Pre-reading activities
1) Ask the students what do they know about Mars.
2) Besides a native from planet Mars, what other meaning(s) do we attribute to the adjective ”martian”?
3) Imagine that in a few years time man gets to Mars and regular expeditions and trips are organised. Would you like to take part in one of them? Why/why not?
4) Draw a Martian.
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Someone was knocking at the door and didn't want to stop. Mrs. Ttt opened the door.
-"Well?"
-"You speak English!" The man standing there was astonished.
-"I speak what I speak," she said.
-"It's wonderful English!"
The man was in uniform. There were three men with him, in a great hurry, all smiling, all dirty.
-"What do you want?" asked Mrs. Ttt.
-"You are a Martian!" The man smiled. "The word is not familiar to you, certainly. It's an Earth expression." He nodded at the other men. "We are from Earth. I'm Captain Williams.” [...]
1) The description of Mrs. Ttt’s, provided in the story some lines below, reads as follows: “Her eyes were sharp yellow, her skin was soft brown, she was thin and quick as an insect. Her voice was metallic and sharp.” Any similarities with your drawing? (A contest could be organised to pick up the one which most resembles the text)
2) Try to imagine Mrs. Ttt’s answer. Write the complete dialogue between Mrs. Ttt and Captain Williams (pair work).
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“I haven't time," she said. "I've a lot of cooking today and there's cleaning and sewing and all.” [...]
-"Hey!" cried the man when the door was open again. He jumped into the hall. "This is no way to treat visitors!"
-"All over my clean floor!" she cried. "Mud! Get out! If you come in my house, wash your boots first." [...]
3) Is Mrs. Ttt’s attitude what you expected? Does it seem “martian”? Why/why not? ___________________________
"A little attention," said the captain, red-eyed and tired. "We're from Earth, we have a rocket, we're very tired, we're hungry, we'd like a place to sleep. We'd like someone to give us the key to the city or something like that, and we'd like somebody to shake our hands and say 'Hooray' and say 'Congratulations, my friend!' That’s all." [...]
4) This paragraph shows how the captain and his crew are feeling at this point in the story. Why do you think they feel this way? Do you think they are right to do so? How would you feel in their place?
5) What do you think is the purpose of the Earth men in their trip? Why are they in Mars? ___________________________
They were in a large sunlit room. Men and women sat at tables talking to each other. At the sound of the door they looked at the four uniformed men. One Martian stood up.
-"I am Mr. Uuu," he said.
-"And I am Captain Jonathan Williams, of New York City, on Earth," said the captain.
Immediately the hall exploded! The people started to run, jump and shout happily. They took the four Earth Men on their shoulders as if they had won the final match in the Champion League and marched around the room singing and dancing.
The Earth Men were so surprised that for a full minute they didn’t say anything. Then they began to laugh and shout at each other:
-"Hey! This is more like it!" [...]
6) What do you think happens next?
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Now the captain began to shiver. Finally he turned to his men and looked at them.
-"Do you understand what this is?"
-"What, sir?"
-"This is no celebration," replied the captain tiredly. "This is no banquet. These aren't government representatives. This is no surprise party."
-"Where are we, sir?" [...]
(Glossary, according to the needs and level of the group)
1. Astonished: Asombrado-da.
2. Nod: Asentir o señalar con la cabeza.
3. Sew: Coser.
4. Shake hands: Dar la mano.
5. Sunlit: Iluminado por el sol, soleado-da.
6. Shiver: Estremecerse, temblar.
These are some extracts from August 1999: The Earth Men, one of the short stories collected in The Martian Chronicles, the history and story of the settlement of Mars by Earth colonizers, written by Ray Bradbury in 1952.
Post-reading activities
1) Write an ending to the story. Students may get to read their writings aloud and then choose their favourite one or some might be selected by the teacher.
2) Hand the full text to the students.
Quienquiera que fuese el que golpeaba la puerta, no se cansaba de hacerlo. La señora Ttt abrió la puerta de par en par.
- “¿Y bien?”
- “¡Habla usted inglés!” El hombre, de pie en el umbral, estaba asombrado.
- “Hablo lo que hablo”, dijo ella.
- “¡Un inglés admirable!”
El hombre vestía uniforme. Había otros tres con él, excitados, muy sonrientes y muy sucios.
-“¿Qué desean?”, preguntó la señora Ttt.
-“Usted es marciana.” El hombre sonrió. “Esta palabra no le es familiar, ciertamente. Es una expresión terrestre.” Con un movimiento de cabeza señaló a sus compañeros. “Venimos de la Tierra. Soy el Capitán Williams.” [...]
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-“No tengo tiempo”, dijo la mujer. “Hay mucho que cocinar, y coser, y limpiar.” […]
-“¡Oiga!”, gritó el hombre cuando la puerta volvió a abrirse, “¡Este no es modo de tratar a las visitas!” Y entró de un salto en la casa, como si quisiera sorprender a la mujer.
-“¡Mi suelo limpio!”, gritó ella. “¡Barro! ¡Fuera! ¡Antes de entrar, límpiese las botas!” […]
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-“Un poco de atención”, dijo el capitán, cansado, con los ojos enrojecidos. “Venimos de la Tierra en un cohete; somos cuatro: tripulación y capitán; estamos exhaustos, hambrientos, y quisiéramos encontrar un sitio para dormir. Nos gustaría que nos dieran la llave de la ciudad, o algo parecido, y que alguien nos estrechara la mano y nos dijera: «¡Bravo!» y «¡Enhorabuena, amigos!» Eso es todo.” [...]
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Estaban en un vasto aposento soleado. Sentados o de pie, en grupos, varios hombres y mujeres conversaban junto a las mesas. Al oír el ruido de la puerta miraron a los cuatro hombres de uniforme. Un marciano se adelantó y los saludó con una reverencia.
-“Yo soy el señor Uuu.”
-“Y yo soy el capitán Jonathan Williams, de la ciudad de Nueva York, de la Tierra”, dijo el capitán sin mucho entusiasmo.
Inmediatamente hubo una explosión en la sala.
Los muros temblaron con los gritos y exclamaciones. Hombres y mujeres gritando de alegría, derribando las mesas, tropezando unos con otros, corrieron hacia los terrestres y, levantándolos en hombros, dieron seis vueltas completas a la sala, saltando, gesticulando y cantando. Los terrestres estaban tan sorprendidos que durante un minuto se dejaron llevar por aquella marea de hombros antes de estallar en risas y gritos.
-“¡Esto se parece más a lo que esperábamos!” […]
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El capitán se estremeció, se volvió hacia sus hombres y los miró sombríamente.
- “¿Comprenden qué es esto?”
- “¿Qué, señor?”
-“No es una celebración”, contestó agotado el capitán. “No es un banquete. Estas gentes no son representantes del gobierno. Esta no es una fiesta sorpresa.”
- “¿Dónde estamos, capitán?” […]
Ray Bradbury, Crónicas Marcianas (1952)
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