Teaching Companion · Chapter 19 · The Adventures of Pinocchio

This chapter's big question

The Judge listens kindly and almost weeps, yet sends the robbed boy to prison. What is that kind look worth?

The tension The Judge looks like a patient, kind listener, while his order sends the boy who was robbed to jail.

Today's focus

Notice how people in this chapter look and sound, and compare that with what they do: the laughing Parrot and the kind-looking Judge.

Two core ideas

A rough voice can carry a true message: the Parrot laughs at Pinocchio, yet tells him what happened and how money is honestly earned.
The Judge's face and the Judge's order point in different directions: he listens with patience and almost weeps, yet sends the robbed Pinocchio to prison.

The shape at a glance

Pinocchio hurries to the Field of Wonders full of daydreams and finds nothing there. A Parrot tells him the Fox and the Cat took the four gold pieces. Pinocchio reports the robbery to a Judge who listens kindly and then has him thrown into prison. After four months the prison doors are opened to celebrate a victory, and Pinocchio is let out when he says he, too, is a thief.

A way in

Start with the Parrot's laugh. Ask whether it is the kind of laugh that helps or hurts.

Lesson plan

Retell The student tells the chapter back in order: the walk, the empty field, the Parrot, the courthouse, the prison and the way out.

Imitate the author After copying the two sentences, the student says two short sentences in the same pattern about someone listening: how they listen, and how they look.

Debate Take sides on the big question: what is the Judge's kind look worth? Each side uses one line from the chapter.

Purpose Close by asking why the author gives the Judge a kind face and then lets him send Pinocchio to jail.

Easier Read the Judge's scene aloud together and talk through discussion questions 3 and 4 only.

On level Talk through all five discussion questions, then have the student give one critical-thinking answer aloud with two details from the chapter.

Harder Ask the student to compare how the Parrot and the Judge treat Pinocchio, using one quote for each.

Discussion

The Parrot laughs at Pinocchio, then tells him the truth about the gold. Was the Parrot kind or unkind? What makes you think so?Character
What it asks It asks the student to weigh how the Parrot behaves against what he says, and to decide which counts for more.
One reading

Unkind: he laughs at Pinocchio twice and calls him silly.
- Another burst of laughter, even more impertinent than the first, was heard in the quiet field.
- you who are such a little silly as to believe that gold can be sown in a field just like beans or squash
Another reading

Kind: he tells Pinocchio the truth and says he was fooled once himself.
- I, too, believed that once and today I am very sorry for it.
- in order to come by money honestly, one must work and know how to earn it with hand or brain
Listen for
- Looks at how the Parrot speaks and also at what he says.
- Gives a reason, not only the word kind or unkind.
If stuck
- What does the Parrot do when Pinocchio asks what is funny?
- What does the Parrot say he once believed himself?
A strong answer The Parrot is rude and helpful at once. He laughs twice and calls Pinocchio a little silly, which stings. But he also says he believed the same thing once and is sorry for it, and he tells Pinocchio who took the gold. A strong answer says which counts for more, the laugh or the truth, and why.
Pinocchio hears the Parrot and still digs till the hole is as big as he is. Why might he keep digging?Inference
What it asks It asks why Pinocchio trusts the empty hole more than the Parrot's word, and what he hopes to find.
One reading

He does not want to believe he was fooled, so he checks for himself.
- He would not believe the Parrot’s words and began to dig away furiously at the earth.
Another reading

He is frightened, and digging is something he can do right away.
- who was beginning to tremble with fear
- He dug and he dug till the hole was as big as himself, but no money was there.
Listen for
- Uses what Pinocchio does, not only what the Parrot says.
- Says what Pinocchio hopes to find.
If stuck
- What does the Parrot say happened to the four gold pieces?
- What does Pinocchio's body do when he hears it?
A strong answer Pinocchio keeps digging because he cannot yet let the Parrot be right. He would not believe the Parrot's words, so he looks with his own hands. His fear shows too, since he is trembling. A strong answer says why seeing the empty hole himself matters to him, and notices that he digs until the hole is as big as he is before he stops.
The Judge wears spectacles with no glass in them. Why might the author tell us this about him?Author's choice
What it asks It asks the student to think about why the author gives the Judge glasses that cannot help him see.
One reading

The Judge cannot really see Pinocchio's trouble, so he judges badly.
- he wore gold-rimmed spectacles from which the glasses had dropped out
- his eyes had been weakened by the work of many years
Another reading

The spectacles are only for show, to make him look wise.
- The reason for wearing these, he said, was that his eyes had been weakened by the work of many years.
- A flowing white beard covered his chest
Listen for
- Connects the spectacles to what the Judge does later.
- Says what the author may want us to notice, not only what the spectacles are.
If stuck
- What are spectacles for?
- What reason does the Judge give for wearing them?
A strong answer The spectacles have no glass, so they cannot help anyone see, yet the Judge says he wears them because his eyes are weak. One reading is that he cannot truly see what is in front of him. Another is that the spectacles are only for show, like the white beard, to make him look wise. A strong answer picks one and says what it would explain about how he handles Pinocchio's case.
Pinocchio gave the Judge the robbers' names. Why might the Judge send Pinocchio to prison anyway?Inference
What it asks It asks why a Judge who has heard the whole story still punishes the one who was robbed, and what the Judge may be thinking.
One reading

He thinks Pinocchio is a fool who brought it on himself, since he calls him a simpleton.
- This poor simpleton has been robbed of four gold pieces. Take him, therefore, and throw him into prison.
Another reading

He is playing the part of a Judge, with a bell, officers and a solemn voice, and is not thinking about Pinocchio.
- At the sound, two large Mastiffs appeared, dressed in Carabineers’ uniforms.
- said in a very solemn voice
Listen for
- Uses the Judge's own words in the sentence.
- Gives a reason for the sentence, even if it is a guess.
If stuck
- What does the Judge call Pinocchio?
- Who was robbed, and who is sent away?
A strong answer The Judge's own words give one clue: he calls Pinocchio a poor simpleton and then says “therefore,” as if being fooled is the reason for the sentence. Another guess is that he is playing a Judge, with a bell, officers and a solemn voice, without thinking about the boy. The chapter does not say which. A strong answer chooses a reason and points to the Judge's words or actions for it.
The Jailer takes off his cap and bows low when Pinocchio says he is a thief. Is that funny, sad, or both? What makes you think so?Tone
What it asks It asks the student to name the mood of the last scene and to say what in the scene makes it that way.
One reading

Funny: the Jailer who said “Not you” now bows like a servant.
- “Not you,” answered the Jailer.
- Taking off his cap, he bowed low and opened the door of the prison
Another reading

Sad: Pinocchio gets out only by calling himself a thief, after being jailed for being robbed.
- “I beg your pardon,” interrupted Pinocchio, “I, too, am a thief.”
- There he had to remain for four long, weary months.
Listen for
- Names a feeling and points to a word or an action.
- Notices that the answer can be both.
If stuck
- What does the Jailer say first, and what does he do after Pinocchio speaks?
- What was Pinocchio put in prison for?
A strong answer It can be both. It is funny that the Jailer who says “Not you” bows low the moment Pinocchio calls himself a thief. It is sad because Pinocchio was jailed after being robbed, and gets out only by saying he is a thief, then runs off with never a look backward. A strong answer names the mood or moods and points to one action or word.

Critical thinking

On the walk to the field, Pinocchio dreams of a palace and a thousand wooden horses. Using two details, tell why he is so sure the gold is there.
What it asks It asks the student to see how much Pinocchio wants the gold, and how that wanting makes him sure.
One reading

His daydream keeps growing, so there is no room in it for finding nothing.
- What if, instead of a thousand, I should find two thousand?
- Or if, instead of two thousand, I should find five thousand
Another reading

He wants it so badly that his whole body races toward it.
- his heart beat with an excited tic, tac, tic, tac, just as if it were a wall clock
- If the Marionette had been told to wait a day instead of twenty minutes, the time could not have seemed longer to him.
Listen for
- Two different details, not one told twice.
- A reason that links each detail to how sure he is.
If stuck
- What does Pinocchio picture himself building?
- What does his heart do while he walks?
A strong answer Pinocchio is sure because wanting has taken over. His daydream grows from a thousand to two thousand to five thousand, so there is no room in it for the empty field. His heart ticking like a wall clock, and twenty minutes feeling like a day, show how badly he wants it to be true. A strong answer uses two different details and says how they make him sure.
Pinocchio begs the Judge for justice. Using two details from the courthouse, tell why Pinocchio might expect help.
What it asks It asks the student to say what makes Pinocchio hopeful at the courthouse: the Judge himself, or the Judge's job.
One reading

The Judge's manner promises help: he listens closely and is moved.
- A kind look shone in his eyes.
- he felt moved; he almost wept
Another reading

A Judge is who you go to when you are robbed, so Pinocchio expects help from the job.
- he ran to the city and went straight to the courthouse to report the robbery to the magistrate
- He gave the names and the descriptions of the robbers and begged for justice.
Listen for
- Two different details, not one told twice.
- Says whether the hope comes from the Judge's face or from his place.
If stuck
- What does the Judge's face look like while Pinocchio talks?
- Where does Pinocchio run, and why?
A strong answer Pinocchio has two reasons to hope. The Judge listens with great patience, a kind look in his eyes, and almost weeps. And going to a magistrate about a robbery is what a robbed person should do, so Pinocchio runs straight to the courthouse and begs for justice. A strong answer picks the stronger reason and backs it with two details.
The Parrot says anyone who catches the Fox and the Cat is a brave one. Using two details, tell whether Pinocchio does anything brave.
What it asks It asks the student to decide what counts as brave for Pinocchio, and to back the choice with two moments.
One reading

Yes: he runs to report the robbery and speaks up to the Jailer.
- In desperation, he ran to the city and went straight to the courthouse to report the robbery to the magistrate.
- “If the others go, I go, too,” said Pinocchio to the Jailer.
Another reading

No: he trembles with fear and never goes after the robbers himself.
- who was beginning to tremble with fear
- If you can catch them, you’re a brave one!
Listen for
- Says what brave means before choosing.
- Two different details, not one told twice.
If stuck
- What does Pinocchio do after he learns the gold is gone?
- What does his body do when the Parrot first explains?
A strong answer A strong answer says what brave means first. If brave means acting while afraid, then running to the courthouse to report the robbers and speaking up to the Jailer count, even though he was trembling. If brave means catching the thieves, he does not do that at all. Either answer needs two different moments from the chapter.