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IN THE BEGINNING & PANDORA'S BOX

Geraldine McCaughrean

Greek Myths, Heinemann New Windmills (1992)

Before Reading

Get together with a partner and discuss the following questions:

  1. What stories do you know about the way the world started? (For example, Christians have the story of God creating the world in seven days and making Adam and Eve – the first people - from mud.)
  2. What do you think are the biggest problems facing human beings? Make a list. (Sickness, …..)

 

VOCABULARY

Complete the following table. Make sure you know what all the words mean:

VERB

ADJECTIVE

NOUN

 

cruel

 

 

painful

 

disappoint

 

 

 

hateful

 

 

 

jealousy

die

 

 

 

hopeful

 

 

 

hopelessness

 

 

greed

strengthen

 

 

fly

 

 

 

WHILE READING
  1. Where did the gods live, and who was their king?
  2. Complete this chart:
    3.

    Animal

    What Epimetheus gave them

     

    shells

    horses

     

    anteaters

     

    birds

     

     

  3. a) Which creature did Prometheus make?

    4. b) How was it different from the others?

    c) What gift did Prometheus give the creature?

  4. What did Zeus call the humans?
  5. How did Zeus punish Prometheus?
  6. Prometheus felt pain. What else did he feel?
  7. This is really two stories: "In the Beginning" and "Pandora’s Box". Where do you think the second story begins? (Copy the start of the sentence.)
  8. What gifts did the gods give Pandora?
    9.

    God

    Gift

    Venus

     

     

    A clever tongue

    Apollo

     

     

  9. What was strange about Pandora and Epimetheus’s wedding present?
  10. Choose the correct answer. Pandora opened the box because she
    1. wanted some cloth.
    2. felt sorry for the creatures inside.
    3. the creatures forced her to open it.
    4. felt curious.
  1. Which creature saved the world?
  2. Find five adjectives that describe the nasty creatures. (Page 5)
  3. In what way is "Hope" different from these other creatures?

 

In the beginning…

 

You have read the ancient Greek myth of Prometheus. The following notes are based on a myth of the Native American "Hopi" people. Try to write the myth as a proper story – i.e. in full sentences, using paragraphs etc.

Remember: you will need to WRITE Ü REVIEW (read it through, get advice from others) Ü REWRITE Ü EDIT (correct mistakes).

Take care with your verbs (which tense should you use?).

Use "a" and "the" – these are important in English.

 

In the beginning …

(Long ago? Way back in time? At the beginning of time? When the earth was still young?)

all men (humans? people?) came out of? a hole in the ground?

emerged from? a hole in the earth?

a mockingbird stood nearby? at the entrance? by the hole?

gave each one name + language

(e.g. "You shall be a Hopi and speak that language."

"You shall be an Apache …")

the White people too …

 

In those days … (Back then? At that time?)

the Earth covered in darkness …

the people came together? joined together? got together?

made the sun + moon & placed in sky

à light + warmth

à life got easier

chiefs decided the tribes should split up:

the White people (always impatient!) didn’t like waiting … rubbed flakes of skin from their women … made horses … rode fast/quickly/at top speed towards the East … arrived first: stars fell à all the tribes remained where they were …

 

Frankie Meehan