Maharashtra Board Class 9 English Unit One Chapter 1.2 A Synopsis The Swiss Family Robinson PDF Download

1.2 A Synopsis - The Swiss Family Robinson

Warming Up!

1. Do you know any stories about people who were lost in uninhabited places and were later rescued? Name them.

2. Think of one of your favourite interesting stories and fill in or draw an outline-chart like the one shown below.

Title of the Story

Climax (The most interesting or exciting point)

Scene 3 | The problem resolved

Scene 2 | Normalcy restored

Scene 1 | End

Change or problem or challenge

Write as many scenes as there are in the story.

Many times, the climax is near the end. A few stories end with a climax to achieve greater effect.

Find the meaning of 'anticlimax'.

3. Divide the class into groups of 4-6. Each group selects for itself, one of the difficult situations listed below. Each group imagine themselves to be in that situation.

(a) marooned on an island

A group of passengers are marooned on an island in the middle of the ocean.

(b) lost in a forest

A group of pilgrims walking through a thick jungle have lost their way.

(c) stranded on the highway

A team of players from an office have got down at the wrong place on a highway at night. It is a lonely spot.

Describe their surroundings in 4-5 sentences.

Write the reactions of the companions using exclamations.

Using your imagination, write what is the only ray of hope for them.

Two members of the group are going out to try to get help. They can take any five things with them. Write what they choose, and why they choose it.

Teacher's Note

This activity helps students think like the Robinson family. In real life, like when people are stuck in floods in Kerala, they use what they have to stay safe.

Exam Trick

Remember: A synopsis means a short summary of the story. It shows the main events in order. Like a movie trailer tells you the whole story in 2 minutes!

Points to Remember

A synopsis is a short outline of a story's main events.
Stories have a beginning, middle (climax), and end.
The climax is the most exciting or interesting part.
Fiction is made-up stories, not real facts.
Good stories teach us important lessons about life.

A Synopsis - The Swiss Family Robinson

The Swiss Family Robinson is a well-known adventure novel that people of many countries have enjoyed for more than two hundred years. It has also been made into graphic novels and films.

The novel, written by the Swiss clergyman Johann David Wyss, is not just an adventure. It aims at teaching young people values like self-reliance, determination, love for your family, co-operation and prudent use of resources. It also has good lessons relevant in natural sciences, good husbandry and even mathematics!

Some elements of the novel do stretch reality to a certain extent - but we must consider that it is a work of fiction and not a fact file. Given below is a synopsis - an outline of its basic story.

William, Elizabeth and their children had been travelling in a ship when the ship was caught in a great storm. The other passengers evacuated without them. William, and his family including the young children Fritz, Ernest, Jack and Franz, were left to survive alone. They weathered the great storm waiting in the ship's hold. The ship survived the night and the family found themselves within sight of a tropical desert island. The next morning, they decided to get to the island they could see beyond the reef. With much effort, they constructed a vessel out of tubs. After they filled the tubs with food and ammunition and all other articles of value they could safely carry, they rowed toward the island. Two dogs from the ship named Turk and Juno swam beside them. The ship's cargo of livestock, guns and powder, carpentry tools, books, a disassembled pinnace, and provisions had also survived.

hold: Here, space in a ship for cargo.

evacuated: left the ship to save themselves.

reef: rocks and sand etc. close to the surface of the sea.

vessel: Here, it means a boat.

kegs: barrels.

pinnace: small boats attached to a ship.

How did the family reach the tropical island?

In what way is a work of fiction different from a fact file?

Teacher's Note

The Robinson family worked together to escape the ship. Just like in India, families help each other during floods or earthquakes.

Exam Trick

Remember: Fiction = made-up story. Fact file = real information. The novel is fun to read, but it is not a true history book!

Points to Remember

A family was on a ship during a great storm.
They reached a tropical desert island safely.
They had dogs, tools, books, and other useful things with them.
The ship's cargo helped them survive on the island.
They were the only ones left from all the passengers.

Over the next few days, William (father) attached the floatable old kegs to one another and built a bow that curved around them. The family had landed successfully on the island. They set up a tent and softened the floor with armloads of grass they cut and spread to serve as their beds. They came to a grove of trees. One tree grew what looked like gourds on its trunk. The father told Fritz, the gourds would make excellent bowls and spoons, and they cut them into various utensils.

After some days, Elizabeth informed William that she wanted the family to move to a safer place. Their current camp was not only exposed but also very dry and hot. If they built a house up in one of the large trees, they would be safe from jackals. She described a perfect tree for the project, one whose trunk was nearly forty feet in diameter. The branches were very long and extended straight out from the trunk, making them perfect platforms for a structure. Later, when determining the height of the lowest branches, the father taught the boys geometry and how to use triangles to measure big objects. He measured a defined distance from the trunk, then he calculated angles using several measured rods, determining that the lowest branch was thirty feet off the ground.

The men knotted a rope at certain intervals and attached pieces of bamboo in each knot. Thus, they created their ladder. Father returned to the beach and collected driftwood, thinking it would be perfect to build a 'sledge,' on runners rather than wheels. Later, they used it to transport materials.

Meanwhile Elizabeth announced that the garden she had been tending was producing healthy plants. Corn, melons, pumpkins, and cucumbers were already growing. The next day, only the father and Fritz travelled to the woods, exploring and finding such exotic plants as one with waxy fruit, from which candles could be made. Fritz discovered a tree exuding a rubbery sap, from which his father claimed that they could make boots.

runners: stripes on which something slides.

Why did Mother wish to shift the family to a tree-house?

Teacher's Note

The mother wanted to keep her family safe. In villages in India, people also build houses higher up to stay safe from animals and floods.

Exam Trick

Remember: Mother = Elizabeth. She was smart and wanted safety. The tree house kept them away from jackals (wild dogs). Safety first!

Points to Remember

The camp was too hot and dry.
Jackals could attack them on the ground.
A big tree had perfect branches for building.
The father taught geometry to the boys.
They made a ladder with rope and bamboo.

This is a preview of the first 3 pages. To get the complete book, click below.