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SUBJECT- ENGLISH LITERATURE, , CLASS- 9, , A SYNOPSIS- THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON, , The Swiss Family Robinson by Johann David Wyss is a book containing the, fictional and episodic adventures of a family of six—a father, a mother, and, four sons. The father's name is William, and he is not only the brave,, knowledgeable leader of the family, but also the narrator of the story. His, wife, Elizabeth, is intelligent and resourceful, evidenced by the fact that she, takes with them a magical bag full of supplies including sewing materials, and seeds. She can also cook a meal out of almost everything, from, porcupine to penguin., William and Elizabeth's oldest son, Fritz, is fifteen years old. While he's, intelligent like his mother, he's also impetuous. He's brave too, and, accompanies William into potentially dangerous situations. After Fritz, there's, Ernest, who is thirteen years old. He's even more intelligent than Fritz, but less, active, and so he doesn't go with William as often as Fritz does. Jack is the, next oldest boy at eleven years old. Bold and thoughtless, Jack is quickthinking. Franz, or Francis, is the youngest member of the Robinson family. He, is only eight years old and typically stays with Elizabeth., Understanding the main characters is crucial to understanding the book, because since the story is episodic, there isn't an overarching plot line., The story begins with the six Robinsons aboard a ship. The ship is in rough seas, during a storm, and the other passengers evacuate the ship, leaving the, Robinsons to survive on their own. William prays for their salvation. After, surviving the night, the family sees a tropical island ahead. They manage to, create a small vessel on which they can reach the island, and fill it with, provisions including food and ammunition. They row toward the island with, two dogs, Turk and Juno, paddling along beside them., Once they make landfall, they construct a camp. Though it's temporary,, William knows they will need a more permanent place to live on the island,, and sets off exploring with Fritz to find out what the island has to offer. For

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their first few days on the island, they focus on securing enough food so that, they won't starve. They return frequently to the ship, where much cargo,, including livestock, survived the storm. The cargo also includes supplies and, tools that allow the Robinsons to live in relative comfort in a permanent, camp, first in a treehouse and then in a cave., In his explorations, Fritz meets Jenny Montrose, a young Englishwoman who, was shipwrecked on another part of the island. Ten years later, Jenny ends, up being the family's salvation when a ship comes in search of her. In the, meantime, those ten years are filled with adventures on the island. Once the, ship comes and offers them rescue, some of the family return to Europe while, others opt to stay on the island. The journal that detailed their ten years of, adventures is published into a book., The Swiss Family Robinson launched a number of adaptations, including, everything from television movies to comic book series and even computer, video games. These adaptations have kept the Robinson family's adventures, alive throughout the years. Johan David Wyss wrote the book with the, intention of imparting upon his four sons the values of resourcefulness and, self-reliance, as well as what he considered to be strong moral values., The title was not meant originally to be about a family with the surname, Robinson. Instead, the title The Swiss Family Robinson is based on the word, Robinsonade, which is a literary genre of fiction based on the adventures of, Robinson Crusoe, a famous fictional explorer created by novelist Daniel, Defoe in 1719. A Robinsonade can be broadly described as a castaway, story, or a story that takes place on a desert island. In cinema, one example, of a Robinsonade story is the movie Castaway, starring Tom, Hanks. Castaway isn't about a family's resourcefulness, but rather one man, a, sole survivor who ends up befriending a volleyball in order to keep his sanity., Johann David Wyss' novel was first published in 1812. In the story, the, Robinsons are sailing through the East Indies on their way to Port Jackson,, Australia. Wyss passed away in 1818, six years after his one and only novel, was published. However, following his death and the publication of The Swiss, Family Robinson, other versions of the story with additional characters and

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adventures were written, and are considered a part of the celebrated, literary experience that is Johann David Wyss' The Swiss Family Robinson., , SOLVE THE QUESTION / ANSWERS FOR THE PASSAGES BELOW, PASSAGE 1:, Over the next few days......to transport material (pg – 6&7), Q1. Uses:, Write what the following were used for by the Robinson Family :, a) Gourds, , b) Grass, , c) knotted rope, , d) Sledge, , Q2. Why did Mother wish to shift the family to a tree house?, Q3. Find the meaning of the following compound words:, a) Armloads, , b) driftwood, , Q4. Pick out conjunction in the following sentences:, a) They set up a tent and softened the floor with grass., b) Elizabeth informed William that she wanted the family to move to a, safer place., Q5. What quality or qualities, according to you, does Elizabeth’s decision to, move to a safer place show?, , PASSAGE 2:, One day , they saw a ship............... Then the ship departed (pg 9 & 10), Q1. Name the following:, a) The person who had inspired the search:, b) The place where the British Vessel was headed towards:, c) The person who wanted to marry Jenny, d) The person who wanted a chances to receive an academic education, Q2. How does the adventure come to a happy end?

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Q3. Find the meaning:, A) Spyglass, B) Savages, C) Crew, D) Survivors, , Q4. Pick out the subordinate clause from the following:, A) They saw a ship which had laid anchor., B) Jenny asked if anyone would support her return to England., Q5. The end of the novel states that Jack & Ernest chose to stay back on the, island instead of returning to England. Can you guess the reasons why they, made this choice?