“The People Could Fly” uses the magical ability of flight to represent true freedom. Although the Master is able to imprison the people physically, he is unable to confine them spiritually or mentally. Summary Main. Story.
Where does the short story The People Could Fly come from?
Lesson Summary
Virginia Hamilton’s folktale, which is a story that was told over and over and passed down through generations, ”The People Could Fly,”, tells the story of Africans who had the ability to fly, but lost that ability when they came to the United States as slaves.
What is The People Could Fly by Virginia Hamilton about?
About The People Could Fly: The Picture Book
“THE PEOPLE COULD FLY,” the title story in Virginia Hamilton’s prize-winning American Black folktale collection, is a fantasy tale of the slaves who possessed the ancient magic words that enabled them to literally fly away to freedom.
What is the author’s purpose in writing people could fly?
Like most folk tales, “The People Could Fly” serves as a way for a community to express itself, to document its struggles, and to build toward the future.
Why did the people who could fly shed their wings and stop flying in The People Could Fly?
Why did the people who could fly shed their wings and stop flying? Because they were treated brutally on plantations.
What did the ability to fly symbolize for the slaves on this plantation and why was it important to them?
The ability to fly symbolizes for the slaves on this plantation was that they were not free when they were on the plantation, and when they flew away the were free. Being able to fly is important to them because it showed that they had hope to become free.
Why is this story considered a folktale?
Answer. Folktales are tales or legends that are passed down from generation to generation by word of mouth. The folktale is considered oral tradition, which is when information relating to a culture is spoken rather than written.
What did the ones who could not fly do in the end?
7. What did the ones who could not fly do in the end? They learned to fly later when Toby returned.
Who is Toby The People Could Fly?
Toby and Sarah are slaves, descendants of a group of magical people with the secret ability to fly. Toby helps Sarah remember how to fly by reciting the magic words. The next day, many slaves collapse from the heat; Toby recites the magic words and they fly away.
How do the master and overseer react to the flight?
Expected student responses: At the end of the story, the slaves who still have their wings are able to fly away. Others do not. The master and overseer watch them fly and are helpless. Toby just laughs at them.
Which detail tells the reader that Sarah is weary?
It is written by slaves as they were taken into slavery. Which detail tells the reader that Sarah is weary? Sarah hoed and chopped the row.
What did the wings and flying represent The People Could Fly?
It symbolized that they were going to be slaves forever. The ability to fly symbolized freedom. This gave them hope. For people who are enslaved, it would help them endure the injustice.
