Andrew Jackson was a good pup with talent, who would have
become famous if he’d lived.
Smiley was very proud of his frog because many well-traveled
and knowledgeable people said it was the best frog they’d
ever seen.
• To read and analyze a humorous short
story about a gambling man who is
conned at his own game 
• To identify and evaluate colloquial
language 
• To write a description and analysis of
a setting
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Mark Twain was
born in 1835 and
died in 1910.
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more about Mark Twain.
BACKGROUND
The Time and Place
This story takes place in the early 1860s in a small mining
town called Angel’s Camp, which still exists in Calaveras
County, California. At Angel’s Camp, Twain first heard
someone tell the story that he later developed into “The
Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County.” 
Did You Know?
In the remote mining camps and frontier towns of the
1800s, life was hard and entertainment was scarce. To
create some fun and laughter, people invented tall tales–
stories containing such quirky, larger-than-life characters
as Pecos Bill and Paul Bunyan. Such tales were often first
passed by word of mouth, with each person adding a few
details. Later these tales frequently appeared in
newspapers.
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VOCABULARY PREVIEW
garrulous: (adj) talkative; p. 462 
conjecture: (v) to form an opinion without definite
evidence; to guess; p. 462 
reminiscence: (n) an account of a past experience
or event; p. 462 
dilapidated: (adj) fallen into ruin or decay; shabby;
p. 462 
interminable: (adj) seemingly endless; p. 463 
enterprising: (adj) showing energy and initiative,
especially in beginning new projects; p. 468 
vagabond: (n) someone who wanders from place to
place, having no visible means of support; p. 468
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FOCUS ACTIVITY
Have you ever heard someone use a
humorous exaggeration, such as “I’m so
hungry, I could eat a horse”? 
List Ideas
Jot down two or more examples of
humorous exaggerations that you have
heard and explain why you think each one
is funny. 
Setting a Purpose
Read to enjoy a story that is filled with
humorous exaggerations.
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A Active Reading
Predict
Read the title and the first paragraph of the
story.
What will the story be about?
Possible answer: The rest of the story is
about Wheeler’s “long and tedious”
reminiscence of his acquaintance, Jim
Smiley. One might conclude from the title
that the story will have something to do
with a frog.
Navigation Toolbar
ABCDEFGHIJKL
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B Literary Elements
Characterization
Notice the sharp contrast between the language
of the narrator and the language of Wheeler.
Find examples of words or phrases used
by the narrator that seem formal. What
might this formal language suggest
about the narrator?
Some examples include “hereunto append
the result,” “infernal reminiscence,” and
“reeled off the monotonous narrator.” The
language suggests that the narrator has
some education.
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C Author’s Craft
Tone
Twain’s tone helps make the story humorous.
Although the tale of Smiley might seem absurd
to most people, Wheeler relates it in a serious
manner, as if he believes it is a true story. This
juxtaposition between tone and content adds a
comic element to the story.
D Critical Thinking
Drawing Conclusions
What can you conclude about Smiley’s
character and his attitude toward
gambling based on the story about
Parson Walker’s wife?
Possible answer: Smiley lacks empathy, is
highly inconsiderate, and is so obsessed
with gambling that he will place a bet at
even the most inappropriate of times.
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E Author’s Craft
Simile
Twain makes absurd comparisons to add
humor to the story. Using similes, he says that
the underjaw of Smiley’s dog sticks out “like
the fo’castle of a steamboat” and that his teeth
“shine savage like the furnaces.”
F Active Reading
Evaluate
After reading the first four pages, do you
think Wheeler’s story rings true? Why do
you think Wheeler told it?
Possibly this story is a “tall tale,” told
simply to amuse or entertain the stranger.
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G Critical Thinking
Drawing Conclusions
Draw a conclusion about Smiley’s character
based on the stories about his animals.
What do you like about Smiley? What
do you disklike?
Possible answers:
• Smiley’s treatment of his animals
seems to show his cruelty.
• Smiley seems foolish when he says he
can educate his frog.
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H Literary Elements
Personification
Twain endows the frog with the human qualities
of modesty and straightforwardness. This
technique, called personification, adds humor to
the story.
I Active Reading
Predict
Based on what you already know about
Smiley, do you think the stranger or
Smiley will win the bet?
J Literary Elements
Character
The fact that the stranger thinks of his plan while
waiting for Smiley indicates that his decision to
fill the frog with quail shot was premeditated.
Do you think Smiley would have done
the same thing in the stranger’s
situation?
Possible answer: Smiley has not cheated
to win bets in the past, so he probably
would not have acted as the stranger did.
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K Critical Thinking
Evaluating
Evaluate the story about the jumping frog by
asking yourself if you agree with the narrator’s
poor opinion of Smiley’s story.
Did you find the story amusing or
interminable?
L Active Reading
Interpret
Twain once wrote, “The humorous story may
be spun out to great length and may wander
around as much as it pleases, and arrive
nowhere in particular.”
Does this story fit Twain’s description?
The story fits this description: Wheeler’s
tale has no real purpose, he recounts a
number of incidents in no particular order,
and he only stops because the narrator
refuses to hear any more.
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Personal Response
Analyzing Literature
Literary Elements
Literature and Writing
Skill Minilessons
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corresponding content area.
PERSONAL RESPONSE
What questions would you like to
ask Simon Wheeler?
RECALL
How does the narrator come to meet Simon
Wheeler and to hear his story? How does
the narrator describe Wheeler’s storytelling
style?
The narrator’s friend tells him to call on Wheeler
to ask after Leonidas W. Smiley. He says
Wheeler is monotonous but earnest.
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INTERPRET
What can you infer about the narrator’s
attitude toward Wheeler? Support your
answer using details from the story.
He thinks Wheeler is boring (Wheeler almost
bores him to death) and ignorant (he thinks
Wheeler does not realize that the story is absurd).
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RECALL
For what reason does Wheeler call Smiley
“the curiosest man”? What evidence does
Wheeler use to support his statement?
Smiley bets on anything. He even bets on
whether the parson’s wife will live or die.
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INTERPRET
What conclusions can you draw about
Smiley’s character, based on the tale
Wheeler tells? Use details from the story to
support your answer.
Smiley is obsessed with gambling, heartless (he
bets on a sick woman), and naive (he leaves the
stranger alone with his frog).
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RECALL
Summarize the methods that Smiley’s mare
and bull pup use to win. What eventually
becomes of Smiley’s dog?
The mare falls behind and then scrambles to the
end. The pup bites its opponent’s hind leg.
Smiley’s dog dies of a broken heart.
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INTERPRET
Why do you think Wheeler tells about the
mare and bull pup first, before focusing on
the frog?
Wheeler wants to establish Smiley’s obsession
with gambling first and then build up to the story.
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RECALL
What amazing things can Smiley’s frog do?
What personality traits does Wheeler
attribute to the frog?
It can out-jump any frog, turn somersaults and
land on its feet, and catch flies out of the air.
Wheeler says the frog is modest and
straightforward.
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INTERPRET
What aspects of Wheeler’s description of
Smiley’s frog do you find particularly
absurd?
Possible answer: It is absurd to call a frog
modest and straightforward.
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RECALL
Summarize what happens after Smiley
meets the stranger.
Smiley bets the stranger that his frog will outjump any frog. When Smiley leaves to find a
competitor, the stranger fills Smiley’s frog with
quail shot, making him too heavy to jump.
Smiley loses the bet.
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INTERPRET
What event or events determine the
outcome of the encounter with the stranger?
Explain your answer.
The stranger cheats by filling Smiley’s frog with
quail shot so that he is too heavy to jump.
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EVALUATE AND CONNECT
What funny exaggerations have you
heard? Compare these with your
favorite exaggerations from this story.
Which ones are funnier? Why?
Humorous exaggerations from the story
include that the mare “always had
asthma, or the distemper, or the
consumption,” and that the dog died of a
broken heart.
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EVALUATE AND CONNECT
How do Wheeler’s personality and
manner of speaking add to the story’s
humor? Use specific examples to
support your ideas.
Wheeler’s monotone and sincerity, and
the tale’s implausibility, make his story
funnier.
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EVALUATE AND CONNECT
Would you have stayed to hear
Wheeler’s story about Smiley’s
“yaller one-eyed cow that didn’t have
no tail”? Why or why not?
EVALUATE AND CONNECT
Think of a performer who uses
exaggeration for comic effect. How
does this person’s use of exaggeration
compare with Wheeler’s?
Possible answer: Comedians exaggerate
on purpose. Wheeler does not.
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EVALUATE AND CONNECT
In this selection, one story serves as a
frame for another story. Why might
Mark Twain have chosen this structure?
What role does the narrator play?
Twain contrasts Wheeler’s colorful
regional language with the narrator’s dry
Standard English. The frame structure
permits Twain to comment on Wheeler
and his story. The narrator’s departure
also provides a logical conclusion.
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LITERARY ELEMENTS
• Colloquial language refers to the
informal speech that people use in
everyday conversation. 
• Often, the vocabulary and expressions
people use, as well as their manner of
speaking, are specific to a particular
geographical region. 
• To represent colloquial language accurately,
writers often break the standard rules of
punctuation, spelling, and grammar. 
• Examples of colloquial language in this story
include ketched and cal’klated.
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LITERARY ELEMENTS
Identify at least two other examples of
colloquial language in the story.
Explain which rules of grammar,
spelling, or punctuation are ignored in
the characters’ speech.
Possible answers:
• Curiosest is an incorrect superlative
form of curious.
• Summerset is somersault spelled and
pronounced incorrectly.
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LITERARY ELEMENTS
Why might colloquial language be
inappropriate in a formal essay or an
article that explains how to do
something?
Colloquial language, by definition, departs
from Standard English; therefore, it may
be difficult for people in other regions to
understand it.
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Analyze the Effect of Setting
In three paragraphs, describe the setting in
which Simon Wheeler tells his story, and
explore the following questions:
• Why might Twain have selected this setting?
• How might the story have been different if
the narrator had met Wheeler in a city?
Support your opinions with details from the
selection.
Practice: The Latin root ject means “to throw.” Use your
knowledge of the root ject and familiar prefixes to answer
the following questions.
Does a person with dejected spirits feel
hopeful, sad, or outraged?
A dejected person would feel sad.
What might a person giving a speech do to
inject some humor?
He or she might say something funny.
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Practice: The Latin root ject means “to throw.” Use your
knowledge of the root ject and familiar prefixes to answer
the following questions.
Which is used as a projectile–a cannonball,
a life raft, or a rocking chair?
A cannonball is used as a projectile.
In the following sentence, which word is an
interjection? “No, I did not tell him what I
thought; but–oh!–how I wanted to!”
“Oh!” is an interjection.
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Photography/Science Book
After listening to the
introduction, read
the excerpt from the
book Frogs, by
David Badger, on
page 471 of your
textbook and
respond to the
questions on the
following slides.
This feature is found on page 471 of your textbook.
Photography/Science Book
Which fact about
frogs surprised you
the most? Explain.
This feature is found on page 471 of your textbook.
Photography/Science Book
Why do you think
frogs have
developed so many
ways of getting
around?
Frogs may have
developed several
ways of getting
around to adjust to
their environments.
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This feature is found on page 471 of your textbook.
The author uses a quote from Twain’s story
to introduce the article because his
scientific description of different kinds of
frogs reveals that there are “p’ints” that
distinguish one frog from another. Note
that science also plays a role in Twain’s
story. The stranger uses scientific
knowledge to win the bet: he knew that
making Smiley’s frog heavier would hinder
the frog’s ability to jump.
This feature is found on page 471 of your textbook.
Short Story
A short story is a brief piece of fiction,
usually focusing on a single major event
and on a few characters. Learning the
language of literary analysis can help you
understand and discuss how short stories
are created and what makes them effective.
Look at the following slides to see how “The
Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County” can
be analyzed in terms of these elements.
This feature is found on pages 472–473 of your textbook.
Short Story
ELEMENT
MODEL:
“The Celebrated Jumping
Frog of Calaveras County”
Setting
Setting is the time and
location of a story’s
events; it may also
include the ideas,
beliefs, and values of
the characters or of the
particular society. 
Since the story is a tale
within a tale, it has two
settings. It opens in the
mining community of
Angel’s Camp, California,
some years after a
particular frog-jumping
contest.
Corresponding text for this feature can be found on pages 472–473 of your textbook.
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Short Story
ELEMENT
MODEL:
“The Celebrated Jumping
Frog of Calaveras County”
Characters
Characters are the actors
in a story. Most characters
are people, but they can
also be animals, elements
of nature, or other forces. 
• The protagonist is the
main character. 
The protagonist of the
inner story is Jim Smiley,
and the antagonist is the
stranger who bets
against Smiley’s frog.
• The antagonist is the
person or thing that
opposes the main
character. Not all stories
have antagonists. 
Corresponding text for this feature can be found on pages 472–473 of your textbook.
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Short Story
ELEMENT
MODEL:
“The Celebrated Jumping
Frog of Calaveras County”
Point of View
Point of view is the
perspective from which
the narrator tells a story.
Corresponding text for this feature can be found on pages 472–473 of your textbook.
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Short Story
ELEMENT
MODEL:
“The Celebrated Jumping
Frog of Calaveras County”
Point of View
• First-person: the narrator is
a character in the story
referred to as “I.” 
• Third-person: the narrator
is not a character, but
describes the action and the
characters from outside the
story. 
• Third-person omniscient:
the narrator is all-knowing. 
• Third-person limited: the
narrator describes only what
one character could know. 
The narrator describes
his visit with Simon
Wheeler from a firstperson point of view.
Corresponding text for this feature can be found on pages 472–473 of your textbook.
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Short Story
ELEMENT
MODEL:
“The Celebrated Jumping
Frog of Calaveras County”
Theme
Theme is the central
message of a story–an
insight about life that
readers can apply to their
own lives. Most short
stories have one major
theme. 
The main theme is
implied by the stories
that are told: even those
who should know better
can be outsmarted.
• Stated themes are directly
presented in a story. 
• Implied themes must be
inferred by considering all
the elements of a story. 
Corresponding text for this feature can be found on pages 472–473 of your textbook.
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Short Story
ELEMENT
MODEL:
“The Celebrated Jumping
Frog of Calaveras County”
Plot
Plot is the series of
related events through
which characters explore
a problem and solve it.
The plot grows out of a
conflict, a struggle that
may involve people,
ideas, or other forces.
Corresponding text for this feature can be found on pages 472–473 of your textbook.
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Short Story
ELEMENT
MODEL:
“The Celebrated Jumping
Frog of Calaveras County”
Plot
• An external conflict is one
between a character and an
outside force. 
• An internal conflict takes
place in the mind of a
character who is torn
between opposing feelings. 
The events that make up
the plot of the inner tale
are shown on the diagram
on the following slides. 
The conflict is external–
Smiley versus the
stranger, betting on
whether Smiley’s frog can
jump farther than any
other frog in the county.
Corresponding text for this feature can be found on pages 472–473 of your textbook.
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Short Story
Plot
Most plots develop in five stages: 
Corresponding text for this feature can be found on pages 472–473 of your textbook.
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Short Story
Plot
Most plots develop in five stages: 

Corresponding text for this feature can be found on pages 472–473 of your textbook.
Click the mouse button or press the Space Bar to display the information.
Short Story
Plot
Most plots develop in five stages: 

Corresponding text for this feature can be found on pages 472–473 of your textbook.
Click the mouse button or press the Space Bar to display the information.
Short Story
Plot
Most plots develop in five stages: 

Corresponding text for this feature can be found on pages 472–473 of your textbook.
Click the mouse button or press the Space Bar to display the information.
Short Story
Plot
Most plots develop in five stages: 

Corresponding text for this feature can be found on pages 472–473 of your textbook.
Click the mouse button or press the Space Bar to display the information.
Short Story
Plot
Most plots develop in five stages: 

Corresponding text for this feature can be found on pages 472–473 of your textbook.
Click the mouse button or press the Space Bar to display the information.
Short Story
Plot
Most plots develop in five stages: 
Corresponding text for this feature can be found on pages 472–473 of your textbook.
Click the mouse button or press the Space Bar to display the information.
fell
begun
sought
saw