First Year : The Nightingale and the Rose
The Nightingale and the Rose
A student wanted to find some red roses to give to a girl so that
she would dance with him. But he could not find any red roses at all.
A nightingale heard him. The nightingale believed in love and
wanted to help the student. She flew from rose tree to rose tree looking for a
red rose. None of the rose trees had red roses.
Finally she found a red rose tree, but the cold winter had killed
all of the red roses. The rose tree told the nightingale that she could use her
blood to give life to one red rose. But the nightingale would die.
The nightingale agreed. She pressed her breast into the thorns and
her blood flowed into the rose tree. The nightingale sang her last song and died.
The next day, the student found the red rose. He was happy. He
took it to the girl. But the girl did not want the rose.
The student was angry. He threw the red rose on the ground. He
thought love was a silly thing. He went back to his room where his books were
waiting for him.
2. Section Summary
► Pages 6-11: The student wanted some red roses to give to a
girl, but he couldn’t find any at all. A nightingale heard him and wanted to
help. She asked each rose tree for a single red rose. None of them had roses of
the right color. Then she found a red rose tree, but there were no flowers on
it. The cold winter had killed the red roses.
► Pages 12-15: The nightingale asked the red rose tree how
she could get one red rose. The rose tree said that the nightingale must give
her life to get one. The nightingale agreed, and pressed her breast against the
thorns on the rose tree. She let her blood flow into the tree. The
nightingale’s blood gave life and color to one red rose.
► Pages 16-20: The next day, the student found the red rose.
He took the red rose to the girl to show her how much he loved her. The girl
did not want it. She said that it wouldn’t look good with her dress. The
student threw the rose on the ground and went back to his room.
B. Background and Themes
★ Love: People will do many things for love. But not
many people would give their lives so another person could have a chance at
love. The nightingale wanted the student to experience the love that he was
dreaming about. The nightingale did not know if the girl loved the boy or if
the girl would even accept the rose, but she gave her life anyway so he could
have a chance at love.
★ Sacrifice: People make different kinds of sacrifices
every day, but there is no greater sacrifice than giving one’s life. The nightingale
made the ultimate sacrifice, and she was not afraid to do so.
★ Materialism: Many people are very concerned about material
things like clothes, jewelry, houses, and cars. They place a higher value on
things that are expensive. Things that are simpler or cost less are not as
important to them. The girl preferred jewels to roses. She said that jewels
cost more than roses. What she didn’t realize was that the nightingale paid the
highest price of all for that one rose. It cost more than any jewel in the
world.
► Characters
1. Student
|
2. Nightingale
|
Sad
|
sings songs at night
|
is in love
|
tries to help the student
|
3. Red Rose Tree
|
4. Girl
|
has no roses
has thorns
|
not kind
wants jewels instead of roses
|
A. Preview Questions
1. It is about a bird that wants to help a boy.
2. My favorite kind of flower is the lily.
3. Another story is Cinderella.
B. Review Questions
1. She said she would dance with him
if he gave her red roses.
2. It had white roses.
3. It didn’t have any roses because the cold winter had killed its flowers.
A. Preview Questions
1. It is about the nightingale dying.
2. I would give my life to help my
mother and father.
3. I think it is a very bad idea
because the rose is going to die anyway.
B. Review Questions
1. She wanted one red rose.
2. She gave her blood/her life.
3. She thought love was better than life.
A. Preview Questions
1. It is about what happens when the student gives the rose to the girl.
2. I think love is better because
it is lonely without other people.
3. I would keep the gift for myself
or find someone better to give it to.
B. Review Questions
1. He thought it would bring him the girl’s love.
2. She thought it would not look good with her dress.
3. He threw it onto the ground.
Mini-Quiz!
a. A thing is not necessarily true because a man dies for it.
Ø
A person may be willing
to die for what he or she believes, but that does not mean that
those beliefs are held by others.
b. Practice what you preach.
Ø
People should follow
their own advice.
c. Learn to walk before you run.
Ø
Do not rush into doing
something until you know how to do it properly.
► Challenge
1. He could not find a red rose.
2. It had yellow roses.
3. Thorns stuck in the bird’s breast.
4. She got jewels from another man.
Vocabulary Review
1. The student thought he would be lonely.
2. The nightingale was in the tree above the student.
3. The nightingale thought about the mystery of love.
4. The tree did not have red roses.
5. The cold winter killed the tree’s red roses.
6. The nightingale pressed against the thorns.
7. The thorns stuck in the nightingale’s breast.
8. The student picked the red rose.
9. The girl liked jewels more than flowers.
10. The student thought love was a silly thing.
B.
1. The student could not find any red roses.
2. The nightingale paid a high price for the red rose.
3. The girl did not want the red rose.
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