Exposition:
Rising Action:
Climax:
Falling Action:
Resolution:
Theme(s):
Coming of Age - At the start of the story Rob is just an ordinary boy. Goes to school, does chores, plays around, just all around fun. As the story goes on however, Robert starts to take on more responsibility. Starting with Pinky, he has to take care of his new piglet. Making sure that he still tends to his normal chores and his pet chores. At the end of the story Robert's father passes away. Robert is left at the age of 13 to take care of his family and run his farm. He is suddenly thrust into the real world and must give it all he has.
Death - Throughout the whole story Robert is faced with death. The story reveals that death is inevitable, and how we deal with it shows something about our character. Robert first had to experience death when he watched the hawk kill the rabbit. The rabbit had to be killed so that the hawk and its family could survive. Then Robert faces death when his pet, Pinky, must be killed. Pinky dies in order to provide food for the family. Robert at first hates his father for killing Pinky but then forgives him because it had to be done. Then Robert's father, Haven, dies as well. Instead of dwelling on the death and mourning Robert gets down to business. He realizes that he has responsibility, and his dad would of wanted him to not mourn.
Acceptance - I think acceptance is another theme for this story. Robert has to learn to accept things for what they are, and learn to deal with things. He has to deal with kids bullying him for being a Shaker. Also, he does not understand fully all of the Shaker ways and reasoning but he accepts them and follows them. On a larger scale, he learns to accept death. When Pinky dies he accepts the fact that is was for a good cause and it had to be done. When his father dies he accepts the fact that he must take on responsibility and care for the family.
Motiff(s):
Religion - Religion is a reoccurring topic throughout the story. In the first chapter Robert leaves school because he had been picked on by another student for being a Shaker. He can not quite understand why they would pick on him for that. He always wonders about things outside of Learning but the Shaker religion forbids thoughts of this. He wants to go to a baseball game but his father tells him it is a sin. When talking to Mr. Tanner about selling Pinky's piglets he says thinking of so much money is frowned upon in the Shaker religion. Robert always questions the religion and why things are the way they are.
Education - Robert attends school and actually does quite well. He has all A's except a D in English. He does not think much of his education and smarts but his father reassures him. His father explains how without education nobody will respect him. Haven talks about how since he can not read or write he is not allowed to vote, and everyone else who can thinks they are better than he is. Haven does not want Robert to be a farmer like he is, he wants him to use his education to take him other places, and experiences other things. Aunt Matty also recognizes this, she tutors Robert in English over the summer. As Robert grows he realizes more and more how important it is for him to have a good education.
Tone:
Serious- To me while reading this story, I got the feeling that the writer was being very serious. The author was straight forward throughout the book. Robert's father always told Rob how it was and what he needed to do. For example, Haven tells Rob he has to take care of the farm because he is going to die. Also, Haven talks about how Rob has to have an education, and how he has to kill Pinky. It is always serious. All the characters in the story show that things mean business, if they were to mess around they could all die.
Mood:
Sadness/Empathy - When I was reading, I always felt sad. Just from reading about how Robert had to grow up and the things he had to go through. It is almost depressing. Seeing how his father died, and his best friend, Pinky, died as well. Robert was constantly faced with conflict. To be able to go through it all is amazing. While reading I felt bad for Robert.
Characterization:
Robert Peck - Throughout the story we can clearly see that Robert is a dynamic character. He is a young country boy who is just growing up. At the beginning of the story he is just a normal boy. As the story progresses he has to take on more responsibility, beginning with Pinky. He realizes that he has to help his family survive. When scarcity strikes and the Peck's have no food they must kill Pinky for survival. This is hard on Rob but eventually he understands. To top it all off Haven, Rob's father, dies. With this death Robert, at age 13, must take on all responsibility of the farm and family. He does not mourn his father's death, he has learned to accept things in life.
Haven Peck - Haven is Robert's father. He is the backbone of the family. Haven is a very hardworking man, he has to take care of the farm and support his family. He is slowly dying. During the story we see that he is slowly trying to bestow more responsibility onto Robert. Making Rob help him kill Pinky. He eventually dies which puts even more responsibility on Robert. He is a hardworking man who never settled for less. I would classify him as a round character, because he seems to have a real personality and role in the plot.
Mr. Tanner - We find out early one that Mr. Tanner is a good guy at heart. He rewards Robert for helping out with Apron, even with Haven telling him no. He is a good farmer, hard worker, and has a good marriage. Being a baptist, his views are slightly different from the Peck's. They collide on topics every once in a while throughout the story. Despite that, Mr. Tanner is a good person. He takes Robert to Rutland, lets him show his ox, and brings over Solomon for Pinky. When Haven dies Mr. Tanner even tells Robert that if he ever needs any help he will be glad to help. I would classify Mr. Tanner as a static or flat character. We do not see much change in him throughout the story.
Lucy Peck - Lucy Peck is Robert's mother. She is a good mom who still treats Rob as her little boy. She cooks for him, helps him with school, and fixes his clothes. She is not major character in the story, we do not learn much about her personality. All we know is that she never complains, or even know much about her feelings. She does what she has to do and goes on about her business. I would classify her as a flat character. She does not change throughout the story.
Rising Action:
Climax:
Falling Action:
Resolution:
Theme(s):
Coming of Age - At the start of the story Rob is just an ordinary boy. Goes to school, does chores, plays around, just all around fun. As the story goes on however, Robert starts to take on more responsibility. Starting with Pinky, he has to take care of his new piglet. Making sure that he still tends to his normal chores and his pet chores. At the end of the story Robert's father passes away. Robert is left at the age of 13 to take care of his family and run his farm. He is suddenly thrust into the real world and must give it all he has.
Death - Throughout the whole story Robert is faced with death. The story reveals that death is inevitable, and how we deal with it shows something about our character. Robert first had to experience death when he watched the hawk kill the rabbit. The rabbit had to be killed so that the hawk and its family could survive. Then Robert faces death when his pet, Pinky, must be killed. Pinky dies in order to provide food for the family. Robert at first hates his father for killing Pinky but then forgives him because it had to be done. Then Robert's father, Haven, dies as well. Instead of dwelling on the death and mourning Robert gets down to business. He realizes that he has responsibility, and his dad would of wanted him to not mourn.
Acceptance - I think acceptance is another theme for this story. Robert has to learn to accept things for what they are, and learn to deal with things. He has to deal with kids bullying him for being a Shaker. Also, he does not understand fully all of the Shaker ways and reasoning but he accepts them and follows them. On a larger scale, he learns to accept death. When Pinky dies he accepts the fact that is was for a good cause and it had to be done. When his father dies he accepts the fact that he must take on responsibility and care for the family.
Motiff(s):
Religion - Religion is a reoccurring topic throughout the story. In the first chapter Robert leaves school because he had been picked on by another student for being a Shaker. He can not quite understand why they would pick on him for that. He always wonders about things outside of Learning but the Shaker religion forbids thoughts of this. He wants to go to a baseball game but his father tells him it is a sin. When talking to Mr. Tanner about selling Pinky's piglets he says thinking of so much money is frowned upon in the Shaker religion. Robert always questions the religion and why things are the way they are.
Education - Robert attends school and actually does quite well. He has all A's except a D in English. He does not think much of his education and smarts but his father reassures him. His father explains how without education nobody will respect him. Haven talks about how since he can not read or write he is not allowed to vote, and everyone else who can thinks they are better than he is. Haven does not want Robert to be a farmer like he is, he wants him to use his education to take him other places, and experiences other things. Aunt Matty also recognizes this, she tutors Robert in English over the summer. As Robert grows he realizes more and more how important it is for him to have a good education.
Tone:
Serious- To me while reading this story, I got the feeling that the writer was being very serious. The author was straight forward throughout the book. Robert's father always told Rob how it was and what he needed to do. For example, Haven tells Rob he has to take care of the farm because he is going to die. Also, Haven talks about how Rob has to have an education, and how he has to kill Pinky. It is always serious. All the characters in the story show that things mean business, if they were to mess around they could all die.
Mood:
Sadness/Empathy - When I was reading, I always felt sad. Just from reading about how Robert had to grow up and the things he had to go through. It is almost depressing. Seeing how his father died, and his best friend, Pinky, died as well. Robert was constantly faced with conflict. To be able to go through it all is amazing. While reading I felt bad for Robert.
Characterization:
Robert Peck - Throughout the story we can clearly see that Robert is a dynamic character. He is a young country boy who is just growing up. At the beginning of the story he is just a normal boy. As the story progresses he has to take on more responsibility, beginning with Pinky. He realizes that he has to help his family survive. When scarcity strikes and the Peck's have no food they must kill Pinky for survival. This is hard on Rob but eventually he understands. To top it all off Haven, Rob's father, dies. With this death Robert, at age 13, must take on all responsibility of the farm and family. He does not mourn his father's death, he has learned to accept things in life.
Haven Peck - Haven is Robert's father. He is the backbone of the family. Haven is a very hardworking man, he has to take care of the farm and support his family. He is slowly dying. During the story we see that he is slowly trying to bestow more responsibility onto Robert. Making Rob help him kill Pinky. He eventually dies which puts even more responsibility on Robert. He is a hardworking man who never settled for less. I would classify him as a round character, because he seems to have a real personality and role in the plot.
Mr. Tanner - We find out early one that Mr. Tanner is a good guy at heart. He rewards Robert for helping out with Apron, even with Haven telling him no. He is a good farmer, hard worker, and has a good marriage. Being a baptist, his views are slightly different from the Peck's. They collide on topics every once in a while throughout the story. Despite that, Mr. Tanner is a good person. He takes Robert to Rutland, lets him show his ox, and brings over Solomon for Pinky. When Haven dies Mr. Tanner even tells Robert that if he ever needs any help he will be glad to help. I would classify Mr. Tanner as a static or flat character. We do not see much change in him throughout the story.
Lucy Peck - Lucy Peck is Robert's mother. She is a good mom who still treats Rob as her little boy. She cooks for him, helps him with school, and fixes his clothes. She is not major character in the story, we do not learn much about her personality. All we know is that she never complains, or even know much about her feelings. She does what she has to do and goes on about her business. I would classify her as a flat character. She does not change throughout the story.