A legend of the northland by Phoeby Cary

 Thinking About the Poem 

 1. Which country or countries do you think “the Northland” refers to? 

 The Northland refers to the cold northern regions of the world, near the North Pole, such as Norway, Sweden, Finland and other Scandinavian countries. It is not a specific country, but a general term for those snowy, cold lands.

 2. What did Saint Peter ask the old lady for? What was the lady’s reaction? Saint Peter, weak and hungry from fasting, asked the old lady for a single cake from her store. The lady's reaction was to bake smaller and smaller cakes because she was too selfish to give him one of her larger ones. Even after baking a tiny, wafer thin cake, she couldn't bring herself to part with it, so she put it on the shelf.

 3. How did he punish her? 

 Saint Peter punished the selfish old lady by turning her into a woodpecker. He cursed her to live as a bird, a creature that has to bore into hard wood all day long to get its food. Her clothes were burned to ashes and turned black, and she was left with only her scarlet cap. 

 4. How does the woodpecker get her food? 

 The woodpecker gets her food by boring, and boring, and boring into the hard, dry wood of trees all day long. 

 5. Do you think that the old lady would have been so ungenerous if she had known who Saint Peter really was? What would she have done then?

 No, it's highly unlikely the old lady would have been so ungenerous if she had known Saint Peter's true identity. Her actions were driven by extreme selfishness and greed. If she had known who he was, she would have most likely done the opposite of what she did. She would have offered him one of her largest and finest cakes, not out of true generosity, but to gain favour and blessings from such a holy and powerful figure. Her motive would have remained selfish, just disguised as kindness. 

 6. Is this a true story? Which part of this poem do you feel is the most important? 

 This story is not true; it is a legend that has been passed down through generations. The most important part of the poem is when the miserly woman is punished and transformed into a woodpecker, because it conveys the main moral lesson: one should not be greedy or unkind, especially when others are in need. 

 7. What is a legend? Why is this poem called a legend? 

 A legend is a traditional story from the past, often handed down from generation to generation. This poem is called legend because it tells an old folk tale from the northern snowy regions. The story explains, through a moral lesson on greed and selfishness, how the woodpecker came into existence. 

 8. Write the story of ‘A Legend of the Northland’ in about ten sentences.

 Once, in the Northland, Saint Peter was traveling and feeling weak and hungry after a long day of fasting. He came to the door of a cottage where a little old lady was baking cakes on the hearth. He asked her for just one cake from her store to satisfy his hunger. The greedy woman, however, tried to bake him a tiny cake, but when she saw it, she thought it was still too big to give away. She then tried again and again, each time making a smaller and smaller piece of dough, yet she still could not bring herself to part with any of them. Finally, she took a piece of dough as thin as a wafer, but she still considered it too large and put it on her shelf. Angered by her selfishness and miserly behaviour, Saint Peter cursed her. He told her she was too selfish to be a human, to have both food and shelter and a warm fire. He then turned her into a woodpecker, a creature who has to bore into the hard wood all day long to get its scanty food. She f lew out of the chimney and is now seen to this day, boring for her food in the forest.