as if she lived in a thin glass cage. Sometimes Granny almost made up her mind to pack up and move back to her own house where nobody could remind her every minute that she was old. Wait, wait, Cornelia, till your own children whisper behind your back!

In her day she had kept a better house and had got more work done. She wasn’t too old yet for Lydia to be driving eighty miles for advice when one of the children jumped the track, and Jimmy still dropped in and talked things over: “Now, Mammy, you’ve a good business head, I want to know what you think of this? . . .” Old. Cornelia couldn’t change the furniture around without asking. Little things, little things! They had been so sweet when they were little. Granny wished the old days were back again with the children young and everything to be done over. It had been a hard pull, but not too much for her. When she thought of all the food she had cooked, and all the clothes she had cut and sewed, and all the gardens she had made—well, the children showed it. There they were, made out of her, and they couldn’t get away from that. Sometimes she wanted to see John again and point to them and say, Well, I didn’t do so badly, did I? But that would have to wait. That was for tomorrow. She used to think of him as a man, but now all the children were older than their father, and he would be a child beside her if she saw him now. It seemed strange and there was something wrong in the idea. Why, he couldn’t possibly recognize her. She had fenced in a hundred

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4. noggin . . . toddy: mug of a strong alcoholic drink.

plague (plAg) v. to annoy; harass

c STREAM OF CONSCIOUSNESSReread lines 47–73 and consider how Porter conveys the flow of Granny’s thoughts. What idea triggers Granny’s thoughts of death?

d CLARIFY SEQUENCEReread lines 61–77. Identify clues about the timing of Granny’s father’s “scandal” and subsequent death. What connection do you see between this memory and Granny’s desire to “plague” Cornelia?

Language CoachWord Definitions Hard pull (line 96) means “lengthy effort or struggle.” Read lines 94–98. What caused the hard pull?




V O C A B U L A R Y

revisit the big QUESTIONWhat makes a MEMORY linger?Discuss In lines 61–73, from what memories about death does Granny take comfort? Possible answer: Granny takes comfort from her memory of preparing for death at age 60. Though ill, she did not die, and now she feels that she can focus on more important matters. She also takes comfort from the memory of her father’s long life.

for struggling readers2 Targeted Passage [Lines 89–99]

In this passage, Granny reflects on her achievements with pride.• What did Granny mostly do in “her day”?

(line 89)• How does she feel about those times and

about her role in them? (lines 89–93)• What does Granny wish could happen?

(lines 93–96)

• How does Granny know that her adult children still value her? (lines 96–99)

for english language learnersLanguage CoachWord Definitions Answer: Granny lost her husband, John, when he was quite young. She ran the farm and raised the children by herself. Ask students what “tossed around” in line 84 means.

c stream of consciousness

Possible answer: Porter traces Granny’s thoughts as she skips from thinking about people looking through her letters in the attic to the idea of looking through her own attic of memories.

d Model the skill: clarify seQuence

Point out sequence clues that tell about the timing of Granny’s father’s interview and death. These clues include the past perfect verb “had lived” (line 69) and the reference to “his last birthday” (line 71). Mention that Granny decides to plague Cornelia be-cause she remembers her father’s old-age behavior. Ask students how they know the story has returned to “now time.” Possible answer: Granny calls for Cornelia, who is sitting next to her hospital bed.

own the wordplague: Have students create a semantic web for the word plague, used as a verb in this context. Write the word in the center circle along with the given definition, “to annoy or harass.” Draw spider legs out from the center circle and have students use a thesaurus to find appropriate synonyms to complete the web. Possible answers: afflict, agonize, badger, curse, harry, pester, torment, torture, pester, tease

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5. Hail . . . grace: the beginning of a Roman Catholic prayer to the Virgin Mary.

acres once, digging the post holes herself and clamping the wires with just a negro boy to help. That changed a woman. John would be looking for a young woman with the peaked Spanish comb in her hair and the painted fan. Digging post holes changed a woman. Riding country roads in the winter when women had their babies was another thing: sitting up nights with sick horses and sick negroes and sick children and hardly ever losing one. John, I hardly ever lost one of them! John would see that in a minute, that would be something he could understand, she wouldn’t have to explain anything! e

It made her feel like rolling up her sleeves and putting the whole place to rights again. No matter if Cornelia was determined to be everywhere at once, there were a great many things left undone on this place. She would start tomorrow and do them. It was good to be strong enough for everything, even if all you made melted and changed and slipped under your hands, so that by the time you finished you almost forgot what you were working for. What was it I set out to do? she asked herself intently, but she could not remember. A fog rose over the valley, she saw it marching across the creek swallowing the trees and moving up the hill like an army of ghosts. Soon it would be at the near edge of the orchard, and then it was time to go in and light the lamps. Come in, children, don’t stay out in the night air.

Lighting the lamps had been beautiful. The children huddled up to her and breathed like little calves waiting at the bars in the twilight. Their eyes followed the match and watched the flame rise and settle in a blue curve, then they moved away from her. The lamp was lit, they didn’t have to be scared and hang on to mother any more. Never, never, never more. God, for all my life I thank Thee. Without Thee, my God, I could never have done it. Hail, Mary, full of grace.5

I want you to pick all the fruit this year and see that nothing is wasted. There’s always someone who can use it. Don’t let good things rot for want of using. You waste life when you waste good food. Don’t let things get lost. It’s bitter to lose things. Now, don’t let me get to thinking, not when I am tired and taking a little nap before supper. . . .

The pillow rose about her shoulders and pressed against her heart and the memory was being squeezed out of it: oh, push down the pillow, somebody: it would smother her if she tried to hold it. Such a fresh breeze blowing and such a green day with no threats in it. But he had not come, just the same. What does a woman do when she has put on the white veil and set out the white cake for a man and he doesn’t come? She tried to remember. No, I swear he never harmed me but in that. He never harmed me but in that . . . and what if he did? There was the day, the day, but a whirl of dark smoke rose and covered it, crept up and over into the bright field where everything was planted so carefully in orderly rows. That was hell, she knew hell when she saw it. For sixty years she had prayed against remembering him and against losing her soul in the deep pit of hell, and now the two things were mingled in one and the thought of him was a smoky cloud from hell that moved and crept in her head when she had just got rid of Doctor Harry and was trying to rest a minute. Wounded vanity, Ellen, said a fsharp voice in the top of her mind. Don’t let your wounded vanity get the upper

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e CLARIFY SEQUENCEWhy does Granny say that today, John would be a child compared to her? Record on your timeline the information you learn in this paragraph.

f GRAMMAR AND STYLEReread lines 143–147. Porter uses repetition as well as short clauses joined by the coordinating conjunction and to present the circular nature of Granny’s thoughts.



tiered discussion promptsIn lines 121–128, use these prompts to help stu-dents understand the flashback to past nights:

Recall How does Granny feel about the days when the children were small? Possible answer: She enjoyed them, though they were filled with hard work. Analyze In what way is Granny, as she prays, like her children as they waited for her to light the lamp? Possible answer: Like her children, who were afraid of the dark and counted on their mother to light the lamp, Granny is afraid and turns to a more power-ful being for help. Synthesize To what other lines on this page might Granny’s prayers respond? Possible answer: Granny’s prayers might respond to her perception of the rising fog and the “army of ghosts” (lines 120–121).

for struggling readers 3 Targeted Passage [Lines 134–146]

This passage explains Granny’s critical, and terrible, memory from youth—her fiancé did not show up at their wedding.• What is Granny trying to do in lines

134–136? • What memory does the fresh breeze that

blows into the room trigger? (lines 136–139)• Who is “he” in lines 137, 139, and 140?

• How long ago was it that Granny last explored this memory? (line 143)

• What does Granny fear when this memory pushes its way into her consciousness? (lines 144–146)

e clarify seQuencePossible answer: Granny says that John would be a child compared to her because their children are now older than he was at his death. IF STUDENTS NEED HELP . . . Point out clues to the sequence. For example, John lived long enough to father at least three children (lines 89–93). John’s children are now old enough to have their own children (lines 90–91).

f grammar and style

Craft Effective Sentences Point out the repetition of “the day” (line 141), “hell” (lines 143, 144, 146), and “crept” (lines 141, 146). Direct students to the use of and as a coordinating conjunction in lines 144 and 145. Clarify that and functions as a coordinating conjunction when it joins two independent clauses. Ask students to find examples of this use in lines 181–183.

Targeted Passage3

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hand of you. Plenty of girls get jilted. You were jilted, weren’t you? Then stand up to it. Her eyelids wavered and let in streamers of blue-gray light like tissue paper over her eyes. She must get up and pull the shades down or she’d never sleep. She was in bed again and the shades were not down. How could that happen? Better turn over, hide from the light, sleeping in the light gave you nightmares. “Mother, how do you feel now?” and a stinging wetness on her forehead. But I don’t like having my face washed in cold water! g

Hapsy? George? Lydia? Jimmy? No, Cornelia, and her features were swollen and full of little puddles. “They’re coming, darling, they’ll all be here soon.” Go wash your face, child, you look funny.

Instead of obeying, Cornelia knelt down and put her head on the pillow. She seemed to be talking but there was no sound. “Well, are you tongue-tied? Whose birthday is it? Are you going to give a party?”

Cornelia’s mouth moved urgently in strange shapes. “Don’t do that, you bother me, daughter.”

“Oh, no, Mother. Oh, no. . . .”Nonsense. It was strange about children. They disputed your every word. “No

what, Cornelia?”“Here’s Doctor Harry.”“I won’t see that boy again. He just left five minutes ago.”“That was this morning, Mother. It’s night now. Here’s the nurse.” h“This is Doctor Harry, Mrs. Weatherall. I never saw you look so young and

happy!”“Ah, I’ll never be young again—but I’d be happy if they’d let me lie in peace

and get rested.”She thought she spoke up loudly, but no one answered. A warm weight on her

forehead, a warm bracelet on her wrist, and a breeze went on whispering, trying to tell her something. A shuffle of leaves in the everlasting hand of God, He blew on them and they danced and rattled. “Mother, don’t mind, we’re going to give you a little hypodermic.”6 “Look here, daughter, how do ants get in this bed? I saw sugar ants yesterday.” Did you send for Hapsy too?

It was Hapsy she really wanted. She had to go a long way back through a great many rooms to find Hapsy standing with a baby on her arm. She seemed to herself to be Hapsy also, and the baby on Hapsy’s arm was Hapsy and himself and herself, all at once, and there was no surprise in the meeting. Then Hapsy melted from within and turned flimsy as gray gauze and the baby was a gauzy shadow, and Hapsy came up close and said, “I thought you’d never come,” and looked at her very searchingly and said, “You haven’t changed a bit!” They leaned forward to kiss, when Cornelia began whispering from a long way off, “Oh, is there anything you want to tell me? Is there anything I can do for you?”

Yes, she had changed her mind after sixty years and she would like to see George. I want you to find George. Find him and be sure to tell him I forgot him. I want him to know I had my husband just the same and my children and my house like any other woman. A good house too and a good husband that I

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6. hypodermic: injection.

g STREAM OF CONSCIOUSNESSDescribe the major event revealed by Granny’s thoughts in lines 134–155. Based on the title of the story, what significance do these details reveal about the plot?

h STREAM OF CONSCIOUSNESSWhat clues in lines 156–169 reveal to readers how much Granny’s condition is deteriorating?

Language CoachIdioms An idiom is an expression whose overall meaning is different from the meaning of the individual words. The idiom just the same (line 191) means “in spite of what happened before.” What is Granny saying in lines 190–192?




revisit the big QUESTIONWhat makes a MEMORY linger?Discuss In lines 147–150, who speaks to Granny, telling her to “stand up” to her pain-ful memories about being jilted (line 149)? Possible answer: Granny may be speaking to herself, calling herself by her name, Ellen, or she may be remembering someone who said these words to her after she was jilted—perhaps a mother, grandmother, aunt, or friend.

for english language learnersLanguage CoachIdioms Possible answer: Granny wants George to know that despite the pain he caused her, she went on to marry John and have a good life with her family. Have students explain the meaning of these idioms: “stand up to it” (lines 149–150) and “(baby) on her arm” (line 181).

for reluctant readersConnect to the Text “The Jilting of Granny Weatherall” tells about the thoughts of a dying woman who recovered from devastat-ing heartache to have a long and seemingly happy life. And yet, in the end, her painful memory returns. Ask students to talk about why that happens: Is it human nature to recall negative things? Do the things we work hard to “forget” ever really go away? How do you think people should deal with experi-ences they want to forget?

g stream ofconsciousness

Possible answer: Before she married John, Granny was jilted by another man. Based on the title and these details, the jilting is the main focus of the plot.Extend the Discussion What emotions are common among memories that stay with people for life?

h Model the Skill: streamof consciousness

Point out that Granny can’t hear properly: Cornelia is speaking out loud, but Granny can’t hear her in lines 159–160. Also tell students that in thinking Doctor Harry was there “five minutes ago” when really, many hours had passed since he had last seen her, Granny reveals herself to be disoriented (lines 168–169). Ask stu-dents to find other clues to Granny’s poor health. Possible answer: Granny seems to be feeling a breeze and seeing leaves blown around by God but Cornelia is talking to her in the hospital (lines 175–177).


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loved and fine children out of him. Better than I hoped for even. Tell him I was given back everything he took away and more. Oh, no, oh, God, no, there was something else besides the house and the man and the children. Oh, surely they were not all? What was it? Something not given back. . . . Her breath crowded down under her ribs and grew into a monstrous frightening shape with cutting edges; it bored up into her head, and the agony was unbelievable: Yes, John, get the Doctor now, no more talk, my time has come.

When this one was born it should be the last. The last. It should have been born first, for it was the one she had truly wanted. Everything came in good time. Nothing left out, left over. She was strong, in three days she would be as well as ever. Better. A woman needed milk in her to have her full health. i

“Mother, do you hear me?”“I’ve been telling you—”“Mother, Father Connolly’s here.”“I went to Holy Communion only last week. Tell him I’m not so sinful as all that.”“Father just wants to speak to you.”He could speak as much as he pleased. It was like him to drop in and inquire

about her soul as if it were a teething baby, and then stay on for a cup of tea and a round of cards and gossip. He always had a funny story of some sort, usually about an Irishman who made his little mistakes and confessed them, and the point lay in some absurd thing he would blurt out in the confessional showing his struggles between native piety and original sin. Granny felt easy about her soul. Cornelia, where are your manners? Give Father Connolly a chair. She had her secret comfortable understanding with a few favorite saints who cleared a straight road to God for her. All as surely signed and sealed as the papers for the new Forty Acres. Forever . . . heirs and assigns forever. Since the day the wedding cake was not cut, but thrown out and wasted. The whole bottom dropped out of the world, and there she was blind and sweating with nothing under her feet and the walls falling away. His hand had caught her under the breast, she had not fallen, there was the freshly polished floor with the green rug on it, just as before. He had cursed like a sailor’s parrot and said, “I’ll kill him for you.” Don’t lay a hand on him, for my sake leave something to God. “Now, Ellen, you must believe what I tell you. . . .”

So there was nothing, nothing to worry about any more, except sometimes in the night one of the children screamed in a nightmare, and they both hustled out shaking and hunting for the matches and calling, “There, wait a minute, here we are!” John, get the doctor now, Hapsy’s time has come. But there was Hapsy standing by the bed in a white cap. “Cornelia, tell Hapsy to take off her cap. I can’t see her plain.”

Her eyes opened very wide and the room stood out like a picture she had seen somewhere. Dark colors with the shadows rising towards the ceiling in long angles. The tall black dresser gleamed with nothing on it but John’s picture, enlarged from a little one, with John’s eyes very black when they should have been blue. You never saw him, so how do you know how he looked? But the man insisted the copy was perfect, it was very rich and handsome. For a picture, yes, but it’s not my husband. The table by the bed had a linen cover and a candle and

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i STREAM OF CONSCIOUSNESSReread lines 189–203. What has Granny decided about George? Trace the path of her thoughts from this decision to the memory of the birth of her child.

assign (E-sFnP) n. a person to whom property is transferred in a will or other legal document



V O C A B U L A R Y

tiered discussion promptsIn lines 218–225, use these prompts to help students understand Granny’s reaction to George’s abandonment of her:

Recall What image has Granny already associated with the jilting? Possible answer: She has associated the orderly fields being covered with black smoke with her jilting.Evaluate Is it believable that George’s ac-tions could affect Granny so dramatically? Possible answer: Yes. People who face an emotional shock often respond physically, become disoriented, or even collapse.


In this passage Granny realizes that she lost something irretrievable when she was jilted. • Who is the “him” that Granny wants to

address? (line 190)• What was “given back”? (line 194)• Why did Granny get more than she hoped

for? Who gave it to her? (line 194)

for english language learnersCulture: Clarify Clarify these aspects of Granny’s Catholic faith: • Father Connolly, the priest, has come to give

Granny a blessing called Anointing of the Sick. This is done to prepare her for death. He is not her biological father.

• The phrase “native piety” (line 214) refers to Father Connolly’s desire for spiritual perfection, while “original sin” (line 214) means that all people, including Father Connolly, are born sinful.

i stream ofconsciousness

Possible answer: Granny has decided that she wants to see George again and show him what she’s made of her life, the life that he rejected. She then wonders if a home, husband, and children are enough to satisfy her. This thought causes her pain, which brings to mind the memory of the pain of childbirth.

own the wordassign: Tell students that assigns, used in the context of this story, refers to a person or persons who receive property as the result of a legal transfer of ownership. Have students write a sentence to demonstrate their understanding of the word. Possible answer: My parents became the assigns (n.) of the house after they signed the mortgage papers at the bank.

Targeted Passage4

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a crucifix.7 The light was blue from Cornelia’s silk lampshades. No sort of light at all, just frippery. You had to live forty years with kerosene lamps to appreciate honest electricity. She felt very strong and she saw Doctor Harry with a rosy nimbus8 around him.

“You look like a saint, Doctor Harry, and I vow that’s as near as you’ll ever come to it.”

“She’s saying something.”“I heard you, Cornelia. What’s all this carrying-on?”“Father Connolly’s saying—”Cornelia’s voice staggered and bumped like a cart in a bad road. It rounded

corners and turned back again and arrived nowhere. Granny stepped up in the cart very lightly and reached for the reins, but a man sat beside her and she knew him by his hands, driving the cart. She did not look in his face, for she knew without seeing, but looked instead down the road where the trees leaned over and bowed to each other and a thousand birds were singing a Mass. She felt like singing too, but she put her hand in the bosom of her dress and pulled out a rosary,9 and Father Connolly murmured Latin in a very solemn voice and tickled her feet. My God, will you stop that nonsense? I’m a married woman. What if he did run away and leave me to face the priest by myself? I found another a whole world better. I wouldn’t have exchanged my husband for anybody except St. Michael himself, and you may tell him that for me with a thank you in the bargain.

Light flashed on her closed eyelids, and a deep roaring shook her. Cornelia, is that lightning? I hear thunder. There’s going to be a storm. Close all the windows. Call the children in. . . . “Mother, here we are, all of us.” “Is that you, Hapsy?” “Oh, no, I’m Lydia. We drove as fast as we could.” Their faces drifted above her, drifted away. The rosary fell out of her hands and Lydia put it back. Jimmy tried to help, their hands fumbled together, and Granny closed two fingers around Jimmy’s thumb. Beads wouldn’t do, it must be something alive. She was so amazed her thoughts ran round and round. So, my dear Lord, this is my death and I wasn’t even thinking about it. My children have come to see me die. But I can’t, it’s not time. Oh, I always hated surprises. I wanted to give Cornelia the amethyst set—Cornelia, you’re to have the amethyst set, but Hapsy’s to wear it when she wants, and, Doctor Harry, do shut up. Nobody sent for you. Oh, my dear Lord, do wait a minute. I meant to do something about the Forty Acres, Jimmy doesn’t need it and Lydia will later on, with that worthless husband of hers. I meant to finish the altar cloth and send six bottles of wine to Sister Borgia for her dyspepsia.10 I want to send six bottles of wine to Sister Borgia, Father Connolly, now don’t let me forget.

Cornelia’s voice made short turns and tilted over and crashed. “Oh, Mother, oh, Mother, oh, Mother. . . .”

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7. crucifix (krLPsE-fGksQ): a cross bearing a sculptured representation of the crucified Christ. 8. nimbus (nGmPbEs): halo of light. 9. rosary (rIPzE-rC): a string of beads used by Roman Catholics to count their prayers. 10. dyspepsia (dGs-pDpPshE): indigestion.

amethyst (BmPE-thGst) n. a purple-colored quartz used as a gemstone


revisit the big QUESTIONWhat makes a MEMORY linger?Discuss In lines 268–276, how do Granny’s memories worry her after she realizes that her children “have come to see [her] die” (line 268)? Possible answer: Now that it is too late to do anything more, she is flooded by memo-ries of duties and tasks that she has left undone and overwhelmed by distaste at unfinished business and loose ends.

V O C A B U L A R Y

own the wordamethyst: Remind students that gem-stones are used in a variety of ways, but probably best known in jewelry. Ask students to make a list of as many types of gemstones as they can that are used as jew-elry. Possible answers: diamonds, sapphires, rubies, emeralds, opals, garnets

for struggling readersMake Inferences Help students infer the double meaning of Granny’s statement in line 229 that “Hapsy’s time has come.” On the one hand, Hapsy’s “time” is the birth of her child, but it is also the moment of death for her and her baby. Recall line 180 when Hapsy fades to a ghostly “gray gauze” in Granny’s memory and her baby turns into a “gauzy shadow.”

BEST PRACTICES TOOLKIT—TransparencyMaking Inferences p. A13

for english language learnersVocabulary: Idioms [mixed-readiness pairs] Have pairs use context to define these idi-oms: • cursed like a sailor’s parrot (line 223), “used

profane and rude language as a parrot imi-tating a sailor might do”

• Hapsy’s time has come (line 229), “Hapsy has gone into labor and will soon bear a child”

• all this carrying-on (line 246), “all this excite-ment over nothing”


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“I’m not going, Cornelia. I’m taken by surprise. I can’t go.” jYou’ll see Hapsy again. What about her? “I thought you’d never come.” Granny

made a long journey outward, looking for Hapsy. What if I don’t find her? What then? Her heart sank down and down, there was no bottom to death, she couldn’t come to the end of it. The blue light from Cornelia’s lampshade drew into a tiny point in the center of her brain, it flickered and winked like an eye, quietly it fluttered and dwindled. Granny lay curled down within herself, amazed and watchful, staring at the point of light that was herself; her body was now only a deeper mass of shadow in an endless darkness and this darkness would curl around the light and swallow it up. God, give a sign!

For the second time there was no sign. Again no bridegroom and the priest in the house. She could not remember any other sorrow because this grief wiped them all away. Oh, no, there’s nothing more cruel than this—I’ll never forgive it. She stretched herself with a deep breath and blew out the light. !

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dwindle (dwGnPdl) v. to become steadily less; to shrink

j STREAM OF CONSCIOUSNESSReread lines 266–279. What is ironic about Granny’s response to the imminence of her death?

Blue House (2004), Philip Hershberger. Encaustic on panel, 78˝ × 48˝. © Philip Hershberger.



differentiated instruction

About the Art American artist Philip Hersh-berger uses the ancient technique of encaustic painting in which hot wax, resin, and color are blended into a semi-liquid for painting. He describes his work as standing outside of any specific time and raising questions about whether an object is really present or not—qualities that vividly recall Granny Weather-all’s experience.

j stream ofconsciousness

Possible answer: She is surprised, even though she knows it’s coming and thinks that she has already calmly put the mat-ter aside. For all her careful planning and putting things in order, she is not ready for death. IF STUDENTS NEED HELP . . . Have them review lines 61–69 and contrast how Granny expects to face death and how she actually faces it.

selection wrap–upREAD WITH A PURPOSE Now that students have read “The Jilting of Granny Weatherall,” they may be tempted to conclude that Granny feels hostile because she does not want to die. Encourage them to go deeper, uncovering that Granny’s memories of being jilted make her want to believe her life turned out as well as it would have had George married her, but that she feels doubt, loss, and possibly regret as she slips from consciousness.

CRITIQUE Ask students whether they find Porter’s description of death plausible and to explain why or why not.


This passage explains Granny’s hopes about death and how she is disappointed again.• For whom is Granny looking as she dies, and

where does she look? (lines 280–281)• What does Granny see as she dies?

(lines 283–285)• What disappointment does Granny say she

will “never forgive” (line 291)? (line 289)

for advanced learners/apHypothesize About Character Explain that some critics believe Granny’s jilting was so pain-ful because she was pregnant with George’s child, the favored daughter, Hapsy. Have students discuss this interpretation, looking for text evidence to support or disprove it. Then ask them to produce an outline for an essay explor-ing the impact of this interpretation.

BEST PRACTICES TOOLKIT—TransparencyOutline p. B19

Targeted Passage5

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V O C A B U L A R Y

own the worddwindle: Have students look up synonyms for dwindle. Possible answers: decrease, diminish, drain, ebb, reduce, taper

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After Reading

Comprehension 1. Recall Which characters mentioned in the story belong exclusively to Granny

Weatherall’s past? 2. Recall Who is with Granny when she dies? 3. Clarify Who is Hapsy?

Text Analysis 4. Clarify Sequence Using your timeline, retell the key events of Granny’s life in

chronological order. Which events mark the best and worst of Granny’s life? Explain, citing Granny’s own thoughts and feelings about each event.

5. Make Inferences About Character Go back through the story, noting thoughts and memories that linger in Granny’s mind. What do they reveal about the kind of person she is? Record your answers in a chart like this one.

6. Analyze Stream of Consciousness Porter uses stream of consciousness to dramatize Granny’s interior life. What effect does this approach have on her readers? For example, how might your reaction to the story have been different if Porter had presented the same events with a more traditional plot? Cite specific examples from the story in your response.

7. Analyze Theme Which of the following statements best expresses the themes Porter conveys in this story? Support your choice with evidence from the text. • There is no deed so wrong it can’t be forgiven. • In youth we are all foolish; with age comes true wisdom.• Life does not provide the answers or reassurances that people want, even

at the moment of death.

Text Criticism 8. Critical Interpretations Novelist Reynolds Price asserts that Porter’s stories

are “lethal to the most widely cherished illusions of the species”—in other words, they destroy our sentimental notions about things like romance, self-regard, and parenthood. What “cherished illusions” does Porter destroy here? What truths does she portray instead? Support your answer.

What makes a memory linger?Much like Granny in this story, we often remember things differently from how they actually happened . After all, memories are what people remember—not necessarily the truth. Why do you think this discrepancy between reality and memories happens?

Granny’s Thoughts Character Traits Revealed

“It was good to have everything clean and folded away . . . nicely dusted off.” (lines 50–55)

She likes putting things in order and having control in life.


RL 1 Cite textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text. RL 3 Analyze the impact of the author’s choices regarding how to develop and relate elements of a story. RL 5 Analyze how an author’s choices concerning how to structure specific parts of a text contribute to its overall structure and meaning as well as its aesthetic impact.

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Practice and ApplyFor preliminary support of post-reading questions, use these copy masters:

RESOURCE MANAGER—Copy MastersReading Check p. 280 Stream of Consciousness p. 273Question Support p. 281Additional selection questions are provided for teachers on page 267.

answers 1. George, John, and Hapsy 2. The doctor, a priest, and her surviving

children—Cornelia, Lydia, and Jimmy—are with Granny when she dies.

3. Hapsy is her favorite daughter, who apparently died.

Possible answers: 4. common core focus Clarify

Sequence Events: father’s death; jilting by George; marriage to John; raising her young children; death of Hapsy; death of John; hard work and community nursing; recov-ery at age 60 from long fever; illness again at almost age 80 and seeing doctor, priest, and death; The best events are raising young children and hard work and nursing. The worst events are being jilted by George, and Hapsy’s death.

5. Accept all thoughtful inferences, for example: “Digging post holes . . . changed a woman” (lines 105–106) and “It was good . . . everything” (line 116) support the inference that Granny is proud of her competence and physical strength.

6. common core focus Stream of Consciousness Students may say that they felt more connected to Granny because of Porter’s use of stream of conscious-ness, which made them privy to Granny’s innermost thoughts. Had the story been told from an observer’s point of view, this sense of intimacy would have been lost. For example, readers would not know the depth of Granny’s sorrow over Hapsy’s death or her pride in her life.

7. The third statement is the strongest state-ment of theme, but accept all thoughtful answers supported by textual evidence.

8. Students may discuss any of these illu-sions: romance, self-regard, gender roles, marriage, parentage. For example, stu-dents may say that the story destroys the sentimental illusion of romance because Granny’s response to her jilting is one of shame and vanity, not love, and she then remembers her marriage to John as a part-nership without romance or passion.

What makes a MEMORY linger? Students may say that they see things from a different perspective either at the time of the event or after it happened. Also, time has a way of making people forget some things while remembering others.


RL 1, RL 3, RL 5

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word listamethystassigndwindleembroideredplague

Vocabulary in Context vocabulary practice

Decide whether each statement is true or false. 1. If your supplies have begun to dwindle, you probably need to find a way to

get more. 2. An amethyst is a special shawl worn for good luck. 3. A tablecloth that is embroidered has beautiful designs painted on it. 4. If I am an assign in your will, I should expect to inherit at least a portion of

what you have. 5. People who plague others are transmitting symptoms of a serious disease.

academic vocabulary in speaking

Granny Weatherall tries unsuccessfully to maintain some kind of control, but readers easily conclude that she has lost her grip on reality. In a small group, discuss the criteria by which you judge this character’s sanity. Use at least one Academic Vocabulary word in your contribution to the discussion.

vocabulary strategy: thesauri and word choiceWhen you need to choose the most appropriate word from two or more words with similar meanings, you can turn to a thesaurus. A thesaurus is a reference book that helps you find specific, or precise, words for more general ideas. In a thesaurus, words are arranged by their meanings and by their parts of speech rather than by alphabetical order, as in a dictionary. For example, if the vocabulary word dwindle doesn’t have the exact meaning you are looking for, a thesaurus can help you choose among such verbs as recede, diminish, or shrink.

PRACTICE Use a thesaurus to choose an alternative word to replace each of the words in boldface. Explain how each new word changes the meaning of the sentence. 1. Ben peppered his explanation with “unbelievable!” and other expressions of

surprise. 2. Despite their refusal to help her, Pauline harbored no ill will toward her

brothers. 3. Through hard work and clever planning, they engineered an election victory

for the underdog candidate. 4. These conclusions are anchored in several months of experimentation and solid

research.

• conclude • criteria • despite • justify • maintain

Go to thinkcentral.com.KEYWORD: HML11-1046

InteractiveVocabulary


L 4c Consult general and specialized reference materials, both print and digital, to determine or clarify a word’s precise meaning and its part of speech. L 5b Analyze nuances in the meaning of words with similar denotations.

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answersVocabulary in Context

vocabulary practice 1. true 4. true 2. false 5. false 3. false

RESOURCE MANAGER—Copy MasterVocabulary Practice p. 278

academic vocabulary in speakingHave students explain their ideas to a partner before they begin writing. Partners should identify ideas that might work with a vocabulary word. Students should point out that Granny has had a very difficult life. She has been jilted, has worked hard all her life, has raised several children, and has lost loved ones in death.

vocabulary strategy: thesauri and word choice• Explain that a thesaurus can help find more

precise words and prevent overuse of a certain word, but writers need to make sure their replacement words are close enough in meaning and tone to the original.

• Model the practice using the first item. Explain that replacements for peppered should retain the sense that Ben’s exclama-tions are not excessive and add interest or personality to his explanation.

Possible answers: 1. sprinkled, flavored, dotted 2. unwillingness, reluctance 3. managed, accomplished, achieved 4. judgments, inferences, opinions

RESOURCE MANAGER—Copy Master Vocabulary Strategy p. 279

for english language learnersTask Support: Vocabulary Strategy Ask students if their home languages also have figurative verbs that come from nouns, and invite them to share examples in translation. Then help them think of other examples in English. Have them use one example to create a sentence modeled on the practice exercises.

for advanced learners/apNouns and Figurative Verbs Challenge students to create a short glossary of recently created figurative verbs, especially those related to new technologies. For example, access and google, once a common and a proper noun, are now figurative verbs. Students can publish or post the glossary for class reference.

Keywords direct students to a WordSharp tutorial on thinkcentral.com or to other types of vocabulary practice and review.

Interactive Vocabulary

1046 unit 5

L 4c, L 5b


Language grammar and style: Craft Effective SentencesReview the Grammar and Style note on page 1040. Porter skillfully crafts her prose in “The Jilting of Granny Weatherall” to depict Granny’s interior life—her secret longings, wishes, and memories. Through her use of repetition and the coordinating conjunction and, Porter reveals Granny’s circular thoughts and hazy memories.

Then Hapsy melted from within and turned flimsy as gray gauze and the baby was a gauzy shadow, and Hapsy came up close and said, “I thought you’d never come,” and looked at her very searchingly and said, “You haven’t changed a bit!” (lines 183–186)

Notice the dreamlike quality of the sentence, with its many and’s linking the images as well as its repetition of gauze and gauzy and related terms flimsy and shadow.

PRACTICE The following passage presents a character’s thoughts as they might appear in a traditional third-person narrative. Rewrite the paragraph as a third-person stream of consciousness.

Ron walked down the street whistling, his hands shoved deep into his pockets. He squinted up at the weak rays fighting to break through the winter cloud cover. When his gaze returned to street level, he almost tripped over his own feet. Abby was walking toward him. “I wonder if she’ll even recognize me,” Ron thought to himself, quickening his pace and trying to clear his face of emotion.

reading-writing connectionExpand your understanding of “The Jilting of Granny Weatherall” by responding to this prompt. Then, use the revising tips to improve your narrative.

�YOUR

TURN

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InteractiveRevision


• Include details of time and place as part of your charac-ter’s consciousness.

• Focus on your character’s thoughts but include spoken words in quotation marks, too.

• Use images from both the past and the present to show how your character sees what is happening now and what has happened in the past.

USE STREAM OF CONSCIOUSNESS Katherine Anne Porter wasn’t the only modernist to experiment with stream of consciousness; T. S. Eliot, James Joyce, and William Faulkner all used it to explore the intricacies of the human mind. Some writers use it today. Now you’ll get a chance to try it for yourself. Write a three- or four-paragraph narrative in stream of consciousness, depicting the thoughts and impressions of a character having a particular experience. You can either write about yourself or create a fictional character.

writing prompt revising tips

L 3a Vary syntax for effect, consulting references for guidance as needed; apply an understanding of syntax to the study of complex texts when reading. W 3 Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective technique, well-chosen details, and well-structured event sequences.

NA_L11PE-u05s33-arGran.indd 1047 1/8/11 10:27:46 AMNA_L11PE-u05s33-arGran.indd 1046 1/8/11 10:27:44 AM Assess and Reteachfor struggling writers Writing Support • Limit the length of the narrative to one or

two paragraphs.• Clarify the difference between stream-of-

consciousness writing and the more typical first-person point of view. Have students write a draft from a purely first-person point of view and then adapt it as stream of consciousness.

• Have students read their stream-of-consciousness drafts to a partner, asking for new associations between thoughts and memories. Ask students to incorporate the feedback as they revise.

Language grammar and style

Tell students that in most writing situations, sentences composed of short phrases and clauses joined by and would be considered choppy and would invite revision. Stress that this style of writing has a specific function in Porter’s story—to show Granny’s feverish jumps from memory to memory. Possible answers: Students’ paragraphs should reflect a first-person stream of consciousness voice, as if they were simply recording Ron’s thoughts.

RESOURCE MANAGER—Copy Master Craft Effective Sentences p. 282

reading-writing connectionHave students use organizers to identify character traits and plot events. Students can then explore possible connections among thoughts, feelings, and memories, perhaps using a Sequence Chain to track those connections.

BEST PRACTICES TOOLKIT—TransparenciesCharacter Traits Web p. D7Plot Diagram p. D10Sequence Chain p. B21

Writing OnlineThe following tools are available online at thinkcentral.com and on WriteSmart CD-ROM:

• Interactive Graphic Organizers• Interactive Student Models• Interactive Revision Lessons

For additional grammar instruction, see GrammarNotes on thinkcentral.com.

AssessDIAGNOSTIC AND SELECTION TESTS

Selection Test A, B/C pp. 281–282, 283–284Interactive Selection Test on thinkcentral.comReteachLevel Up Online Tutorials on thinkcentral.comReteaching Worksheets on thinkcentral.com

Literature Lessons 8, 36, Reading Lesson 6


L 3a, W 3


the modern short story focus and motivate the jilting … · first published story, “maria...

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