My Independent Reading Project
By: Dylan Zitzloff

Plot
The series of events that take place in a story. It often involves a conflict or struggle that must be solved.

EXAMPLE OF A PLOT

• Papa goes on a trip up to Abilene, Kansas to make a profit.
• While he is gone, Travis, a 14 year old boy, has to help take care of the farm while his Pa is away making some money.
• Over a span of a few months, he has to face many challenges, including keeping the farm in tact, protecting his family, and trying to deal with a plague of hydrophobia
• One day, an old Yeller dog appears and steals their meat. Travis is infuriated at that dog. His little brother loves this dog and Travis doesn't understand why.
• However, in the end, Travis develops a great relationship with that old Yeller dog and he saves Travis's life from rogue pigs, hydrophobic animals, and helps him out around the farm.
• When that Yeller dog chases away a hydrophobic wolf, he accidentally gets bit. He ended up saving Travis's family, but very tragically, he contracted the disease. This forced Travis to make a nearly impossible decision: kill his beloved dog
• "Quickly, I left Mama and went to stand in the light of the burning bear grass. I reloaded my gun and called Old Yeller back from the house. I stuck the muzzle of the gun against his head and pulled the trigger" (Gipson 113).

Characters
People, animals, or creatures that take place in a story.

CHARACTERS IN OLD YELLER

• Travis: a 14 year old young man (main character)
• Old Yeller: the dog that saves and protects Travis's family
• Mama: Travis's mom. Also, Papa's wife
• Papa: Travis's dad. Also, Mama's husband
• Little Arliss: Travis's younger brother

Setting
The environment in which the story takes place...the time, place, and mood.

EXAMPLE OF A SETTING

• The setting of Old Yeller is on a farm in Salt Lick, Texas during the late 1860s
• It is located 600 miles south of Abilene, Kansas
• It takes place during the night and day
• The mood would be happy, suspenseful, sad, and dramatic.
• "Quickly, I left Mama and went to stand in the light of the burning bear grass. I reloaded my gun and called Old Yeller back from the house. I stuck the muzzle of the gun against his head and pulled the trigger" (Gipson 113).
• The mood in this passage is very sad because Travis has to kill his dog because Yeller got infected with hydrophobia
• It took place over a span of months, in the spring and summer

Conflict
The dramatic struggle between two forces in a story.
No conflict=no story

EXAMPLE OF A CONFLICT

• There are many conflict in Old Yeller
• For example: Travis's family has to battle the deadly plague of hydrophobia, while at the same time, make sure that the family's farm is in ship shape
• They have to battle rogue animals, American Indians, disease, and Mother Nature in general.

Theme
The message that the author is trying to tell you. Theme's must be a sentence!
Universal truths suggested by the story
The stories main ideas.

EXAMPLE OF THEME

• One theme of Old Yeller is: sorrow is an inevitable part of life
• "Quickly, I left Mama and went to stand in the light of the burning bear grass. I reloaded my gun and called Old Yeller back from the house. I stuck the muzzle of the gun against his head and pulled the trigger" (Gipson 113).
• Another theme could be: the maturation of adulthood is not an overnight process and is very difficult emotionally and physically
• These both could be theme's of Old Yeller because Travis learns both of these things throughout the book

Thanks For Watching!!!