world stories

8/13/2019 world stories

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BeowulfKing Hrothgar, Scyld's great-

grandson, is well loved by his people

and successful in war. He builds a

lavish hall, called Heorot, to house his

vast army, and when the hall isfinished, the Danish warriors gather

under its roof to celebrate.

Grendel, a monster who lives at

the bottom of a nearby mere, is

provoked by the singing and

celebrating of Hrothgar's followers.

He appears at the hall late one night

and kills thirty of the warriors in their

sleep. For the next twelve years, thefear of Grendel's fury casts a shadow

over the lives of the Danes. Hrothgar

and his advisors can think of nothing

to calm the monster's anger.

Beowulf, prince of the Geats,

hears about Hrothgar's troubles,

gathers fourteen of the bravest Geat

warriors, and sets sail from his home

in southern Sweden. The Geats aregreeted by the members of Hrothgar's

court, and Beowulf boasts to the king

of his previous successes as a warrior,

particularly his success in fighting sea

monsters. Hrothgar welcomes the

arrival of the Geats, hoping that

Beowulf will live up to his reputation.

During the banquet that follows

Beowulf's arrival, Unferth, a Danish

thane, voices doubt about Beowulf's

past accomplishments, and Beowulf,

in return, accuses Unferth of killing

his brothers. Before the night ends,

Hrothgar promises Beowulf great

treasures if he meets with success

against the monster.

Grendel appears on the night

of the Geats' arrival at Heorot.

Beowulf, true to his word, wrestles

the monster barehanded. He tears off

the monster's arm at the shoulder,but Grendel escapes, only to die soon

afterward at the bottom of his snake-

infested mere. The Danish warriors,

who have fled the hall in fear, return

singing songs in praise of Beowulf's

triumph. Hrothgar rewards Beowulf

with a great store of treasures. After

another banquet, the warriors of

both the Geats and the Danes retire

for the night.

Unknown to the warriors,

however, Grendel's mother is plotting

revenge. She arrives at the hall when

all the warriors are sleeping and

carries off Aeschere, Hrothgar's

chief advisor along with her son's

claw. Beowulf offers to dive to the

bottom of the lake, find the monster

and destroy her. He and his menfollow the monster's tracks to the

cliff overlooking the lake where

Grendel's mother lives. They see

Aeschere's bloody head sitting on the

cliff. While preparing for battle,

Beowulf asks Hrothgar to protect his

warriors, and to send his treasures to

his uncle, King Hygelac, if he doesn't

return safely.

Before Beowulf goes into the

sea, Unferth offers him his sword,

Hrunting. During the ensuing battle

Grendel's mother carries Beowulf to

her underwater home. After a terrible

fight, Beowulf kills the monster with a

magical sword, probably put there by


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the Al-Weilder, that he finds on the

wall of her home. He also finds

Grendel's dead body, cuts off the

head, and returns to land, where the

Geat and Danish warriors are waiting

expectantly. Beowulf has now

abolished the race of evil monsters.

The warriors return to

Hrothgar's court, where the Danes

and Geats prepare a feast in

celebration of the death of the

monsters. Beowulf bids farewell to

Hrothgar and tells the old king that if

the Danes ever again need help he will

gladly come to their assistance.

Hrothgar presents Beowulf with moretreasures, and they embrace,

emotionally, like father and son.

The Geats sail home. After

recounting the story of his battles

with Grendel and Grendel's mother,

Beowulf tells King Hygelac about the

feud between Denmark and their

enemies, the Heatho-bards. He

describes the proposed peace

settlement, in which Hrothgar will

give his daughter Freawaru to Ingeld,

king of the Heatho-bards, but

predicts that the peace will not last

long. Hygelac rewards Beowulf for his

bravery with land, swords, and houses.

The meeting between Hygelac

and Beowulf marks the end of the

first part of the poem. In the next

part, Hygelac is dead, and Beowulfhas been king of the Geats for fifty

years. A thief steals a jeweled cup

from a sleeping dragon who avenges

his loss by flying through the night

burning down houses, including

Beowulf's own hall and throne.

Beowulf goes to the cave where the

dragon lives, vowing to destroy itsingle-handedly. He's an old man now,

and he is not as strong as he was when

he fought Grendel. During the battle

Beowulf breaks his sword against the

dragon's side; the dragon, enraged,

engulfs Beowulf in flames and wounds

him in the neck. All of Beowulf's

followers flee except Wiglaf, who

rushes through the flames to assist

the aging warrior. Wiglaf stabs thedragon with his sword, and Beowulf,

in a final act of courage, cuts the

dragon in half with his knife.

Yet the damage is done.

Beowulf realizes that he's dying, that

he has fought his last battle. He asks

Wiglaf to bring him the dragon's

storehouse of treasures; seeing the

jewels and gold will make him feel that

the effort has been worthwhile. He

instructs Wiglaf to build a tomb to be

known as "Beowulf's tower" on the

edge of the sea. After Beowulf dies,

Wiglaf admonishes the troops who

deserted their leader when he was

fighting against the dragon. He tells

them that they have been untrue to

the standards of bravery, courage,

and loyalty that Beowulf has taught.


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Helen of TroyDuring the time when Gods

were "petty and cruel," three of the

leading goddesses had a contest to

determine who was most beautiful.

The prize was Eris' golden apple, anapple no less dangerous than the one

in the story of Sleeping Beauty despite

its lack of consumable poison. To

make the contest objective, the

goddesses hired a human judge, Paris

(also called Alexander), son of the

Eastern potentate, Priam of Troy.

Since Paris was to be paid according

to the largesse of the winner, the

contest was really to see who

provided the most attractive

incentive. Aphrodite won hands

down, but the prize she offered was

the wife of another man.

Paris, after seducing Helen

while a guest in the palace of her

husband, King Menelaus of Sparta,

went blithely on his way back to Troy

with Helen. This abduction and

violation of all rules of hospitality

launched 1000 (Greek) ships to bring

Helen back to Menelaus. Meanwhile,

King Agamemnon of Mycenae,

summoned the tribal kings from all

over Greece to come to the aid of his

cuckolded brother.

Two of his best men -- one a

strategist and the other a great

warrior -- were Odysseus (aka Ulysses)of Ithaca, who would later come up

with the idea of the Trojan Horse,

and Achilles of Phthia, who may have

married Helen in the Afterlife..

Odysseus feigned madness by

plowing his field destructively,

perhaps with mismatched draft

animals, perhaps with salt (a powerful

destructive agent used according tolegend at least one other time -- by the

Romans on Carthage). Agamemnon's

messenger placed Telemachus,

Odysseus' infant son, on the path of

the plough. When Odysseus swerved

to avoid killing him, he was recognized

as sane.

Achilles -- with blame for

cowardice conveniently laid at the

feet of his mother, Thetis -- was made

to look like and live with the maidens.

Odysseus tricked him with the lure of

a peddler's bag of trinkets. All the

other maidens reached for the

ornaments, but Achilles grabbed the

sword stuck in their midst. The Greek

(Achaean) leaders met together at

Aulis where they awaited

Agamemnon's command to set sail.

When an inordinate amount of time

had passed and the winds still

remained unfavorable, Agamemnon

sought the services of Calchas the

seer. Calchas told him that Artemis

was angry with Agamemnon -- perhaps

because he had promised her his

finest sheep as a sacrifice to the

goddess, but when the time came to

sacrifice a golden sheep, he had,

instead, substituted an ordinary one --and to appease her, Agamemnon must

sacrifice his daughter Iphigenia.

Upon the death of Iphigenia,

the winds became favorable and the

fleet set sail. The head of the Greek


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forces, Agamemnon, killed his own

daughter in order to appease the

goddess Artemis, who, angry with

Agamemnon, had stalled the Greek

forces at Aulis. In order to set sail for

Troy they needed a favorable wind,

but Artemis arranged foruncooperative winds until

Agamemnon performed her required

sacrifice. Once Artemis was satisfied,

the Greeks set sail for Troy where to

fight the Trojan War.

Agamemnon did not stay in the

good graces of either of the children

of Leto for long. He soon incurred

the wrath of her son Apollo, thebrother of Artemis. In revenge,

Apollo caused an outbreak of plague

to lay the troops low.

Agamemnon and Achilles had

received Chryseis and Briseis as prizes

of war or war brides. Chryseis was the

daughter of Chryses, who was a priest

of Apollo. Chryses wanted his

daughter back and even offered a

ransom, but Agamemnon refused.

Calchas the seer advised Agamemnon

on the connection between his

behavior toward the priest of Apollo

and the plague that was decimating

his army. Agamemnon had to return

Chryseis to the priest of Apollo if he

wanted the plague to end.

After much Greek suffering,

Agamemnon agreed to therecommendation of Calchas the seer,

but only on condition that he take

possession of the war prize of

Achilles -- Briseis -- as a replacement.

No one could stop

Agamemnon. Achilles was enraged.

The honor of the leader of the

Greeks, Agamemnon, had been

assuaged, but what about the honor

of the greatest of the Greek heroes --

Achilles? Following the dictates of hisown conscience, Achilles could no

longer cooperate, so he withdrew his

troops (the Myrmidons) and sat on the

sidelines.

With the help of fickle Gods,

the Trojans began to inflict heavy

personal damages on the Greeks, as

Achilles and the Myrmidons sat on

the sidelines. Patroclus, Achilles'friend, persuaded Achilles that his

Myrmidons would make the

difference in the battle, so Achilles

let Patroclus take his men as well as

Achilles' personal armor so that

Patroclus would appear to be Achilles

in the battlefield.

It worked, but since Patroclus

was not so great a warrior as Achilles,

Prince Hector, the noble son of

Trojan King Priam, struck Patroclus

down. What even Patroclus' words

had failed to do, Hector

accomplished. The death of Patroclus

spurred Achilles into action and

armed with a new shield forged by

Hephaestus, the blacksmith of the

Gods (as a favor for Achilles' sea

goddess mother Thetis) Achilles went

into battle.

Achilles soon avenged himself.

After killing Hector, he tied the body

to the back of his war chariot, the

grief-maddened Achilles then dragged

Hector's corpse through the sand and


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dirt for days. In time, Achilles calmed

down and returned the corpse of

Hector to his grieving father.

In a later battle, Achilles was

killed by an arrow to the one part of

his body Thetis had held when shehad dipped the baby Achilles into the

River Styx to confer immortality. With

Achilles' death, the Greeks lost their

greatest fighter. The greatest of the

Greek heroes -- Achilles -- was dead.

The 10-year Trojan War, which had

begun when the Greeks set sail to

retrieve Menelaus' wife, Helen, form

the Trojans, was at a stalemate.

Crafty Odysseus devised a plan

that ultimately doomed the Trojans.

Sending all the Greek ships away or

into hiding, it appeared to the Trojans

that the Greeks had given up. The

Greeks left a parting gift in front of

the walls of the city of Troy. it was a

giant wooden horse which appeared

to be an offering to Athena -- a peace

offering. The jubilant Trojans dragged

the monstrous, wheeled, wooden

horse into their city to celebrate the

end of the 10 years of fighting.

That night, while the Trojans

were more than a little comatose from

too much drinking, the Greeks slippedquietly out the trap door Odysseus

had had built in the Trojan horse's

belly. Killing Trojans and setting fire

to the city, they quickly won the war.

Having won the war, the

filicidal King Agamemnon went back

to his wife for the reward he so richly

deserved. Ajax, who had lost out to

Odysseus in the contest for Achilles'arms, went crazy and killed himself.

Odysseus set out on the voyage that

made him more famous than his help

with Troy. And Aphrodite's son, the

Trojan hero Aeneas, set out from his

burning homeland -- carrying his

father on his shoulders -- on his way

to Dido, in Carthage, and, finally, to

the land that was to become Rome.


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A Christmas CarolCharles Dickens

A mean-spirited, miserly old

man named Ebenezer Scrooge sits in

his counting-house on a frigid

Christmas Eve. His clerk, BobCratchit, shivers in the anteroom

because Scrooge refuses to spend

money on heating coals for a fire.

Scrooge's nephew, Fred, pays his uncle

a visit and invites him to his annual

Christmas party. Two portly

gentlemen also drop by and ask

Scrooge for a contribution to their

charity. Scrooge reacts to the holiday

visitors with bitterness and venom,spitting out an angry "Bah! Humbug!"

in response to his nephew's "Merry

Christmas!"

Later that evening, after

returning to his dark, cold apartment,

Scrooge receives a chilling visitation

from the ghost of his dead partner,

Jacob Marley. Marley, looking haggard

and pallid, relates his unfortunate

story. As punishment for his greedy

and self-serving life his spirit has been

condemned to wander the Earth

weighted down with heavy chains.

Marley hopes to save Scrooge from

sharing the same fate. Marley informs

Scrooge that three spirits will visit

him during each of the next three

nights. After the wraith disappears,

Scrooge collapses into a deep sleep.

He wakes moments before the

arrival of the Ghost of Christmas

Past, a strange childlike phantom with

a brightly glowing head. The spirit

escorts Scrooge on a journey into the

past to previous Christmases from the

curmudgeon's earlier years. Invisible

to those he watches, Scrooge revisits

his childhood school days, his

apprenticeship with a jolly merchantnamed Fezziwig, and his engagement

to Belle, a woman who leaves Scrooge

because his lust for money eclipses his

ability to love another. Scrooge,

deeply moved, sheds tears of regret

before the phantom returns him to his

bed.

The Ghost of Christmas

Present, a majestic giant clad in agreen fur robe, takes Scrooge

through London to unveil Christmas

as it will happen that year. Scrooge

watches the large, bustling Cratchit

family prepare a miniature feast in its

meager home. He discovers Bob

Cratchit's crippled son, Tiny Tim, a

courageous boy whose kindness and

humility warms Scrooge's heart. The

specter then zips Scrooge to his

nephew's to witness the Christmas

party. Scrooge finds the jovial

gathering delightful and pleads with

the spirit to stay until the very end of

the festivities. As the day passes, the

spirit ages, becoming noticeably older.

Toward the end of the day, he shows

Scrooge two starved children,

Ignorance and Want, living under his

coat. He vanishes instantly as Scrooge

notices a dark, hooded figure comingtoward him.

The Ghost of Christmas Yet to

Come leads Scrooge through a

sequence of mysterious scenes

relating to an unnamed man's recent


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death. Scrooge sees businessmen

discussing the dead man's riches,

some vagabonds trading his personal

effects for cash, and a poor couple

expressing relief at the death of their

unforgiving creditor. Scrooge, anxious

to learn the lesson of his latestvisitor, begs to know the name of the

dead man. After pleading with the

ghost, Scrooge finds himself in a

churchyard, the spirit pointing to a

grave. Scrooge looks at the headstone

and is shocked to read his own name.

He desperately implores the spirit to

alter his fate, promising to renounce

his insensitive, avaricious ways and to

honor Christmas with all his heart.Whoosh! He suddenly finds himself

safely tucked in his bed.

Overwhelmed with joy by the

chance to redeem himself and

grateful that he has been returned to

Christmas Day, Scrooge rushes out

onto the street hoping to share his

newfound Christmas spirit. He sendsa giant Christmas turkey to the

Cratchit house and attends Fred's

party, to the stifled surprise of the

other guests. As the years go by, he

holds true to his promise and honors

Christmas with all his heart: he treats

Tiny Tim as if he were his own child,

provides lavish gifts for the poor, and

treats his fellow human beings with

kindness, generosity, and warmth.


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A Lost LadyWilla Cather

In a small railroad town of

Sweet Water, on the Western plains,

there lives the finest family, the

Forresters, and Mrs. Forrester isknown far and wide as being an

enchanting hostess. The leaders of

the railroads often stop by the house

and spend an evening there while

passing through Sweet Water.

Niel Herbert, a young boy when

the novel opens, goes to the Forrester

estate in order to play in the marsh

with his friends. While there, an olderboy named Ivy Peters arrives. Ivy sees

a woodpecker and shoots her out of a

nearby tree. He then takes a blade

and slits her eyes, watching as she

flutters around helplessly before

luckily finding her hole in the tree.

Feeling sympathetic, Niel starts to

climb the tree in order to put the bird

out of its misery. Near the top he slips

and falls to the ground, breaking his

arm in the process and knocking

himself out.

Ivy carries him to the Forrester

residence where Niel is cared for by

Mrs. Forrester. He immediately

becomes enchanted by her nice house

and her sweet smell. He does not see

much of her after that until one day,

several years later, she invites Niel and

his uncle, Judge Pommeroy, to herhouse for dinner. At the meal Niel

meets Ellinger, whom he later learns is

Mrs. Forrester's lover, and Constance

Ogden, a young girl who will marry

Ellinger.

Niel starts to spend a lot of

time with the Forresters that winter,

often playing cards up to three

evenings a week. One day a telegramarrives informing Captain Forrester

that a small bank of which he is the

president has declared bankruptcy.

He and Judge Pommeroy leave to take

care of the problem. During their

absence, Ellinger arrives and Niel

accidently spots Mrs. Forrester and

Ellinger together in the house, a scene

that destroys his image of her. When

her husband returns, he announcesthat he has been financially wiped

out. He soon suffers a stroke but

survives, and Niel leaves to go to the

Massachusetts Institute of

Technology.

Two years later Niel is

returning to the town when he

encounters Ivy Peters on the train. Ivy

tells him that he has drained the

Forrester's marsh and turned it into

wheat fields. Once he arrives home,

Niel visits the Forresters. The Captain

has become a fat old man who sits

and watches a sun-dial all day long.

Mrs. Forrester is as beautiful as

always, but she greets Niel as if he

were still a young boy.

Niel is put off by the fact that

Ivy Peters is on the Forrester estatenearly every day, walking around as if

he owns the place. He asks Mrs.

Forrester why she allows Ivy to be so

rude to her, and she tells him that he

is a savvy business man who is


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investing money for so she can get

away from the place.

A few weeks later Niel reads

that Ellinger has married Constance

Ogden and realizes that Mrs.

Forrester will be upset. That night shearrives at his door and makes a long

distance phone call to Ellinger. Niel is

worried that the phone operator will

listen in, and when Mrs. Forrester

starts to get hysterical, he cuts the

phone wire.

Soon thereafter the Captain

suffers another stroke and Mrs.

Forrester is soon unable to care forhim by herself. The local women help

her, eager for the chance to get into

her house and gossip about it. Niel is

offended by the way things are going

and he chooses to postpone his

education for a year in order to take

care of the Forresters.

The Captain dies within a few

months and Mrs. Forrester has the

sun-dial place on his grave. Niel ends

up staying in the town because his

uncle has become sick and needs

someone to take care of the law

offices. Mrs. Forrester soon switches

lawyers from the Judge to Ivy Peters,

thereby severing all her old contacts.

Ivy spends more time at her place than

ever, and she soon get s reputation of

chasing the younger men. Niel

approaches her to ask her to stop,

but she claims that she needs some

company.

A few months later she invites

Niel to a dinner party with some ofthe town's younger men. He

reluctantly goes and watches as the

uncouth boys eat and dine with her.

She then tells them the story of how

she met Captain Forrester as a young

girl. She had been mountain climbing

and fallen, landing in a pine tree with

two broken legs. The Captain rescued

her and he and his men carried her

back to their camp.

Some months later Niel goes to

say goodbye to her before returning

to school. He watches from a

distance as Ivy puts his arms around

her and touches her breasts. Deeply

dismayed, Niel leaves without talking

to her. Some years later he meets one

of his childhood friends. The other

man informs Niel that Mrs. Forrester

moved to California and from there

made her way to Buenos Aires and

married an Englishman. He mentions

that she always had flowers placed on

the Captain's grave each year. When

Niel asks him if she is still alive, he

says that she died three years earlier.


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The Scarlet LetterBy: Nathaniel Hawthorne

Hester is being led to the

scaffold, where she is to be publicly

shamed for having committed

adultery. Hester is forced to wear theletter A on her gown at all times. She

has stitched a large scarlet A onto

her dress with gold thread, giving the

letter an air of elegance. Hester

carries Pearl, her daughter, with her.

On the scaffold she is asked to reveal

the name of Pearl's father, but she

refuses. In the crowd Hester

recognizes her husband from

Amsterdam, Roger Chillingworth.

Chillingworth visits Hester

after she is returned to the prison. He

tells her that he will find out who the

man was, and he will read the truth on

the man's heart. Chillingworth then

forces her to promise never to reveal

his true identity as her cuckolded

husband.

Hester moves into a cottage

bordering the woods. She and Pearl

live there in relative solitude. Hester

earns her money by doing stitchwork

for local dignitaries, but she often

spends her time helping the poor and

sick. Pearl grows up to be wild, even

refusing to obey her mother.

Roger Chillingworth earns a

reputation as a good physician. Heuses his reputation to get transferred

into the same home asArthur

Dimmesdale, an ailing minister.

Chillingworth eventually discovers

that Dimmesdale is the true father of

Pearl, at which point he spends every

moment trying to torment the

minister. One night Dimmesdale is so

overcome with shame about hiding his

secret that he walks to the scaffoldwhere Hester was publicly humiliated.

He stands on the scaffold and

imagines the whole town watching him

with a letter emblazoned on his chest.

While standing there, Hester and

Pearl arrive. He asks them to stand

with him, which they do. Pearl then

asks him to stand with her the next

day at noon.

When a meteor illuminates the

three people standing on the scaffold,

they see Roger Chillingworth

watching them. Dimmesdale tells

Hester that he is terrified of

Chillingworth, who offers to take

Dimmesdale home. Hester realizes

that Chillingworth is slowly killing

Dimmesdale and that she has to help

Dimmesdale.

A few weeks later, Hester sees

Chillingworth picking herbs in the

woods. She tells him that she is going

to reveal the fact that he is her

husband to Dimmesdale. He tells her

that Providence is now in charge of

their fates, and she may do as she sees

fit. Hester takes Pearl into the

woods, where they wait for

Dimmesdale to arrive. He is surprisedto see them, but he confesses to

Hester that he is desperate for a

friend who knows his secret. She

comforts him and tells him

Chillingworth's true identity. He is

furious but finally agrees that they


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should run away together. He returns

to town with more energy than he has

ever shown before.

Hester finds a ship that will

carry all three of them, and it works

out that the ship is due to sail the dayafter Dimmesdale gives his Election

Sermon. But on the day of the

sermon, Chillingworth persuades the

ship's captain to take him on board as

well. Hester does not know how to

get out of this dilemma.

Dimmesdale gives his Election

Sermon, and it receives the highest

accolades of any preaching he hasever performed. He then

unexpectedly walks to the scaffold

and stands on it, in full view of the

gathered masses. Dimmesdale calls

Hester and Pearl to come to him.

Chillingworth tries to stop him, but

Dimmesdale laughs and tells him that

he cannot win.

Hester and Pearl join

Dimmesdale on the scaffold.

Dimmesdale then tells the people that

he is also a sinner like Hester, andthat he should have assumed his

rightful place by her side over seven

years earlier. He then rips open his

shirt to reveal a scarlet letter on his

flesh. Dimmesdale falls to his knees

and dies on the scaffold.

Hester and Pearl leave the

town for a while, and several years

later Hester returns. No one hearsfrom Pearl again, but it is assumed

that she has gotten married and has

had children in Europe. Hester never

removes her scarlet letter, and when

she passes away she is buried in the

site of King's Chapel.


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William TellJohann Christoph Friedrich von Schiller

About seven hundred years ago

the little country of Switzerland was

governed by a man called Hermann

Gessler. He was in the service of theAustrian Emperor, and his harsh ways

had made him very unpopular.

One day a man called Wilhelm

(William) Tell walked into the village of

Altdorf, his little son by his side. He

came from the nearby hamlet of

Brglen, and was reputed to be the

best crossbowman and the best

handler of a boat in the region. Hewas talking to his son and did not see

a hat set atop a long pole that stood

in the marketplace. Suddenly two

soldiers laid hold of him, and asked

him how he dared walk by the

Governors hat without bowing down.

What do you mean? Why

should I bow to an empty hat? said

Wilhelm Tell.

It is Gesslers orders.

Whoever passes by must show their

loyalty to Austria, and bow to his hat.

Those who disobey will be executed.

A crowd had gathered about

the little group, and a low murmur

now went up as a party of men on

horseback clattered into the

marketplace the Governor himselfhad arrived.

What is happening here? said

Gessler. Why have you arrested this

man?

He refuses to pay homage to

your hat, my lord, said the soldiers.

It is Wilhelm Tell, the crossbowman

from Brglen.

Ah, I have heard of your skill

with the crossbow, said Gessler.

Now, let us see if the tales are true.

Take that boy and tie him to yonder

linden tree.

Wilhelm Tell watched in horror

as his son was dragged from him, and

bound to the trunk of the tree.

Now set this apple on his

head, said Gessler. Tell, if you can

split that apple with your arrow I will

spare your life.

When Wilhelm Tell heard these

words he went pale.

I cannot do that, your grace,

he said. What if I miss? I cannot aim

at my own child.

Then he shall be killed in your

sight, said Gessler. Come, I wish to

see a display of your skill.

Slowly Wilhelm Tell drew two

arrows from his quiver, and set one in

his belt. The second he fitted to his

bow, and set it upon his shoulder. Amoment later a loud cheer arose

among the bystanders; the apple had

been pierced through the centre, and

fell in two equal pieces.


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A mighty shot! said Gessler.

But tell me why did you take two

arrows?

If the first arrow had hurt my

child I would have killed you with the

second, said Tell.

The Governors face darkened

with anger.

Indeed? So long as you are at

liberty I am at risk. I will spare your

life, but you shall spend what is left of

it in the prison across the lake.

Guards, seize him!

To the crowds dismay the

soldiers once again laid hold of Tell,

and hustled him down to a boat that

was moored on the lake.

With Gessler on board, they

cast off and set sail for the fortress

in which Tell was to be imprisoned.

Soon, however, a terrible storm arose,

and the Governor and his men began

to lose hope of ever reaching the

opposite shore alive.

Your honour, said one of the

soldiers. This Tell is the best

helmsman in Switzerland. Let us

release him and give him control of

the boat otherwise we will all be

drowned!

Wilhelm Tell agreed to guide

them to safety, and, taking the

rudder, directed the vessel towards a

large, overhanging rock. Suddenly he

made a spring upwards, and caught

hold of the rock. Before Gessler

could recover his wits Tell had pulledhimself up and disappeared.

Cast anchor, cast anchor!

cried Gessler. We cannot let him

escape!

The Governor and his men

disembarked, and set off along the

narrow gully between Kussnacht and

Immensee.

I shall destroy this Tell,

muttered Gessler as he rode along. I

will kill him, and his wife, and his

children

Before he could go any further

an arrow whizzed through the air and

entered his heart. The Governor fell

back, deprived of life, and a figure

with a crossbow appeared for a

moment against the sky.

Wilhelm Tell had freed the

people of Switzerland from their

oppressor, and they hailed him as a

hero. Some even wanted to make him

king, but he refused, and returned to

his peaceful cottage in the mountains.


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Man Without A CountryEdward Everett Hale

Philip Nolan is a young

lieutenant army of the United States,

who develops a friendship with the

visiting Aaron Burr. When Burr istried for treason, Nolan is tried as an

accomplice. During his testimony, he

bitterly renounces his nation, angrily

shouting, I wish I may never hear of

the United States again! The judge

was completely shocked at his

announcement, and on convincing

him, icily grants him his wish, he is to

spend the rest of his life aboard

United States Navy warships, in exile,with no right ever again to set foot on

U.S. soil, and with explicit orders that

no one shall ever mention his country

to him again.

The sentence is carried out to

the letter. For the rest of his life,

Nolan is transported from ship to

ship, living out his life as a prisoner on

the high seas, never once allowed

back in a home port. Though he is

treated according to his former rank,

nothing of his country was ever

mentioned to him. None of the sailors

in whose custody Nolan remains are

allowed to speak to him about the

U.S. and his newspapers are censored.

Nolan is unrepentant at first, but

over the years becomes sadder and

wiser, and desperate for news.

One day, as he is being

transferred to another ship, he

beseeches a young sailor never to

make the same mistake that he had,

Remember, boy, that behindall these

men behind officers and

government, and people even, there is

the Country Herself, youre Country,

and that you belong to her as you

belong to your own mother. Stand byher, boy, as you would stand by your

mother! In his time on one such

ship, he attends a party in which he

dances with a young lady he had

formerly known. He then beseeches

her to tell him something, anything,

about the United States, but she

quickly withdraws and speaks no

longer to him.

Deprived of a homeland, Nolan

slowly and painfully learns the true

worth of his country. He misses it

more than his friends and family, more

than art or music or love or nature.

Without it, he is nothing. Dying, he

shows his room to an officer named

Danforth; it is a little shrine of

patriotism. The Stars and Stripes are

draped around a picture of George

Washington. Over his bed, Nolan has

painted a bald eagle, with lightning

blazing from his beak and claws

grasping the globe. At the foot of his

bed is an outdated map of the Untied

States, showing many of its old

territories that had unbeknownst to

him, been admitted to statehood.

Nolan smiles, Here, you see, I have a

country! The dying man asks

desperately to be told the news ofAmerican history since 1807, and

Danforth finally relates to him almost

all of the major events that have

happened to the U.S. since his

sentence was imposed; the narrator

confesses, however, that I could not


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make up my mouth to tell him a word

about this infernal rebellion. Nolan

asks him to have them bury him in the

sea and have a gravestone placed in

memory of him at Fort Adams,

Mississippi or at New Orleans. When

he is found dead later that day, he isfound to have drafted a suitably

patriotic epitaph for himself. The

epitaph states: In memory of PHILIP

NOLAN, Lieutenant in the army of

the United States. He loved his

country as no other man has loved

her; but no man deserved less at her

hands.


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Romeo and JulietCharles Shakers

There was a large fight

between the Capulets and the

Montagues, two prestigious families in

Verona, Italy. These families havebeen fighting for quite some time, and

the Prince declares that their next

public brawl will be punished by

death. When the fight is over,

Romeos cousin Benvolio tries to

cheer him of his melancholy. Romeo

reveals that he is in love with a woman

named Rosaline, but she has chosen

to live a life of chastity. Romeo and

Benvolio are accidentally invited totheir enemys party; Benvolio

convinces Romeo to go.

At the party, Romeo locks eyes

with a young woman named Juliet.

They instantly fall in love, but they do

not realize that their families are

mortal enemies. When they realize

each others identities, they are

devastated, but they cannot help the

way that they feel. Romeo sneaks into

Juliets yard after the party and

proclaims his love for her. She returns

his sentiments and the two decide to

marry. The next day, Romeo and

Juliet are married by Friar Lawrence;

an event witnessed by Juliets Nurse

and Romeos loyal servant, Balthasar.

They plan to meet in Juliets chambers

that night.

Romeo visits his best friend

Mercutio and his cousin Benvolio but

his good mood is curtailed. Juliets

cousin, Tybalt, starts a verbal quarrel

with Romeo, which soon turns into a

duel with Mercutio. Romeo tries to

stop the fight but it is too late: Tybalt

kills Mercutio. Romeo, enraged,

retaliates by killing Tybalt. Once

Romeo realizes the consequences ofhis actions, he hides at Friar

Lawrences cell.

Friar Lawrence informs Romeo

that he has been banished from

Verona and will be killed if he stays.

The Friar suggests Romeo spend the

night with Juliet, then leave for

Mantua in the morning. He tells

Romeo that he will attempt to settlethe Capulet and Montague dispute so

Romeo can later return to a united

family. Romeo takes his advice,

spending one night with Juliet before

fleeing Verona.

Juliets mother, completely

unaware of her daughter's secret

marriage to Romeo, informs Juliet

that she will marry a man named Paris

in a few days. Juliet, outraged,

refuses to comply. Her parents tell

her that she must marry Paris and the

Nurse agrees with them. Juliet asks

Friar Lawrence for advice, insisting

she would rather die than marry Paris.

Fr. Lawrence gives Juliet a potion

which will make her appear dead and

tells her to take it the night before

the wedding. He promises to send

word to Romeo - intending the twolovers be reunited in the Capulet

vault.

Juliet drinks the potion and

everybody assumes that she is dead

including Balthasar, who immediately


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tells Romeo. Friar Lawrences letter

fails to reach Romeo, so he assumes

that his wife is dead. He rushes to

Juliets tomb and, in deep grief, drinks

a vial of poison. Moments later, Juliet

wakes to find Romeo dead and kills

herself due to grief. Once the familiesdiscover what happened, they finally

end their bitter feud. Thus the

youngsters' deaths bring the families

together. Romeo and Juliet is a true

tragedy in the literary sense because

the families gather sufficient self-

knowledge to correct their behaviour

but not until it is too late to save the

situation.


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BambiFelix Salten

A doe gives birth to a fawn in

the thicket that she names Bambi.

After he learns to walk, Bambi

befriends Thumper, a young rabbit,and while learning to talk he meets

Flower, a young skunk. One day his

mother takes him to the meadow, a

place that is both wonderful and

frightening. There he meets Faline, a

doe-fawn, and his father, the Great

Prince of the Forest. It is also during

this visit that Bambi has his first

encounter with man, who causes all

the animals to flee the meadow.

During a harsh winter, Bambi

and his mother go to the meadow and

discover a patch of new grass,

heralding the arrival of spring. As they

eat, his mother senses a hunter and

orders Bambi to flee. As they run, gun

shots ring out. When Bambi arrives at

their thicket, he discovers his mother

is no longer with him. He wanders the

forest calling for her, but she doesn't

answer. His father appears in front of

him and tells Bambi "your mother can't

be with you anymore," then leads him

away.

In the spring, an adult Bambi is

reunited with Thumper and Flower as

the animals around them begin pairing

up with mates. Though they resolve

not to be "twitterpated" like theother animals in love, Thumper and

Flower each leave with newly found

mates. Bambi is disgusted, until he

runs into Faline and become a couple.

As they happily dance and flirt

through the woods, another buck

appears who tries to force Faline to

go with him. Though he initially

struggles, Bambi's rage gives him the

strength to defeat the older buck andpush him off a cliff and into a river

below.

That night, Bambi is awoken by

the smell of smoke. His Father

explains that Man is in the forest and

they must flee. Bambi goes back to

search for Faline, but she is being

chased by hunting dogs. Bambi finds

her in time and fights off the dogs,allowing Faline to escape. With Faline

safe, Bambi runs but is shot as he

leaps over a ravine. The Great Prince

finds him there and urges him back to

his feet. Together, they escape the

forest fire and go to a small island in a

lake where the other animals,

including Faline, have taken refuge.

At the end, Faline gives birth

to twin fawns, Bambi stands watch on

the large hill, and the Great Prince

silently turns and walks away.


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Great ExpectationsWilliam Dickens


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God Sees The Truth But WaitsLeo Tolstoy

Once there lived a young

merchant named Ivan Dmitri Aksenov

with his family in the land of Vladimir,

who in his younger days lived life tothe fullest by experiencing all the

material things world has to offer.

Until he got married.

One summer, he planned to go

to Nizhny fair but his wife warned him

that she had a bad dream of her

husband-- she dreamt about Ivan that

he returned from the town with hair

of grey. Ivan laughed as if he doesn'tcare and went on the fair.

He travelled half way and met a

merchant, whom he spent the night

drinking tea with and shared an

adjoining room in the inn. Since

Aksenov is not used of sleeping for

long hours he decided to wake up and

continued his journey.

Along the way of his journey,

two soldiers in a troika stopped him,

and began asking questions, for the

merchant he met halfway on his travel

was found dead. Since all evidences

of the crime are pointing Aksenov

guilty he was imprisoned.

Learning the sad fate of

Aksenov, his wife remembered her

dream about Aksenov and wasworried and even considered the

thought of her husband being guilty.

The thought made Aksenov even

sadder.

26 years in prison made

Aksenov a well grounded and God-

fearing man. In spite the fact that his

family has completely forgotten him,he still serves as a Grandpa to the

other prisoners. Then came a new

prisoner named Makar Semyonich.

After months of knowing each

other, Aksenov discovered that

Makar is the one who killed the

merchant whom he was told he

murdered. He was furious with what

he found out but didn't speak oruttered a word about it.

Until one night, Aksenov heard

some earth rolling under where the

prisoners were sleeping. He went out

and saw Makar. Makar told him not

to tell a word about what he had

witnessed or else he will kill him.

When they were led out to

work, a soldier noticed a prisoner

took of some earth off his boots. The

soldier searched for escaping plans

and found the tunnel. Then, they

asked each of them who knew about

this but they denied for they knew

they will be killed before the one who

did it as Makar warned them. Finally,

the governor asked Ivan for he knew

he was a just man. But then Ivan said

it wasn't his right or his will but God'sto tell such name.

Night fell and Makar went to

Ivan. He thanked him and felt sorry

for what he had done to him a long

time ago that made Ivan suffer for all


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this years. He sobbed as well as Ivan

and said that the Lord will forgive

you. Makar said that he will confess

to the governor so that Ivan would be

sent free--back to his home.

Ivan did not want to go out ofprison for he has no family neither

home to back to; rather, he waited

for his last hour to come.

In spite of what they've talked

about, Makar Semyonich confessed

his guilt. But when the order for Ivan

Dmitri Aksenov's release came, he was

already dead.

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