The Middle Five · Chapter
A New Study explained
On a hot September afternoon, the school is disrupted by a wasp incident involving Frank, followed by a surprise visit from the Agent and other officials.
What happens
On a hot September afternoon, the school is disrupted by a wasp incident involving Frank, followed by a surprise visit from the Agent and other officials. The visitors test the students on their knowledge, leading to humorous mistakes and a spelling bee. The visitors also request an Indian song, which the children perform, but the adults deem it 'savage' and decide the children must be taught music. This leads to daily singing lessons, including learning to sing in parts, with Frank reluctantly taking the bass part.
Themes in this chapter
Education and Discipline
The chapter highlights the rigid, exam-oriented teaching methods at the mission school, with Graybeard's frustration and the visitors' test of knowledge, as well as the introduction of formal music lessons.
Resistance and Rebellion
Frank's wasp distraction is a subtle act of rebellion to protect a classmate from punishment, and the children's spontaneous Indian song asserts their cultural identity despite the adults' disapproval.
Cultural Identity and Assimilation
The visitors' demand for an Indian song and their subsequent dismissal of it as 'savage' underscores the tension between preserving Native culture and the school's assimilationist goals, leading to enforced music lessons in Western style.
Characters to notice
- Me
Narrator; orchestrates a wasp distraction to protect a classmate, gets stung, and later is forced to sing bass despite his protests.
- Brush
Whispers news of the visitors' arrival; correctly answers 'Columbus' during the examination; competes in the spelling bee.
- Graybeard
Teacher who is cross and flustered; gets stung by the wasp; mistakenly calls on Abraham Lincoln to answer 'Who discovered America?'
- Abraham Lincoln
Awkward boy who answers 'George Washington' when asked who discovered America, causing amusement.
- Edwin M. Stanton
His dog howls along during Frank's attempt to lead singing at supper.
- Warren
Sends a note to his girl across the aisle; first to spot the black carriage and fat men.
Key passages
“I reached under my desk and took hold of a thread which I carefully drew until my thumb and finger touched the stiff paper to which it was attached, then, as the boy stammered out the wrong answer and Graybeard made an impatient movement toward him, I gave the thread a gentle pull, 'Biz‑z‑z‑z‑z!' it went.”
I pulled a thread attached to a paper to create a buzzing sound, distracting Graybeard from punishing a struggling student.
Frank uses a clever trick to protect a classmate from Graybeard's anger.
“We understood the song, and knew the emotion of which it was the expression. We felt, as we sang, the patriotic thrill of a victorious people who had vanquished their enemies; but the men shook their heads, and one of them said, 'That's savage, that's savage! They must be taught music.'”
The children sang a Victory song with genuine pride and understanding, but the visitors dismissed it as primitive and insisted on Western music lessons.
Highlights the cultural clash and the imposition of Western values on Native children.