The Listening Grove · Fifty Famous Stories Retold
Chapter 20: The Story of William Tell
A Charlotte Mason read-aloud lesson. Press play, with the lesson.
What is Fifty Famous Stories Retold Chapter 20, The Story of William Tell, about?Parent review
Fifty Famous Stories Retold Chapter 20, The Story of William Tell, is a stirring tale of courage and liberty. In Switzerland long ago, a cruel tyrant named Gessler set his cap upon a pole and ordered every man to bow to it. William Tell, a famous marksman, refused to bow, and in his anger Gessler devised a dreadful test. Tell was made to shoot an apple from his own little son’s head with his bow. Steady and sure, Tell sent the arrow flying and struck the apple clean away. When Gessler asked about a second arrow, Tell answered boldly that it had been meant for the tyrant himself, had the boy been harmed. Tradition says Tell later freed his country from Gessler’s cruelty.
Say what you remember!
Tell what you remember from the last chapter.
What happened in Fifty Famous Stories Retold Chapter 19, Grace Darling?Have a look
In the last chapter, Grace Darling, the daughter of a lighthouse keeper lived on the rocky Farne Islands off the coast of England. One wild September morning a ship was wrecked upon the rocks, and Grace heard the cries of the drowning through the storm. Though the sea was fierce, she begged her father to help, and together they rowed out their heavy boat through the towering waves. They reached the wreck and brought the survivors safely home, where Grace nursed them tenderly. Her brave deed was long remembered.
Read the previous lesson: Grace Darling →Show what you know!
Use your printable Lesson Guide. Fill in the vocabulary you know, then click to check your work and learn some new words today.
What are the difficult or advanced vocabulary words in Fifty Famous Stories Retold Chapter 20, The Story of William Tell?tyrant, rebel, disobey, trembleHave a look
- tyrant: a cruel ruler who uses power harshly
- rebel: to rise up against those in power
- disobey: to refuse to do what you are told
- tremble: to shake, as with fear or cold
Locate it on the map!
Use your printable Lesson Guide. Use an atlas and fill in the blank map if you can find the geographic location, then click to check your work.
What important geographic location connects with Fifty Famous Stories Retold Chapter 20, The Story of William Tell?
- Find Lake Lucerne (near Lucerne, Switzerland).
See it on the mapHave a look
This matches the map in your Lesson Guide.
The Books come Alive!
Read or listen to Chapter 20 of Fifty Famous Stories Retold, the Kindred Thicket Enhanced Edition, read by Laura Caldwell.
Read by Laura Caldwell for LibriVox (public domain), professionally adjusted and trimmed by Kindred Thicket.
What do the Teacher’s Notes tell us about Chapter 20 of Fifty Famous Stories Retold?Parent review
This is a Kindred Thicket Enhanced Edition. Baldwin’s 1896 words are read exactly as he wrote them, and we add Teacher’s Notes with historical and literary context.
- About the whole bookFifty Famous Stories Retold gathers real history together with well-loved legends and traditions. These notes tell you, story by story, which is which.
- This chapterWilliam Tell is Switzerland’s national legend. There is no documentary evidence that Tell or Gessler lived, and the apple shot appears in older Norse tales. It is best enjoyed as a treasured legend of liberty.
- This chapterBaldwin’s story does not say whether Tell used a longbow or a crossbow, but Tell is traditionally pictured with a crossbow, the weapon most linked to his legend.
Memory becomes Action!
Use the Response Resource* to remember and spell tricky names. Choose one way to narrate.
*Materials in the Lesson Guide.
What is the list of names, people, characters, and places that are important in Chapter 20 of Fifty Famous Stories Retold?William Tell, Gessler, Tell’s son, SwitzerlandHave a look
- William Tell: A legendary Swiss marksman.
- Gessler: The tyrant of the legend who oppresses the Swiss.
- Tell’s son: The boy who bravely bears the apple on his head.
- Switzerland: The real mountain country Tell is said to free.
Chapter 20 Q & A
This is a Kindred Thicket Enhanced Edition. Baldwin’s stories mingle real history with beloved legend, and here is what to know about this one.
Is the story of William Tell true?
William Tell is Switzerland’s national legend rather than proven history. There is no documentary evidence that Tell or Gessler ever lived, and the famous apple shot appears in older Norse tales told long before. It is best enjoyed as a treasured legend of liberty, dear to the Swiss people.
Why did William Tell refuse to bow to Gessler’s cap?
William Tell refused to bow to Gessler’s cap because he would not humble himself before a proud tyrant’s empty symbol. To bow to a cap on a pole was to accept unjust rule, and Tell’s spirit of freedom would not allow it. His refusal set the whole story in motion.
Where does the story of William Tell take place?
The story of William Tell takes place in Switzerland, traditionally around Lake Lucerne and the region of Uri. This mountainous land of valleys and lakes is where the Swiss remember their legends of freedom. Tell is pictured there, standing up to the tyrant Gessler.
What is the lesson of William Tell?
The lesson of William Tell is courage in the cause of liberty: standing firm against injustice even when it is dangerous. Tell refused to bow to tyranny and kept his nerve under a cruel test to protect his son. The story invites children to prize freedom and steadfast courage.