Huck Finn by Mark Twain. Chapter 8

 

CHAPTER 8

SNAKE SKINS DO BRING BAD LUCK. HUCK DECIDED IT WAS TRUE as the days went by. First, they discovered something really bad; they were far from Cairo, and the town was now behind them. They couldn't go up the river in the raft, so they decided to go in the canoe. But the next day, somebody stole their canoe while they were asleep. "That's okay," Jim told Huck. "We have the forty dollars that the men gave you. We can buy another canoe."

 

But then something even worse happened. That night, clouds covered the moon and the stars and it became very dark. Huck and Jim couldn't see a thing. In the middle of the night, a steamboat came up the river towards them. The pilot didn't see the small light of their lantern, and it headed straight for the raft! Huck and Jim shouted and waved, but unfortunately nobody from the ship saw them. Just before it hit them, Huck dived off one side of the raft and Jim off the other.

 

It took Huck a long time to swim to the shore, because the river was wide and the current very strong. He couldn't see Jim anywhere. Was he ashore somewhere else, or maybe dead? Exhausted from searching, Huck fell asleep. It was past morning when he woke up. He was miserable and he sat and cried for a while. But Huck couldn't sit and do nothing for long. So he got up and began to walk. After a while he met a boy about his age.

 

"Hey you," said Huck. "Have you seen a black slave around here? He's about forty and is wearing grey trousers."

 

"Yes," said the boy. "He's down at the Phelps' plantation. He's a runaway slave, and they caught him this morning. They don't know where he's from, but they will soon find out."

 

Huck was very happy. Jim was alive! He said goodbye to the boy and started walking, not sure where he was going.

 

'What can I do?' he thought. He could leave Jim with the Phelps family, and they would return him to the widow. That would be the right thing. But Jim didn't want to be a slave and Huck knew that.

 

'I'm going to help him escape!' Huck suddenly decided. 'Jim is a slave, but he's also my friend. He always helps me when I'm in trouble. I'm going to do the same for him, and if that makes me a bad person, then I don't care!' Huck immediately felt better. Without another thought, he set off for the Phelps' plantation.

 

CHAPTER 8

Comprehension

1) Answer the following questions.

1.      What did Huck and Jim go up the river in?

2.      Why did Huck and Jim have to jump into the water?

3.      Why did Huck feel sad the next morning?

4.      Where was Jim after the accident?

5.      What did Huck decide to do for Jim?

2) Complete the following sentences with the names in the boxes.

the Phelps’           Jim    Huck           Cairo

1.      __________ and _________ had an accident in the

river.

2.                        is the name of a town in the Free States.

3.                        was at__________ plantation.

⁴-___________ wanted to help_____ escape from ________________ .

5.      __________  swam for a long time and was exhausted.

6.      __________ was wearing grey trousers.

Vocabulary

3) Choose a, b or c to complete the sentences below.

1.      The car________ west towards the river.

a. discovered                        b. headed         c. hit

2.      Tourists can go on a __________________ cruise down the Mississippi.

a. canoe         b. steamboat     c. current

3.      The road outside my house is very __________________ .    

a. worse        b. wide           c. strong

4. When he lost his dog, Alan felt         __________________ .

a. asleep      b. right         c. miserable

5. I  love to __________________ our yacht into the sea.

a. dive off    b. head for  c. get up

 

4) Find the appropriate word from Chapter 8.

1.                 A kind of lamp

2.                 A type of farm in the Southern States of America

3.                 American money

4.                 To put something in front of something else in order to hide it

5.                 Lights in the sky

6.                 To move in the water using your arms and legs

7.                 At once

 

Follow-up activities

5) Discuss.

1.                 Huck changes his mind about bad luck. Do you agree with him? Why? I Why not?

2.                 Huck seems to make decisions quickly. How easy is it for you to make decisions?

3.                 Huck would do anything to help Jim. How can you help a friend who is in trouble?

4.                 Do you think Huck will save Jim?

 

 

6) Imagine that you are a reporter on a local newspaper. On the night of Huck and Jim’s accident,  you happened to be there and witnessed everything  from farther away.  Write a short article for your newspaper, under the heading: “STEAMBOAT SINKS RAFT - 2 PEOPLE MISSING”. (50-80 words)