The Fraid-Susan Price

Summary: In the Jamaican countryside, a lonely girl named Sue lives with her mother. One day, Sue asks to visit a nearby boy to play. Her mother allows it but warns her to return before dark, saying she'll be 'afraid' otherwise. Sue doesn't understand what 'afraid' means. Ignoring her mother's warning, she repeatedly comes home late after playing, claiming she is not afraid. Her mother, determined to teach her a lesson, disguises herself as a ghost using a white sheet to scare Sue. A monkey, known for mimicking humans, copies her by wearing a towel. When Sue sees both figures, she believes they are 'Fraids.' Ironically, her mother ends up being the one frightened by the monkey, and Sue remains fearless, never truly learning what 'afraid' means.

Exercises

A. Questions

1. Why did Sue want to go down the road?

Answer: Sue wanted to go down the road because she was lonely and had no one to play with. She wanted to play with the little boy who lived nearby.

2. Did Sue listen to what her mother told her?

Answer: No, Sue did not listen to what her mother told her. Although she promised to return before dark, she became so involved in playing that she forgot her promise and came home late multiple times.

3. Did Sue's mother get cross with her?

Answer: Yes, Sue's mother got very cross with her. She became angry each time Sue came home after dark, especially because Sue had promised to return before dark but broke her promise.

4. How did the monkeys imitate Sue and her mother?

Answer: The monkeys imitated Sue and her mother throughout the story in amusing ways. When Sue's mother wagged her finger to warn her, the monkeys, watching from the trees, copied the gesture by wagging their fingers at each other. Later, as Sue played with the little boy, dancing and singing, the monkeys mimicked them by dancing too, though they held each other's tails instead of hands. During a game where the children covered their eyes, the monkeys imitated again, sometimes using their hands and sometimes their tails. Whenever Sue's mother became angry and shook her fist, the monkeys also shook theirs. In the end, when the mother dressed up as a ghost using a white sheet to scare Sue, a monkey who had been observing her did the same with a small towel, copying her movements and sounds. Throughout the story, the monkeys faithfully mirrored the actions of Sue and her mother, highlighting their playful and curious nature.

5. How did Sue's mother try to teach Sue a lesson?

Answer: Sue's mother tried to teach her a lesson by scaring her so she would understand what it meant to be afraid. After Sue ignored her warnings and kept coming home after dark, her mother decided to disguise herself as a ghost. She took a large white sheet, hid by the side of the road, and waited for Sue to pass by. When Sue came along, her mother covered herself with the sheet, made it flap, and called out 'Whoo! Whoooo!" to frighten her. The plan was to make Sue feel fear so she would remember to come home before dark in the future. 

6. Did Sue learn her lesson? What do you think?

Answer: No, Sue did not learn her lesson. Even though her mother tried to scare her, Sue wasn't frightened at all - in fact, she thought the "ghost" as a "Fraid" and was more curious than scared. When she saw the monkey imitating her mother, she treated the whole scene as something funny, warning the "big Fraid" that a "little Fraid" was chasing it. In the end, her mother was the one who got scared, while Sue remained fearless and never really understood what it meant to be afraid.

B. Reference to context

Who said the following, when, and to whom?

1. 'I'm not a Fraid.'

Sue said this to her mother when she came home after dark for the first time, explaining that she wasn't scared.

2. 'You'll be afraid.'

Sue's mother said this to Sue after she came home late, warning her that walking in the dark would make her afraid.

3. 'There's another Fraid!'

Sue said this to the ghostly figure (her mother in disguise) when she saw the monkey also pretending to be a ghost.

4. 'Yes, I promise.'

Sue said this to her mother when she asked if she would return before dark.

5. 'Remember!'

Sue's mother said this to Sue before she left to play for the third time, reminding her to come home before dark.

6. 'Whoooo!'

Sue's mother made thins ghostly sound while hiding under the white sheet to scare Sue into learning her lesson.