## Exercises forThe Man from the River

Back to the story

A. How much did you understand?

Read these sentences about the story. Some of them are true, and some are false.

Which are true, and which are false?

1. Two girls were fishing, and they began to fight.
2. A man was hiding behind a rock.
3. The man judged their quarrel.
4. A week later, the girls went fishing again.
5. The girls didn't catch another fish.
6. Everyone from the village went to find the stranger.
7. They pulled him out of a hole beside the river.
8. The man turned into a red bull.
9. Then he turned into a beautiful woman.
10. When they reached the village, he turned into a man again.
11. The chief's daughter brought him a basket of food.
12. She took him into her hut.
13. Nine months later, the chief's daughter had a son.
14. They called the baby Ony-ya, which means 'the son of the chief'.
15. He became king of the Anuak people.

B. Where were they?

The characters in this story move from on place to another.

Answer these "where" questions. Read the story again if this is difficult.

1. Achala and Ajulo wanted to catch some fish. Where did they go?
2. Where was the tree where the man was hiding?
3. When Ajulo dropped the fish, where did it go?
4. Where did the girls go after they left the river?
5. Where did the girls go the next day?
6. Where did everyone go the day after that?
7. Where was the stranger when he changed into a black bull?
8. Where was the stranger when he changed into a man again?
9. Where did the chief's daughter take the man?
10. Where did the stranger leave the necklace of cowries?

C. The best reason

This story is an important one for the Anuak people.

Which of these reasons do you think is the best one?

1. The story shows that the Anuak people are good at fishing.
2. The story is about the ancestor of the Anuak kings.
3. The story shows why the Anuak king wears a necklace of cowries.
4. The story shows that people must work for their food.

D. Stories from the past

It is easy to forget the old stories about your family's past, or the past of your people. When the old stories are lost, this is sad. They are important. They help us to understand who we are. They teach us about our traditions.

Ask an old relative, or a person from your own people, to tell you the old stories. Write them down so that you do not forget them.

Check the answers