TWO FRIENDS BY GUY DE MAUPASSANT
Literature and Your Life:
Were you shocked by the outcome of the story? Why or why not?
Yes. We felt that they were going to die, but regardless, it was shocking for us to read how the prussian soldiers killed them.
In this story, is it friendship itself that leads the two men into danger and finally to death? Explain.
We don’t think so. We think that we must have the right to be wherever we want, so it wasn’t their fault, they just wanted to go fishing together.
As Morissot or Sauvage, write a brief farewell note to your family before you are executed.
Dear family,
I never thought this moment would come so soon, I want to tell you that I love you with all my heart and remember that there is nothing that the war has achieved that we could not have achieved without it. I wish you all the happiness in this world, take care of yourselves and enjoy what you have because you don’t know when you will lose it. Don’t forget me because I will never forget you; I will take care of you and love you wherever I am.
Sincerely,
Morissot
Check Your Comprehension:
How does the wartime situation in Paris affect the Sunday habits of Morissot and Sauvage?
They couldn’t go fishing anymore.
How do they succeed for a while in defying the war?
They went fishing despite the war.
What surprise do they encounter?
That they weren’t alone at the place where they were fishing.
How does a final choice they have to make lead to the end of the story?
They refuse to give information to the Prussians, which causes both of them to die.
Critical Thinking:
INTERPRET:
What causes the two friends to try fishing again?
They wanted to take time away to escape from the war and relax.
Find two details of the men's journey to the island that might give readers an uneasy feeling.
They can see Prussians and a battle is happening near them.
What message does Maupassant convey by showing how war breaks in on the peacefulness of fishing?
Their lives have been changed and it will never be the same as long as there's war because it will make everyone seem guilty even when doing something innocent like fishing.
EVALUATE:
Is it effective to end the story with the Prussian officer's order to cook the fish? Explain.
Yes, because the fish represent the 2 friends and they were separated from their natural environment.
APPLY:
What does this story suggest about the effects of modern warfare on everyday life?
Relationships with family and friends are changed because everyone is worried and waiting for what may happen.
Reading Strategy:
In "Two Friends," what is significant about the "powdersmoke" that Morissot and Sauvage see on the mountain?
The powdersmoke is a way in which the Russian army used to start their ambushes, as they threw around a powder smoke that easily let them attack without being seen.
What details about the two men in "Two Friends" might lead you to believe that they will not betray each other?
The close relationship the two friends seem to have shows that even at the brink of being assassinated, neither of them said anything to survive, even if the killers gave both of them a chance to keep living for betraying the other.
Literary Focus:
1. What is the climax in "Two Friends"?.
When they were killed by the Prussians because they didn't say the password.
2. In "Two Friends." Maupassant hints at the climax even though it arrives with a shocking suddenness. Find three of these hints.
M. Sauvage talked about the soldiers that have been spotted near the area.
M. Sauvage and M. Morissot saw Russian armament around.
They began to listen to conversations from afar, meaning they weren’t alone.
Build Vocabulary:
USING THE LATIN ROOT -tain-
Knowing that the Latin root -tain- means"to hold." write definitions for the following words
1. contain: have or hold (someone or something) within.
2. retain: continue to hold (a substance).
3. maintain: to keep in existence or continuance.
USING THE WORD BANK: Antonyms
On your paper, write the letter of the word that is the antonym of the first word:
1. dire: (a) urgent, (b) unimportant, (c) alive
2. detained: (a) restrained, (b) studied, (c) release
3. impediments: (a) footwear, (b) obstacles, (c)support
4. hindrances: (a) fronts, (b) aids, (c) lances
5. ardent: (a) indifferent, (b) confident, (c) intent
6. vernal: (a) mild, (b) angry, (c) wintry
7. jauntiness: (a) seriousness, (b) lightheartedness, (c) reluctance
Build Grammar Skills:
Practice Identify the appositives in the following sentences.
Morissot, a shy man, grew bolder as he drank absinthe.
The Prussian officer, a man of honor, insisted onexecuting the friends.
Writing Application:
Combine each pair of sentences by using appositives.
Morissot stopped short before a fellow militiaman. Morissot was a watchmaker by trade but local militiaman for the time being.
Morissot, a watchmaker by trade but local militiaman for the time being, stopped short before a fellow militiaman.
by Andrea Parra & Laura Rodríguez,
STEP 10 BLUE