Pirates

Character Sketcher

Captain Nick: (character traits) Ferocious, Evil, Daunting, Intimidating, burly. The words in the passage that were my context clues were “the sailors hurried up the rigging as if the devil himself had given the order”. This statement from the book is referring to Captain Nick’s orders to the crew and how they responded. Also, “When the captain glowered at me, I felt a sudden chill…” states that the captain made Jack feel uncomfortable and scared.

On page 17 in the book Captain Nick acts unlawfully towards a sailor because he was hung over and accused the innocent man of not working hard enough.

On page 19 Captain Nick is a heartless unforgiving man. He is very superstitious and heartless for desiring to flog a young boy. Captain Nick is also a murderer for ordering a man to be flogged then set alone on the ocean tied up in a small boat, barely alive. Whew, I am glad I am not a pirate! Captain Nick acts intolerable because of poor Jack’s mistake of dropping a wooden bucket into the ocean.

Uncle Will is a hero and brave. Uncle Will sacrifices his own life to spare his nephew’s. Uncle Will is also a dead man now. Uncle Will acts courageous because he wanted to spare Jack’s life of the dreadful Captain Nick.

Here is my artistic impression of Captain Nick (He is supposed to look like he is snarling and I have him dreadlocks and earrings. I imagine him being fat because of his alcohol problem so that’s why his cheeks are so large.)

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DED

Quote: “if you can put up with old Captain Nick!” (p.7) Inference: I think that this means that Captain Nick is a harsh captain and that Jack and his Uncle Will better be wise before signing their name to the crew book.

Quote: “I was thrice tipped out of my hammock before I learned how to climb into it.” (p.10) Connection: This reminds me of how I was when I climbed into my first hammock. I know I fell out a couple times before I could climb in and out with ease. Hammocks can be tricky to move in at times so I understand what Jack was going through plus he was at sea meaning he wasn’t very stable anyways because of the waves. I would have gotten motion sickness for sure!

Picture on the top of page 15 and Quote: “I discovered a dozen little white worms that had made tunnels into it (his biscuit)” (p. 15) Inference: I think that these little white worms are maggots. Abraham, the chef’s son, told Jack to eat them in the dark or to tap them on the deck because it will knock the worms out. That is  disgusting and I would not be able to eat a biscuit with maggots in it!

Quote: “…the poor seaman was forced to whip until his friend’s blood sprayed upon the deck.” (p. 17) Question: Why in the world would Captain Nick enforce such a brutal beating upon a shipman? The Captain is merely a drunk and is only punishing someone out of his own insecurities to make himself feel more worthy because he can control the ship even when he is mentally out of it. I cannot believe that Captain Nick has such a black heart towards his seamen.

 

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Vocabulary for Sections I and II

1)  Describe a time when you showed pity for something or someone. I felt pity for someone when they tripped and fell in the cafeteria at school.

2)  Describe a time when you felt glum. I felt glum whenever I was getting over the flu and wanted to go outside and play but I couldn’t because I was sick.

3)  What has recently baffled you?  Explain. I was recently baffled when I went to the Apple Festival in Wilkesboro and I saw tons of young babies being carried by their mothers and the babies were not wearing anything to protect their skin/face from the sunshine. The poor babies faces were apple red and they looked as if they were going to pass out because of the heat.

4)  Give an example of contraband aboard the Greyhound. How did the crew feel about contraband? A few examples of contraband on the Greyhound is smuggled goods such as lace, brandy, molasses. The crew is definitely in favor of contraband because they don’t think that they should pay taxes on things since the tax collectors care nothing about them anyways.

5)  Have you ever been full of fury or furious? Describe it. I have been full of fury. I became furious whenever I saw a bully picking on a younger student. I do not like it when people make fun of other so I because furious and went over and told that person to stop picking on that person and to grow up!

6)  Name a time when you felt gloomy. Why were you gloomy? I was gloomy when it was raining outside and my family and I had planned on camping but we could not because of the thunderstorm. I was gloomy because I was disappointed that I could not go camping with my Mom, Dad and two older brothers.

Do you know of a place that you think is gloomy? I think that caves are gloomy because they are so dark, wet and scary!

7)  When did you last feel fortunate? I last felt fortunate when I played my guitar at home and began to think about what a gift I was given to play the guitar and sing praise and worship music.

When have you or someone you know been in an unfortunate situation? I was in an unfortunate situation when my lung collapsed twice last year for an unknown reason. I do not smoke and am active but all the doctors could tell me was that it is common is tall/skinny people.

8)  Describe something that is grimy. How did it get that way? The basement of my house is grimy because we had a mold issue that we are trying to resolve with our landlord. The mold smells really disgusting and developed on our boxed up things downstairs which resulted in me cleaning the grim off of everything one Saturday afternoon.

Synonyms and Antonyms

Synonym	Word	Antonym
sympathy; compassion	pity	dislike; disgust; contempt
Hinder, prevent	baffle	Prevented, understandable
discouraged, disappointed	glum	Excited, elated
Blue, mellow	gloomy	Bright, thrilled
Disgusting, dirty	grimy	Clean, perfect

Forms of a Word

Noun	Verb	Adjective	Adverb
bafflement	baffle	baffled; baffling	bafflingly
fury	furies	furious	furiously
Pitiful	pity	pitied	pitifully
fortune	fortunate	fortunes	fortunately

Making Choices

Directions: Tell whether each item or scenario is a description of the vocabulary word given.  If so, say the word.  If not, don’t say anything.

1)  If any of the situations I describe might cause defiant behavior, say “I would defiantly oppose.”  If not, don’t say anything.

• A little child drawing on your bedroom walls- I would defiantly oppose
• Ice cream being offered BEFORE dinner
• A parent refusing to feed you dinner- I would defiantly oppose
• A thief trying to steal your dog- I would defiantly oppose

2)  If any of the situations I say could cause you to act grudgingly, say “I would grudgingly comply.”  If not, don’t say anything.

• Your mom has asked that you let your little brother play with your new toy- I would grudgingly comply
• You have an opportunity to go to the beach and take a friend along
• You are asked to go to bed an hour early because you have a big game to play the next day

3)  If any of the things I say could be mournful, say “mournful.”  If not, don’t say anything.

• Your mom buying you a present
• Your pet dying- mournful
• Running into your teacher at the grocery store
• Losing a race by 1 second or a game by 1 point- mounrful
  

4)  If any of the things I say are idle behaviors, say “idle.”  If not, don’t say anything.

• Watching TV-idle
  
• Washing the dishes
• Sitting on the sofa- idle
  
• Running a race

5)  If any of the situations I describe may cause your disapproval, say “ I disapprove.”  If not, don’t say anything.

• A friend coming over to play
• Your little brother or sister being allowed in your room when you are not there- I disapprove
  
• Giving all of your belongings away- I disapprove
• Eating oatmeal for breakfast, lunch and dinner for an entire week- I disapprove

Synonyms and Antonyms

Synonym	Word	Antonym
saddened	mournful	jubilant
disrespectful	defiant	obeying
sour, gross	bitter	sweet, tasteful
glad, appreciative	reluctant	unlucky
rejected	disapprove	accepted, approved

Learning Common Prefixes

Write short definitions for these words. Use your context clues and what you know about word parts to help you write the definition:

Word	Page and Paragraph Number	Definition
disappointed	p. 7 par. 6	to be upset about something that you thought would happen
disagree	p. 32 par. 2	to not agree with something someone did or said
disapproves	p. 35 par. 2	to not approve of something that someone does or said
disappear	p. 35 last par.	to not be seen as if it were magic or to move away quickly

What does the prefix “dis-“  mean? The prefix “dis” means “not” or “do not”

You are searching for the treasured prefix dis-. As you read, ANY MATERIALS, write down all words you find that begin with the prefix dis-. dissatisfaction, disarray, distressed

Vocabulary Activities Section II Pirate Diary

Learning Common Prefixes

Write short definitions for these words. Use your context clues and what you know about word parts to help you write the definition:

Word	Page and Paragraph Number	Definition
unfurled	p. 12 last par.	to unlatch, or unleash
unload	p. 13 par. 2	to take out or remove from
unlucky	p. 19 par. 2	to not be with luck
unexpected	p. 46  par.2	taken by surprise, did not see it coming

What does the prefix “un-“  mean? The prefix “un” means “to not be” or “not”

You are searching for the treasured prefix un-. As you read, ANY MATERIALS, write down all words you find that begin with the prefix un-. Unnecessary, unseen, uninvolved

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Discussion Director

1. Why did the Greyhound ship slow its course resulting in their capture? (pg. 21)

A: A sailor aboard the foreign ship shouted that they needed water so Captain Nick agreed to give them a barrel.

2. What do you think Jack was going through when Adam asked for his help with Ahab? Would you have agreed to help Adam if you were Jack? (pg. 27)

A. I think that Jack was scared to death and regretted his decision to help Adam. If I were Jack I would have thrown up because of the blood and the sawing of Ahab’s leg! EW!

3. Since the pirates who invaded the Greyhound found Jack spying on them talking about Captain Nick but they did no harm to him, what kind of character traits do they have on Jack? (pg. 29)

A. I think that they are hard on the outside but on the inside they could never hurt little Jack. They also said that Jack is the Carpenter’s lad meaning that they must know his father so I do not think that they are as mean as Captain Nick.

4. If you were a member of the company which man would you choose to be your Captain, Noah or Ben? (pg. 32)

A. I would choose Noah because he was already the first mate and knew the round abouts of the ship. I think that Noah is more rational and would make a great Captain.

5. What is careening and why did it take the company two weeks to accomplish this task? (pg. 36)

A. Careening a ship means that the sailors clean off all the barnacles and grim that had gotten caked on the ships bottom. The ship would have to be anchored in shallow waters so that the sailors could get it super clean and coat the wood with a mixture of grease and brimstone to protect the wood.

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I Poem for Blackbeard

I am bold and brutal

I wonder if I will ever capture more gold than sugar

I hear the men complaining about me

I see myself as the best pirate in the ocean’s seas

I want everyone to fear me

I am bold and brutal

I pretend that other pirates fear me even if they don’t

I feel like shooting something…or someone

I touch the braids of my beard

I worry about nothing because I am fearless

I cry about nothing

I am bold and brutal

I understand that I am the most feared pirate

I say ARRRG!

I dream about capturing the largest treasure yet

I try to be as harsh as possible so others will fear me

I hope that my beard never catches on fire

I am bold and brutal

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I Poem for Blackbeard #2

I am Blackbeard the pirate. Some call me Edward Teach, others call me a devilish fiend, but nonetheless I am the fiercest pirate on the ocean’s seas

I wonder any of my 14 wives will find out about the other 13 women I love

I hear the 40 canons that my beautiful ship shoots to catch my plunder

I see many men trembling at the sight of my jolly roger, not to mention at the sight of me and me ferocious beard

I want all those who oppose me to die of a marooning

I am Blackbeard the pirate. Some call me Edward Teach, others call me a devilish fiend, but nonetheless I am the fiercest pirate on the ocean’s seas

I examine the ocean’s tides to determine which way ‘Queens Ann’s Revenge’ will sail and whose ships I will conquer

I notice that the four ships I command make me the most feared pirate not to mention to my company but also to those who go up against me

I create a plan to get away from Stede Bonnet because he wants to become a privateer, that traitor

I worry that because I have chosen a lifestyle of a regular citizen that I will loose view of who I actually am

I cry about nothing because I fear nothing

I am Blackbeard the pirate. Some call me Edward Teach, others call me a devilish fiend, but nonetheless I am the fiercest pirate on the ocean’s seas

I understand that to be a ‘regular citizen’ that I should act a certain way but I think that is idiotic because I cannot change who I am just because of where I live, I am Blackbeard!

I say in October at my home at Ocracoke that all my pirate friends and foes should have a week long party with me.

I dream about becoming a pirate again and sailing along the tide, commanding three hundred men and capturing plunder

I try to be a ‘regular citizen’ however I am unable to meet the standard. What can I say, I am a pirate by blood

I hope that even after I die whether in battle or in sleep that people and pirates will remember me as Blackbeard, the most vicious pirate that ever lived

I am Blackbeard the pirate. Some call me Edward Teach, others call me a devilish fiend, but nonetheless I am the fiercest pirate on the ocean’s seas