The Song My Paddle Sings

"Whitewashing the Fence"

Passage from "The Adventures of Tom Sawyer"

"Hello, old chap, you got to work, hey?"

Tom wheeled suddenly and said:

"Why, it's you, Ben! I warn't noticing."

"Say—I'm going in a-swimming, I am. Don't you wish you could? But of course you'd druther WORK—wouldn't you? Course you would!"

Tom contemplated the boy a bit, and said:

"What do you call work?"

"Why, ain't THAT work?"

Tom resumed his whitewashing, and answered carelessly:

"Well, maybe it is, and maybe it ain't. All I know, is, it suits Tom Sawyer."

"Oh come, now, you don't mean to let on that you LIKE it?"

The brush continued to move.

"Like it? Well, I don't see why I oughtn't to like it. Does a boy get a chance to whitewash a fence every day?"

That put the thing in a new light. Ben stopped nibbling his apple. Tom swept his brush daintily back and forth—stepped back to note the effect—added a touch here and there...

Ben watching every move and getting more and more interested, more and more absorbed. Presently he said:

"Say, Tom, let ME whitewash a little."

Tom considered, was about to consent; but he altered his mind:

"No—no—I reckon it wouldn't hardly do, Ben. You see, Aunt Polly's awful particular about this fence—right here on the street, you know—but if it was the back fence I wouldn't mind and SHE wouldn't. Yes, she's awful particular about this fence; it's got to be done very careful; I reckon there ain't one boy in a thousand, maybe two thousand, that can do it the way it's got to be done."

"No—is that so? Oh come, now—lemme just try. Only just a little—I'd let YOU, if you was me, Tom."

Reading Comprehension Questions

1) In the above passage, the author uses words like "warn't", "druther", and "ain't" while the boys are talking. Why does the author include these examples of bad grammar?

a. to show that the story is fiction

b. to make the conversation realistic and casual

c. to keep it simple for the reader to follow

d. to persuade the readers to dislike the characters

2) In the above passage, the term "whitewash" means which of the following?

a. design

b. build

c. paint

d. clean

3) In the above passage, Tom is stressing the joys of whitewashing a fence. What is most likely his goal?

a. to get Ben to finish the whitewashing the fence for him

b. to get Ben to leave so he can whitewash the fence alone

c. to get Ben to hire him to whitewash his own fence

d. to get Ben to respect the hard work that he is doing

4) In the above passage, Tom's efforts to promote the joys of whitewashing can best be described as which of the following?

a. public opinion

b. propaganda

c. research-based information

d. sarcasm

5) The above passage most likely takes place in which setting?

a. a national forest

b. a city center

c. a crowded beach

d. a neighborhood

6) Based on the above passage, which of the following best describes the characters of Tom and Ben?

a. Tom is cunning ; Ben is gullible

b. Tom is gullible ; Ben is cunning

c. Tom is rude ; Ben is polite

d. Tom is polite ; Ben is rude

Answer Key