What isliterature? Literature is any written piece that is of importance. This is your first year of literature studies. Here, you will learn how to review other s written work and analyse the style of writing and the significance thereof. The Billion Dollar Soccer Ball Pre-reading Discuss in class what you think this book is about? The Billion Dollar Soccer Ball is set in Zimbabwe. What do you know about Zimbabwe? Who is the current president of Zimbabwe? What do you know about this person?
Character Sketches What are character sketches? A character sketch is NOT A DRAWING! A character sketch is a written description of a character s personality and traits. Use the things a character says and the way that they behave to assist in drawing conclusions of their personality. Can you write a character sketch of all the main characters in this book? Part one 1. How does Grandpa Longdrop feel about the soldiers at first? Why? (2) 2. Why do you think the soldiers came to this particular village? (1) 3. How did Deo and Innocent escape the killing? (3) 4. Why does Deo have to lie to Innocent about what has happened to their mother and their grandfather? (2) 5. How does Deo stop the Green Bombas from taking Innocent away with them in Bikita? (3) 6. Why does Deo start calling his ball his billion dollar soccer ball? (1) 7. What were the main dangers Deo and Innocent had to overcome whilst travelling from South Africa to Zimbabwe? (3) 8. What is a democracy? How do we know the followers of Zed have no understanding of or respect of a democracy? (3) Total: 18
Part two 1. Why were the local villagers upset with the refugees who worked on the tomato farm? (2) 2. Why do you think Philani helped Deo and Innocent leave the farm? (2) 3. Who lives in the bridge? What are their names, where do they come from, and what do they do? (12) 4. Why did Deo go to Alexandra and leave Innocent at the bridge? (2) 5. How did Deo know that Innocent would be at the bridge after he lost him? (1) 6. Why do you think the local people attacked refugees? How do you feel about how they handled the situation? (3) 7. Imagine you were Deo. Write a journal entry for the night spent at the church grounds before Deo found Innocent. Word count: 80-90 words. (10) Total: 32 Part three 1. What kind of life has Deo been leading for the past 18 months? (3) 2. Why is Deo tempted to run away at the end of chapter 23? (2) 3. When Salie gets the team to tell their stories, how do things change? Why do you think this happens? (3) 4. What did Innocent keep in his Bix-box? Explain the significance of each (18) item. 5. When T-Jay is interviewed by CNN, how has his attitude changed towards refugees (2) 6. Keelan said to Deo, But this is yours... this is what you brought here. She was referring to the soccer ball. Explain what she means. (2) 7. Draw up an advert to create awareness and raise funds for the 2010 Street Soccer World Cup. (10) Total: 40
Post-reading Narration This story is written in the first person, with Deo narrating the story. 1. How does this affect the way we understand and relate to the story? (2) Themes The major theme in this novel is prejudice: How people make judgements about others without having a clear understanding of them beforehand. Prejudice against refugees is called xenophobia. 1. What prejudice does Deo meet: * at the tomato farm? * in Alexandra? * in Cape Town? (9) Happy Endings 1. Why do you think the writer chose to end the story before the final game finishes? (2)
What is drama? Drama refers to all kinds of plays. Plays are written to be acted on stage. So, in other words, a play is a story which is acted out. The word drama comes from the Greek word, which means action. The ancient Greeks watched plays in open-air theatres more than 2000 years ago. Women were not allowed to act in those days, so men had to wear masks for different characters. Today, these marks are the symbols of drama. The picture of the two masks shows a happy face and a sad face. They represent two main kinds of drama that people watched then: comedy and tragedy. Generally speaking, a comedy has a happy ending and a tragedy has a sad ending. Just as there are many different kinds of stories to read, there are many different kinds of plays to watch. Here are some examples: Improvisation- actors get little or no time to prepare for the play. Role Play- actors pretend to be a character and act out a scene. Mime- only facial expression and body language are used in the performance. Masked drama- the main props are masks and the actors use only their voices for expression. Puppet plays- puppets become the characters. Performance poetry- actors act out the story from a poem. Musical- actors use speaking and singing to tell a story. Pantomime- a funny play for children that is usually performed at Christmas. You are going to study a play this term called, Every dog has its day by Helen Brain and Ted Faulkner.
What do you think this play could be about? Prepare to read 1. Study the title Every dog has its day. a) Choose which explanation below explains what this saying means: Every dog has its day of the week. Every dog and person has a time when they can shine. Every dog has a day when they die. b) Use the title and its meaning to predict what you think this play will be about. 2. Plays are all about people and so characterisation is important. a) Look at the character list on the next page and predict who you think the main character will be. b) Make connections between the names and see if your connections are correct as you read the play. 3. Copy 7 of these diagrams below into your books. Fill them in for the following characters as you read the play. Adjectives: Character: Round Flat Proof: Proof: Proof: Protagonist Antagonist Every dog has its day By Helen Brain and Ted Faulkner
The cast Eva Gran Mom Dad Dumi Brent Feroza Learners Mrs Rinquest (class teacher) Professor Ngcobo Mr Lategan Characters The setting The action takes place in a suburban kitchen, a classroom, a principal s office, on a river bank and in a school hall. The setting for the whole play The props Four chairs and a table. (The same five pieces of furniture can be used for the interior scenes placed in different positions. The table can be upturned to represent a rock in the river.) A toy dog (Dachshund size) Files for the school children A large coffee table type book A basket A backpack The list of objects needed The staging The play needs pace and flow, therefore a curtain is unnecessary. Use overhead lighting to isolate characters, such as the grandmother who is the narrator. If possible, an interchangeable backdrop can be created with painted background scenes on boards: the interior of a kitchen with a window, the back wall of a classroom and a scene showing vegetation.
Questions Act 1: Scene 1 1. Where does Act 1 Scene 1 take place? (1) 2. Describe this setting. (2) 3. Describe Eva s character, according to Gran. (3) 4. What do you call the information in brackets and italics? (1) 5. What is the difference between a need and a want? (2) 6. Why won t Eva get a dog? (2) 7. Describe Eva s behaviour when her Dad tells her that she cannot get a dog. (2) 8. Do you think her parents are too strict? Explain. (2) Total: 15 Act 1: Scene 2 1. Describe the setting. (2) 2. Name the characters in scene two. (4) 3. Why was Eva late for class? What is her punishment for being late? (2) 4. What does Mrs Rinquest s sigh tell us? (2) 5. What begins the conflict with Eva and her friends? (2) 6. Are they justified in getting angry with Eva? Why? (2) Total: 14
Act 1: Scene 3 1. Describe the setting (3) 2. Name the new character in this scene. (1) 3. What do Eva s opening lines add to her character? (2) 4. What characteristics of Mr Lategan suit his stereotype of being a principal? (3) 5. What chance does Mr Lategan give to Eva? (2) 6. Give one word to describe Eva s feelings when she left the principal s office. (1) Total: 12 Act 1: Scene 4 1. Why does Eva feel miserable and embarrassed? (1) 2. Why do you think Eva hates Feroza? (2) 3. How did Eva propose to finish the work? (2) 4. Would you lend Eva the book? Why? (2) Total: 7 Act 1: Scene 5 1. Describe the setting. (2) 2. What does Eva decide to do instead of completing her assignment near the river? (2) 3. Why does Eva leave the book behind? (1) 4. What distracts Eva s attention away from completing her assignment? (1) 5. What else has Eva done that is very charitable? (2) 6. What3 things did Eva leave behind? (3) Total: 11
Act 2: Scene 1 1. What did Mrs Rinquest say to Eva s mom on the phone? (2) 2. Why do you think Eva s mom would not let her keep the dog? (2) 3. Eva s mom is exasperated. What does this mean? (2) 4. Is Eva s Gran right to get involved? Why do you say so? (3) 5. Explain the difference in Eva s mom s perspective of the situation compared to Eva s Gran. Why do you think they differ? (3) Total: 12 Act 2: Scene 2 1. What did Eva have to explain that day at school? (2) 2. How do the other children in her group react? Is this fair? (4) 3. How does Mrs Rinquest handle the situation? (2) 4. What did Eva think was happening when she saw her dad s car parking in the parking lot? (2) Total: 10 Act 2: Scene 3 1. Describe the setting. (2) 2. Was Eva really sick? Explain. (3) 3. Why was Professor Ngcobo at the assembly? (3) 4. How did he find Eva? (2) 5. What is the moral of this story? Relate what Eva s Gran says at the end to Eva and the play. (4) Total: 14