Norse Mythology (Neil Gaiman)

THE MASTER BUILDER

 Introduction: What is a master builder?

 Read and listen to the story in one sitting: 00-31.42

 After reading: Class discussion:

1) In a recent interview, Neil Gaiman said, “There are things that mythology tells us
about being human.” Illustrate this quotation with at least two examples from “The
Master Builder”.
2) What makes this story feel contemporary?
3) Did you anticipate the end of the story as you were reading/listening to it?

VOCABULARY

A) Idioms: Notice how the following idioms are used in the story. Look up the ones that are
new to you.

1) make no bones about it/(doing) sth (58)

2) let alone (58)
3) (send sb on) a fool’s errand (59)
4) at that (66)
5) go out of your/his, etc. way to (73)

B) Collocations: verb + noun. Fill in the blanks with the appropriate vowels to form
collocations.

1) The gods of Asgard sw_r_ an unbreakable oath that if the master builder finished the wall
on time they would give him the sun and the moon and Freya’s hand in marriage. (63)
2) Loki thought the stallion would l_s_ its footing in the mud. But it did not. (64)
3) Loki said it is difficult to _PP_RT_ _N blame. (65)
4) Loki sh_t Balder a resentful glance when he criticised his advice. (66)

C) General vocabulary: Read the phonetic script and write in the word(s).

1) The gods all seemed in good humour, grinning and /ˈnʌdʒɪŋ/each other and smiling. (60)

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2) When Loki saw the horse dragging a /ə skɔːr əv/ rocks of /ˈɡrænɪt/, he thought the horse
wouldn’t be able to /hɔːl/ as many stones every night. (62)

3) The stranger continued to build the wall with /rɪˈlentləs/ good humour. (64)

4) “We need the builder to lose his /ˈweɪdʒə(r)/,” said Odin. (66)

5) The master builder /ˈklæmbəd/ down the rough wooden scaffolding and whistled for his
horse.(67)

6) He could see Svadilfari now, shaking his head and almost /ˈprɑːnsɪŋ/ in the wildflowers of
the spring /ˈmedəʊ/. (67)

7) The horse would take a step forward and then a step back, as if he could scent
something /ɪnˈtaɪsɪŋ/ in the war air. (67)

8) Svadilfari wheeled as he ran across the meadow, then he slowed, and /rɪəd/, and /neɪd/
loudly. (68)

9) Loki was not around to be praised for his part in /ˈlʊərɪŋ/ (or /ˈljʊərɪŋ/) away the horse
Svadilfari. (72)

D) Classify the underlined words/expressions by category. Then, subclassify the verbs

semantically. Make as many sets as you wish eg: sounds/noises, etc.

1) The stranger grinned a cocky grin. (56)

2) “I do not think we have overlooked a single thing, troublemaker of the gods,” said
Freya tartly. (58)
3) At this the gods all nodded and grunted and looked impressed. (58)
4) All the gods clapped Loki on the back and told him that he was a very crafty fellow.
(59)
5) The master builder winked at the gods. (62)
6) The wet mud that was exposed was the kind of mud that clings to your boots and
drags you down. (64)
7) “Now there will be no moon,” said the god of poetry moodily. (65)
8) “If the moon and the sun are to be plucked from the sky and the world plunged into
eternal darkness, then the life of the one who got us to this point should be forfeit,”
said Freya. /ˈfɔːfɪt/ (65)
9) The stallion pricked his ears up and moved into a swift canter across the meadow,
heading for the builder. (67)
10) The builder grabbed the ropes that attached to the empty stone-boat and prepared to
hitch it to the great grey horse. (67)

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 11) The horse’s hoofbeats pounded across the meadow. (68)
12) The grey stallion ran behind her, trying to catch her, always a length or two behind,
nipping at her rump, yet always missing. (68)
13) They ran across the meadow together, sweat glistening on their flanks. (68)
14) The master builder was hauling and heaving the stone-boat and cursing the stones.
(69)
15) The builder let go of the boat then. (70)
16) Thor swung the hammer once. (71)
17) There was a flash of lightning followed by the dull boom of thunder. (71)
18) The mountain giant saw the hammer getting rapidly bigger as it came hurtling towards
him. (71)

GRAMMAR: Notice the following sentences.

1) Behind him trudged a horse. (55)

2) Around her neck was the necklace of the Brisings. (57)
3) He carried on hauling his blocks towards the unfinished gateway, his face a mask. (70)
4) He turned to the gods, half of the rock in each hand, and now he was twenty, thirty, fifty
feet tall. (70-71)