The Golden Fish: A Retelling of a Russian taleLee Washington1The old fisherman floated on the Black Sea, boat bobbing from side to side as a frigid wind sliced through his threadbare sweater. Though the fisherman and his wife were struggling to survive without much money, he thought happily of the meager but delicious dinner of homemade bread that was waiting for him at home. Suddenly, he felt a sharp pull on the fishing line, and the fisherman heaved a large, shining, yellow fish onto the boat. Its fins sparkled like coins cascading from a treasure chest.2The fish began to beg. “If you release me,” the fish blubbered, “I’ll give you everything you need.”3The fisherman eyed the fantastic creature. “I am content with what I have, but I will let you go regardless,” the fisherman said as he plopped the fish back into the sea.4When the sun’s heavy eyelids began to droop, the fisherman returned home through the town. He passed a wealthy man arguing with a shopkeeper about merchandise and sadly shook his head at the annoyed men as he entered his house.5“What did you catch today?” his wife inquired as she handed him some morsels of bread. The fisherman related the story of the remarkable talking fish.6“No fish and no wish? You threw away a lucky gift!” the wife scolded, her usual affectionate manner absent as she sent her husband back to ask for more food.7The drowsy fisherman walked back to the water’s edge and called the name of every fish in the sea until finally the golden fish arrived on a small, sparkling wave.8“My wife wants more food,” he told the fish, who simply nodded its scaly head and slipped back under water.9After receiving more food, the wife sent the fisherman to ask the fish for a bigger house while she nervously picked at the expensive lobster feast spread before her. She became perpetually restless and irritable, pacing the house until the fisherman returned home each day to discover his wife’s latest longing.10Soon his wife felt unsatisfied with the new, luxurious house; she wanted to control more things on earth, so she sent her husband back to the fish with a request to make her queen of the seas. Once again, the exhausted fisherman walked to the sea. Hesitantly, he called every fish that lived there until the golden fish pushed aside each sardine and minnow, ready to grant the next wish. But when the fish heard that the wife wanted control of everything in the fish’s aquatic home, the fish squinted at the uncertain fisherman.11“ENOUGH!” said the fish, and the fisherman’s new house immediately turned back into the small cottage where he and his wife had once lived. Their extravagant food became simple again, and the fisherman’s wife once again learned to cherish the little that they had. Their love renewed once riches and wishes ceased breaking them apart. Although the fisherman still caught fish of every other name, the golden fish never returned.QuestionWhat techniques does the author of this passage use to create a sense of tension and suspense?ResponsesA The author makes the golden fish into a very creepy, aggressive, and ominous character.The author makes the golden fish into a very creepy, aggressive, and ominous character.B The old fisherman's endless greed suggests that something quite terrible will happen to him.The old fisherman's endless greed suggests that something quite terrible will happen to him.C The extremely detailed use of imagery in painting the setting of the story creates suspense.The extremely detailed use of imagery in painting the setting of the story creates suspense.D The continual escalation of requests of the golden fish from the fisherman imply a dark reckoning will come.The continual escalation of requests of the golden fish from the fisherman imply a dark reckoning will come.

The lake was a sheet of polished glass as Charlene fished beside her dad from their little rowboat. She had cast her line and now sat watching the orange floater as it bobbed gently. Suddenly, the floater disappeared beneath the surface and the reel nearly flew from Charlene’s hand. Grasping the reel like a baseball bat, she gave the line a sharp tug backward to hook the fish. Then she began reeling it in, the fish fighting as hard as a boxer in the ring. Charlene’s dad stood cheering her on, as his daughter landed the biggest perch he’d ever seen.4Why does the author compare the fishing reel to a baseball bat? A. to help the reader visualize how Charlene grasped it B. because readers who like fishing will also like baseball C. to convince the reader that Charlene is an athlete D. because fishing and baseball are very similar

Fishermen get used to _____ the fishes that they had    caught. *be sharedsharedsharesharing

The Old Man and the Sea SummaryThe novel opens in a fishing village in Cuba. The reader learns that the old man, once a great fisherman, has not caught a fish in 84 days. A young man who learned how to fish from the old man is kind to him, bringing him food and listening to his stories. However, because the old man has been unlucky, the boy is fishing with someone else.After 84 days of no fish, the old man dreams of lions like he witnessed in his childhood and wakes the next morning to take his boat out farther into the ocean than he has ever been.He manages to hook a massive marlin and must fight the huge fish for three days before he is able to reel it in. He fights heroically through pain and fatigue. He prays and perseveres. The marlin is too big to put in the boat, so the old man attaches the fish to the side of the boat and heads back to shore.The blood from the harpooned marlin attracts sharks along the journey home. The old man now has to fight off the sharks. While he is mostly able to fend them off, the sharks manage to eat most of the marlin, leaving just the head and the skeleton for the old man to bring to shore. The villagers, who had made fun of the old man before, are impressed with the size of the fish carcass, which they measured 18 feet from head to tail.The boy is glad to see the old man return but is moved to tears over the lost fish and the old man's injuries. The boy tells the old man he will fish with him again. The novel ends with the old man again dreaming about lions.Who is the main character of The Old Man and the Sea? aManolin, Santiago's apprentice bThe sea cThe marlin dSantiago, the old fisherman

Select the correct text in the passage.Which detail best shows the idea that the father enjoyed growing up in Clarksburg?(9) The biggest fish I ever saw caught I did not catch. Brother Henry, who was nine years older than I, caught it. It was a cat-fish, and Henry and a boy named Billy James, who was less than six feet tall, ran a pole through the fish's gills and carried the fish between them suspended from the pole which was rested upon the boys shoulders, and the fish was so long that its tail tipped the ground as the boys walked. Now, this is the biggest fish story I ever tell, except the Jonah story, and I believe both.(10) We liked Clarksburg because it was a good place for schools, Sunday Schools and churches. I hardly remember the time when I was not in school, Sunday School and church. I think to this day these are good places for boys to be.(11) My parents were always anxious to have their children in school and made many sacrifices to this end; as a result their five boys all were public school teachers before they were out of their teens.

Read the following excerpt from the poem "The Fish" by Elizabeth Bishop.I thought of the coarse white fleshpacked in like feathers,the big bones and the little bones,the dramatic reds and blacksof his shiny entrails,and the pink swim-bladderlike a big peony.What feeling does her use of simile suggest?A.ApathyB.DisgustC.AweD.AffectionSUBMITarrow_backPREVIOUS