The Trek
Where does Cabeza de Vaca's disastrous journey begin?
Florida
Why were some Indigenous people initially intimidated by Cabeza de Vaca and his men?
Their horses and weapons intimidated them.
What is a primary source?
A firsthand account or original document created by someone who experienced or witnessed an event.
The explorers travel using a flotilla.
Based on the article, what is a flotilla?
A small group of boats/rafts; in this case, makeshift rafts.
What is an infinitive?
to + base form of a verb — such as to survive, to travel, or to eat.
After becoming separated from their boat in Florida, how do the survivors attempt to travel across the Gulf of Mexico?
They build makeshift rafts.
What did some Indigenous people believe about the four survivors?
They believed they were medicine men/healers.
Cabeza de Vaca actually experienced the expedition. Would his own written account be a primary or secondary source?
Primary
Words such as:
tormented — hunger — drenched
Create what general feeling?
Difficulty, danger, suffering, tension.
Read the sentence:
To avoid freezing, the explorers built a fire.
The phrase “to avoid freezing” explains why the explorers built a fire.
An infinitive phrase that tells WHY an action happens is acting as what part of speech?
Adverb
What extreme action do the explorers take because they are starving?
They cook/eat their horses.
What did the four survivors begin performing at the insistence of Indigenous people?
Curing/healing ceremonies.
Why would a modern author include Cabeza de Vaca's own words when describing the expedition?
His firsthand account provides historical evidence and strengthens the author's description.
Which word best describes the mood created by tormented, hunger, and drenched?
A. Peaceful
B. Fraught
C. Humorous
D. Hopeful
B — fraught
What does fraught mean in context?
Filled with difficulty, danger, stress, or problems.
An author asks a question but isn't actually expecting the reader to answer it. What kind of question is this?
A rhetorical question.
Put these events in order:
A. The survivors are taken as slaves across the Southwest.
B. They float across the Gulf on rafts.
C. They encounter Spanish slavers near the Pacific Coast.
D. They become separated from their boat in Florida.
D → B → A → C
At the beginning of the expedition, what was the basic relationship between the Spanish explorers and the Indigenous people they encountered?
The Spanish arrived as conquerors and viewed Indigenous people as people they could dominate
If an author describes events from beginning to end in the order they happened, what text structure is being used?
Chronological order.
If you claim a passage has a fraught mood, what should you look for as evidence?
Words and details suggesting danger, suffering, anxiety, hardship, or tension.
If an author asks a rhetorical question while describing people who cannot understand what they're seeing, what might the question emphasize?
Their confusion.
The survivors begin their expedition with horses, weapons, and other advantages. Eventually, they lose those advantages. How does losing them change their situation?
They become vulnerable and must depend on their own resourcefulness and interactions with Indigenous people to survive.
What does this reversal help us understand about the overall journey?
The explorers go from being powerful conquerors to people struggling simply to survive.
By the end of the experience, how has Cabeza de Vaca's attitude toward Indigenous people changed?
He no longer views them simply as people to conquer. His experiences lead him toward peaceful coexistence and more humane treatment.
This is a BIG IDEA you need to understand for the test! ;)
Why might chronological organization be especially effective for an article about an expedition?
It allows readers to follow the journey and understand how one event leads to the next.
Give an antonym for the word fraught.
calm, peaceful, relaxed
You determine that Cabeza de Vaca's experiences dramatically changed his attitude toward Indigenous people.
Which would be the strongest evidence?
A. A quote describing how hungry he became
B. A quote describing what his raft looked like
C. A quote showing that he later advocated humane colonization
D. A quote describing his physical appearance
C. A quote showing that he later advocated humane colonization