The Twits

Use this activity to engage all types of learners, while requiring that they refer to and incorporate details from the text over the course of the activity.

CREATIVE WRITING: “The Origin of Mrs. Twit”

In this activity, students will write a creative piece that explores what happened in Mrs. Twit’s life to make her become a “twit.”

In his novel, Dahl specifies that unlike her husband, Mrs. Twit became a “twit” over time. Imagine that you are tasked with writing a prologue to The Twits where you explore the origins of Mrs. Twit’s behavior. Consider the following questions as you write your piece:

• What was Mrs. Twit like prior to becoming a “twit”?
• What happened in Mrs. Twit’s life that changed her for the worse? Was it before or after meeting her husband?
• How does the backstory of Mr. and Mrs. Twit’s employment fit into your prologue?
• What is the reason for the change in Mrs. Twit’s character?

After drafting your piece, share your prologue with the class, then read and reflect on your classmates’ work. How did each story approach Mrs. Twit’s life? What was the most effective approach, and why? Finally, discuss the prologues in relation to one or more of the following themes: Actions Have Consequences, Teamwork Brings Us Together, and/or The Benefits of Quick Thinking.

Teaching Suggestion: This Activity invites students to explore Mrs. Twit’s characterization in the context of a creative writing assignment. Students should be encouraged to approach the assignment creatively, while also maintaining the characterization and plot points that Dahl specifies in his text.

Differentiation Suggestion: Students who would benefit from an additional challenge or creative outlet might perform their prologues as a sketch for the class or tell their stories in the form of a comic strip. If time is an issue, students might complete this project in groups; brainstorming ideas for Mrs. Twit’s life before she became a “twit” could encourage student engagement as well as collaboration.

Use these essay questions as writing and critical thinking exercises for all levels of writers, and to build their literary analysis skills by requiring textual references throughout the essay.

Differentiation Suggestion: For English learners or struggling writers, strategies that work well include graphic organizers, sentence frames or starters, group work, or oral responses.

Scaffolded Essay Questions

Student Prompt: Write a short (1-3 paragraph) response using one of the bulleted outlines below. Cite details from the text over the course of your response that serve as examples and support.

1. Consider the Twits’ choices from the beginning to the end of the story.

• What actions result in the Twits succumbing to “the shrinks”? (topic sentence)
• Identify 2-3 examples of the Twits’ behavior and explain how these examples result in their demise.
• In your concluding sentence or sentences, discuss how the Twits’ behavior links to the novel’s theme of Actions Have Consequences.

2. The Twits conveys at least one message about communication through the monkeys and the Roly-Poly Bird.

• How do language barriers keep people from finding common ground or getting along? (topic sentence)
• Identify 2-3 examples of what the animals do in order to remove these barriers and discuss their motivation.
• In your concluding sentence or sentences, reflect on how the animals’ desire to communicate with each other connects to the novel’s theme of Teamwork Brings Us Together.

3. The boys in Chapter 16 only show up once in the story and have no lasting impact on the outcome of events.

• Why did Dahl choose to include this chapter in the novel? (topic sentence)
• Discuss 2-3 examples that demonstrate what this chapter brings to the story that is not already covered in other chapters.
• In your concluding sentence or sentences, consider how this chapter demonstrates the novel’s theme of The Benefits of Quick Thinking.

Full Essay Assignments

Student Prompt: Write a structured and well-developed essay. Include a thesis statement, at least three main points supported by text details, and a conclusion.

1. Consider the plan that the animals hatch against the Twits. Do you think the animals’ revenge on the Twits is justified? Why or why not? What elements of the Twits’ behavior convinced you? Do you think that Dahl is justifying revenge by writing the ending in this manner? Explain.

2. Many of the perspectives offered by the story’s narrator are ones shared by Dahl. With this in mind, consider the following questions: Is Dahl different from the narrator, or is he the same? Can authors completely separate themselves from their stories, or do all stories contain at least some part of their creators? Identify examples from the text that demonstrate the narrator’s perspective and discuss their relevance in relation to your claim. Explain your ideas carefully.

3. Consider the times when Dahl’s narrator breaks the fourth wall to speak directly to the reader. Why do you think Dahl decided to include this form of narration style? How does it change the narrator’s relationship with the reader as opposed to telling the story without bias?

Multiple Choice and Long Answer Questions create ideal opportunities for whole-text review, exams, or summative assessments.

Multiple Choice

1. What type of person is the narrator skeptical about?

A) A person with a hairy face

B) A person with a long nose

C) A person with a big smile

D) A person with small eyes

2. With which of the following statements would the narrator most likely agree?

A) Only people with lots of warts are ugly.

B) People’s thoughts can dictate their ugliness.

C) Beauty is the result of good genetics.

D) Mean people are usually beautiful.

3. Which of the following words best describe how Mr. and Mrs. Twit treat each other?

A) With indifference

B) With respect

C) With love

D) With discourtesy

4. How does Mr. Twit react when he sees his wife descending from the sky?

A) He is relieved.

B) He is excited.

C) He is distraught.

D) He is ashamed.

5. In Chapter 14, the narrator comments on the Twits’ house: “Some house. It looks like a prison” (Chapter 14). What does this comparison imply about Mr. and Mrs. Twit’s abode?

A) It is safe and sturdy.

B) It is warm and welcoming.

C) It is intimidating and unfriendly.

D) It is clean and well-kept.

6. What is the meaning of “HUGTIGHT,” as referenced in Chapter 15?

A) It is the name of the song the Twits sing to one another.

B) It is the nickname the Twits use for their daughter.

C) It is the type of glue Mr. Twit uses to catch birds.

D) It is the moniker for the property that the Twits live on.

7. How do Muggle-Wump and the birds defeat the Twits?

A) By loving them and treating them as equals

B) By outsmarting them and working as a team

C) By imitating them and proving them wrong

D) By forgetting them and leaving them behind

8. What does the Roly-Poly Bird tell Muggle-Wump to do to save him and his family from being “deep-freezed” in winter?

A) To sit on his back and travel by “Super Jet”

B) To buy a bus ticket and pay with “a penny”

C) To make a nest in the treehouse like the “rooks and magpies”

D) To stay in the Twits’ house where “nobody could see” him

9. Who discovers that “there was nothing more left in this world of Mr and Mrs Twit” in Chapter 29?

A) A man named Fred, who comes to read the gas meter

B) A doctor named Fitz, who hopes to cure the Twits of the shrinks

D) A bird named Bo, who finally frees himself from The Big Dead Tree

C) An unnamed narrator, who knows what really happened

10. What is most ironic about the ending of The Twits?

A) When Mr. Twit realizes that he shouldn’t have used the glue on the birds, it is too late.

B) The Twits get the shrinks and yell for help, but people only rejoice at their misfortune.

C) The Twits’ get the shrinks while standing on their heads, which is what they used to train monkeys to do for the circus.

D) When Mrs. Twit realizes she really has the shrinks, she forgives Mr. Twit for tricking her earlier on in the story.

Long Answer

Compose a response of 2-3 sentences, incorporating text details to support your response.

1. What is the setting of the novel? How is the setting crucial to the plot?

2. Who are the protagonists of the story? Who are the antagonists? Is the name of the novel linked to the protagonists or the antagonists? Explain.