Hatchet
Chapter 20 — Teaching Companion
Gary Paulsen · Trailblazers 4th–6th
Coaching, not a script — and not an answer key: every question here has more than one defensible answer.
This chapter's big question
Brian comes home changed for good, yet he never tells his father the Secret. Does that silence show how much he changed, or how much stayed the same?
The tension The epilogue says many of Brian's changes were permanent, including thinking before he speaks, while the one thing he cannot bring himself to say is exactly what he carried before the plane.
Today's focus
Notice what the epilogue says lasted for Brian, and what it says did not change.
Two core ideas
- Brian is changed for good: he observes and reacts better, thinks before he speaks, and never loses his wonder at food.
- Not everything changes: things went back to normal at home, and Brian never says a word about the Secret.
The shape at a glance
The epilogue tells how the pilot came to be at the lake, how long Brian was there, and what it did to his body. It lists the changes that lasted, the real names of the things Brian had seen, the press and the dreams, and what a winter would have been like. It ends with his family back to normal and Brian never telling his father the Secret.
A way in
Start with the last sentence. Ask what Brian tried to do, and what he did in the end.
Lesson plan
Retell The student tells the epilogue back in order: the pilot, the fifty-four days, the changes, the research, the dreams, the winter, and the family.
Imitate the author After copying the passage, the student writes two sentences in the same pattern: something a person gained, with a semicolon and how long it will last, then another thing they became.
Debate Take sides on the big question: does Brian's silence show how much he changed, or how much stayed the same? Each side must use at least one quote from the chapter.
Purpose Close by asking why Paulsen ends the book on something Brian does not say.
Easier Read the last two paragraphs aloud together and talk through discussion questions 3 and 4 only.
On level Talk through all five discussion questions, then have the student write one critical-thinking answer with two pieces of evidence from the chapter.
Harder Ask the student to find one more place in the epilogue where something lasts and something does not, and to add it to a critical-thinking answer.
Discussion
- The epilogue says many of Brian's changes would last. Which one do you think matters most for him, and why?Character
What it asks It asks the student to rank the lasting changes and give a reason, so the answer shows what the student thinks Brian needs most.
One reading
The sharper way of seeing and reacting matters most, since it will last him all his life.
Brian had gained immensely in his ability to observe what was happening and react to it; that would last him all his life.
Another reading
The habit of thinking before speaking matters most, because it changes how he deals with people.
He had become more thoughtful as well
from that time on he would think slowly about something before speaking
Listen for
- Names one change and gives a reason.
- Says what the change would let Brian do.
If stuck
- What does the epilogue say Brian gained in his ability to observe?
- What does he do before speaking from then on?
A strong answer Both changes are named as lasting. Seeing and reacting quickly would help him anywhere, and the chapter says it would last all his life. Thinking slowly before speaking changes how he meets people. A strong answer picks one, says what it lets Brian do, and gives the chapter's words as support.
- Paulsen closes with an epilogue of numbers, names and facts. Why might he end the book that way instead of with another scene?Author's choice
What it asks It asks what the plain, factual voice does for the ending, and why the author steps back from the story.
One reading
The facts make the story feel real and let the reader see what the lake cost and gave.
When the pilot rescued Brian he had been alone on the L-shaped Lake for fifty-four days.
During that time he had lost seventeen percent of his body weight.
Another reading
The calm tone makes the last line, about what Brian never says, stand out more.
but in the end never said a word about the man or what he knew, the Secret.
Listen for
- Says what the facts do for the reader, not only that they are facts.
- Compares the tone of the opening lines with the last line.
If stuck
- What kinds of facts does the epilogue give?
- How does the last sentence sound after all the facts?
A strong answer The numbers, names and facts make the story seem real: fifty-four days, seventeen percent of his weight. They also make a quiet frame, so the last sentence, about what Brian never says, comes after all that plain telling and stands alone. A strong answer says what the voice does for the reader and gives a line to show it.
- For a week it looked as if his mother and father might get back together, but "things rapidly went back to normal." What does that tell us about what the rescue could change?Theme
What it asks It asks what a rescue can and cannot do, using what the epilogue says about Brian's family afterward.
One reading
The rescue changed Brian, but not the grown-ups' lives, which went on as before.
things rapidly went back to normal
continued to see the man in the station wagon
Another reading
It did change something, but only for a while.
for a week it looked as if they might actually get back together
His father returned to the northern oil fields, where Brian eventually visited him
Listen for
- Names what changed and what did not.
- Notices the words "for a week."
If stuck
- What does the epilogue say happened for a week?
- What do his mother and father each do after that?
A strong answer For a week the rescue seemed to pull the family together, but then things went back to normal: his father returned to the northern oil fields and his mother stayed in the city and kept seeing the man in the station wagon. So the rescue changed Brian and changed the family for only a short time. A strong answer says what a rescue can and cannot change, with a line from the chapter.
- Brian tries several times to tell his father and never does. What might have held him back?Inference
What it asks It asks the student to give a reason for Brian's silence from what the epilogue shows, knowing the chapter does not state one.
One reading
His new habit of thinking before speaking may have held him back: he weighs it every time and decides against.
from that time on he would think slowly about something before speaking
came really close once to doing it
Another reading
The Secret is still too heavy to say, and nothing at home has changed to make it easier.
but in the end never said a word about the man or what he knew, the Secret.
things rapidly went back to normal
Listen for
- Offers a reason and says what in the chapter supports it.
- Notices that the epilogue does not say why.
If stuck
- How many times does Brian try?
- What does the epilogue say he does about the man in the end?
A strong answer The epilogue says only that Brian tried several times, came really close once, and in the end never said a word. A strong answer can offer a reason, such as thinking before speaking or the Secret being too heavy, and says what in the chapter supports it, while admitting the chapter does not give the reason.
- After the rescue, Brian sometimes wakes and sits thinking of the lake, and it "was not bad and would never be bad for him." Why might that be?Tone
What it asks It asks why memories of such a hard place feel peaceful to Brian, and what that shows about how he sees what happened.
One reading
The memories are of living things and quiet, so they are peaceful.
think of the lake, the forest, the fire at night, the night birds singing, the fish jumping
Another reading
He faced the worst there and came through, so the place no longer frightens him.
They were not nightmares, none of them were frightening
it was not bad and would never be bad for him
Listen for
- Names what Brian remembers about the lake.
- Says why the memory is not frightening.
If stuck
- What does the epilogue say the dreams are not?
- What does Brian think of when he sits up in the dark?
A strong answer The dreams are not nightmares, and what Brian thinks of is the lake, the forest, the fire, the night birds and the fish. That is a calm list. It may be peaceful because the memories are of a quiet place, or because he knows he got through the hardest days there. A strong answer says why it feels that way and uses the chapter's words.
Critical thinking
- Brian looks up the names of what he saw at the lake. Using two pieces of evidence, explain how well he understood the place.
What it asks It asks the student to weigh what Brian had worked out on his own against what he did not know until he did research.
One reading
He understood a good deal: his guesses held up.
the turtle eggs were laid by a snapping turtle, as he had thought
the wolves were timber wolves, which are not known to attack or bother people
Another reading
He knew the things but not their names, and had given them his own.
Gut cherries were termed choke cherries, and made good jelly.
the foolbirds were ruffed grouse (also called fool hens by trappers, for their stupidity)
Listen for
- Two separate pieces of evidence, not one told twice.
- Separates what Brian knew from what he did not.
If stuck
- Which of his guesses does the epilogue say was right?
- What names did Brian give things that turned out to be different?
A strong answer Brian understood more than he knew: he had thought the eggs were a snapping turtle's, and the wolves he met do not usually bother people. But he had his own names for things, gut cherries and foolbirds, and the real names were choke cherries and ruffed grouse. A strong answer says how well he understood the place and uses two different moments.
- The epilogue says how the pilot came to be at the lake. Using two pieces of evidence, explain how much of the rescue was Brian's doing and how much was chance.
What it asks It asks the student to weigh what Brian did to bring the pilot against the reasons the pilot was there at all.
One reading
Brian drew the pilot himself, without knowing it.
drawn by Brian when he unwittingly turned on the emergency transmitter and left it going
Another reading
Chance mattered most, because the pilot was on a trip for another reason.
The pilot who landed so suddenly in the lake was a fur buyer mapping Cree trapping camps for future buying runs
Listen for
- Says what Brian did and what he did not know he did.
- Says what the pilot was doing there.
If stuck
- What was the pilot's job?
- What had Brian done with the transmitter?
A strong answer The pilot was a fur buyer mapping Cree trapping camps, so he was in the area for another reason. But he was drawn to the lake by the transmitter, which Brian turned on without knowing and left going. A strong answer weighs both and says which seems larger, with two different moments.
- The epilogue imagines Brian staying into winter. Using two pieces of evidence, explain why it says that would have been very hard.
What it asks It asks the student to find two reasons the epilogue gives for a winter being hard, and to notice that they are about different things.
One reading
Winter would take away his fish and his ability to move.
When the lake froze he would have lost the fish, and when the snow got deep he would have had trouble moving at all.
Another reading
Winter would take away the game, since predators sweep through.
in winter it gets scarce and sometimes simply nonexistent as predators (fox, lynx, wolf, owls, weasels, fisher, martin, northern coyote) sweep through areas and wipe things out
Listen for
- Two separate pieces of evidence, not one told twice.
- Says what Brian would lose in each.
If stuck
- What happens to the lake in winter?
- What happens to the game when predators come through?
A strong answer The epilogue gives two reasons. The lake would freeze and he would lose the fish, and deep snow would make it hard to move at all. Game also gets scarce in winter because predators sweep through and wipe things out. A strong answer says why winter would be so hard and uses two different moments.