Mister Pip and Bougainville (pp. 1-73)

1. What reasons do you think Mr. Watts has for inviting the children’s parents in to speak in the classroom?

Mr. Watts may have invited the children's parents because he is only strong when it comes to teaching Great Expectations. For many of the other questions that the students have, Mr. Watts had trouble answering them. By bringing the children's parents, the kids have a larger variety of topics that the children can learn from. This would benefit the kids more than if Mr. Watts taught alone.

2. Why do you think Matilda says that she will have to choose between Mr. Watts and her mother?

I believe Matilda said she has to make a choice between Mr. Watts and her mother because she has become very obsessed with Pip. Matilda is so "close" to Pip that she considers Pip a part of the family. Her mother thinks otherwise, Matilda's mother doesn't like Matilda being so obsessed with Pip. So eventually, Matilda thinks that if she wants to be with Pip, she'll have to choose Mr. Watts over her own mother, and if she wants to follow her mother, she would have to give up Pip.

3. What does Matilda’s mother mean when she says that Mr. Watts “is the offspring of a shining cuckoo”? Why does she call him “Pop Eye” instead of “Mr. Watts,” as the children do?

Matilda explains that the shining cuckoo goes to lay their eggs and then fly off before the chick is born. When Matilda's mother said that Mr. Watts is the offspring of a shining cuckoo, she means that, he is left here all by himself and had no parents since he is the only white man left. Matilda's mother calls Mr. Watts Pop Eye because she doesn't like Mr. Watts, so this was the amount of respect that she displayed to him, while all the other kids were able to become a little closer with Mr. Watts and actually call him by his real name.

4. What do you think Mr. Watts means when he says that he hoped his wife “might eventually grow into her name”?

When Mr. Watts said that he hoped his wife might eventually grow into her name, he meant that he had hoped that her wife would start a new life. Mr. Watts said that certain events occured in her past, so he hoped that by getting a new name, she would start a new life.