“The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County” By Mark Twain

Close Read Answer the following Questions in your Read/ Write Notebook

1. Question At the beginning of this FRAME story, what does the narrator’s friend from back East ask him to do?

1. Answer At the beginning of the frame story, the narrator’s friend from back East asked him to look up a man named Simon Wheeler. The friend from the East wanted the narrator to inquire about a cherished friend, Leonidas. W. Smiley.

2. Question What tone or attitude does the narrator display? Which words/phrases best display that tone?

2. Answer The tone suggests annoyance, boredom and sarcasm. Words and phrases such as “bore me nearly to death,” “infernal,” “tedious,” and “useless” tell readers what the narrator’s mood is.

3. Question How does the narrator’s perception of Simon Wheeler begin to change in paragraph 3? (In paragraph 2, he displays a look of “winning gentleness and simplicity…”)

3. Answer In the third paragraph, the narrator describes Simon Wheeler shows as a bit more aggressive than he first seemed. He backs the narrator into a corner and “blockaded” him there.

Who tells the (inner) story about Jim Smiley? 4. Question Who tells the (inner) story about Jim Smiley?

Simon Wheeler tells the story about Jim Smiley. 4. Answer Simon Wheeler tells the story about Jim Smiley.

5. Question In the inner story, it is clear that Jim Smiley is addicted to gambling. Twain uses exaggeration to make Smiley’s gambling humorous. Give two examples.

5. Answer (1st example) One of Twain’s humorous examples of Jim Smiley’s gambling addiction is that Smiley would place a bet on how long it took for a bug to get to its destination. Simon Wheeler says that , “…he would ‘foller’ that straddle-bug to Mexico…”

5. Answer (2nd example) Another funny example of Smiley’s gambling addiction was when he found out that Parson Walker’s wife, who was thought to be dying, was suddenly a much better and on the road to recovery. Smiley placed a bet that she would NOT survive.

6. Question What is it about Jim Smiley’s animals: why did most people usually bet against them?

6. Answer The animals were not what they seemed to be. They looked run-down and lifeless. They did not look like “winners.” (Who else acts differently than we expect, based on our first impression?)

How did Jim Smiley’s bulldog win him money? 7. Question How did Jim Smiley’s bulldog win him money?

7. Answer Smiley’s bulldog won with his “one trick.” He would allow his opponent to get the better of him at the start of the fight. Then he would bite their hind legs until the other dog gave up.

How did Smiley’s bulldog lose his last fight? 8. Question How did Smiley’s bulldog lose his last fight?

8. Answer Smiley’s bulldog lost his final fight because his opponent had no hind legs.

9. Question What was the name of Jim Smiley’s frog? What did Jim train him to do and why is this ironic?

9. Answer The name of Jim Smiley’s frog was Dan’l (Daniel) Webster. It is ironic that he trained him to jump because frogs do that naturally.

10. Question In the jumping frog contest between Dan’l Webster and the stranger’s frog, who won? Why?

10. Answer The stranger’s frog won. While Jim was out trying to catch a frog for the stranger to use in the contest, the stranger filled Dan’l Webster’s mouth with quail shot so that he couldn’t jump.

Now that you have read the entire story, what are some of the themes that emerged?