Question

on april 14, 1865, president and mrs. lincoln were watching a play at ford’s theatre when john wilkes booth snuck up behind the president and shot him.
1 lincoln never knew what happened to him. his head dropped forward; his body lost all muscle control and sagged against the rocking chair. the sound of the pistol shot hung in the box for several seconds. it traveled to the stage below and echoed throughout the theater. the pistol shot did startle some people in the audience. some thought it was part of the play. some people did not hear it at all.
2 major henry rathbone, seated in the box just feet away from the president, was an experienced army officer, familiar with the sounds of gunshots. he was the first to realize that something was very wrong. he turned to his left.
3 the smoke from the gun, now tinted red from the gaslights, partly blocked his vision. rathbone rose from his seat and stepped in the direction of the president. at that moment, he saw a wild - eyed man, his face ghostly against his black clothes, hair, and mustache. like a demon, booth emerged from the cloud of black powder and sprang at him. rathbone lunged for booth, grabbing him by the coat. the assassin broke free, shouting “freedom!” and throwing his right arm up as high as it could reach. rathbone saw what booth had clenched in his fist: a large shiny knife, its blade pointed directly down at him. at the last moment, rathbone raised his arm to protect himself from what was intended to be a death blow.
startle: to surprise or shock someone
lunged: made a sudden strong move toward someone or something
close reading
key idea
what crimes does booth commit in this excerpt?

summarize
what is this part of the text mostly about? underline the most important details on pages 14 - 15. then summarize these two pages.

react and write
evaluate which paragraph would make the most interesting movie scene. why? cite evidence
i chose paragraph
my reasons for choosing this paragraph are:
1.

2.

Explanation:

1. Key Idea (What crimes does Booth commit in this excerpt?)

In the excerpt, John Wilkes Booth shoots President Lincoln (assassination) and also attempts to attack Major Rathbone with a large shiny knife (assault/attempted murder). The text describes Booth shooting Lincoln ("Booth snuck up behind the president and shot him") and then, when Rathbone lunged for him, Booth had a "large shiny knife, its blade pointed directly down at him" and tried to strike, showing his violent actions against both Lincoln and Rathbone.

The text describes the assassination of President Lincoln at Ford’s Theatre. First, Booth shoots Lincoln, causing Lincoln to lose muscle control. The shot startles some but is missed by others. Major Rathbone, an army officer near Lincoln, realizes something is wrong. When he reacts, he sees Booth (described as "wild - eyed" and "like a demon") emerge from smoke. Rathbone lunges at Booth, but Booth breaks free, shouts "Freedom!", and tries to attack Rathbone with a large knife. Rathbone raises his arm to defend himself from the knife strike. The key details include the shooting of Lincoln, Rathbone's reaction, Booth's appearance and actions, and the knife attack.

Paragraph 3 (the third paragraph of the main text) would likely make the most interesting movie scene. It has vivid, action - packed details: Booth is described as “wild - eyed”, “his face ghostly against his black clothes, hair, and mustache”, “like a demon” emerging “from the cloud of black powder and sprang at him”. There’s physical action (Rathbone lunging, Booth breaking free, shouting “Freedom!”, and the knife attack: “Booth had clenched in his fist: a large shiny knife, its blade pointed directly down at him. At the last moment, Rathbone raised his arm to protect himself from what was intended to be a death blow”). These details create a tense, visually striking, and dramatic sequence with conflict (Rathbone vs. Booth), vivid imagery (Booth’s appearance, the smoke, the knife), and high stakes (life - or - death struggle), which are ideal for a movie scene to engage viewers with action and suspense.

Answer:

Booth commits the crimes of assassination (murder) of President Lincoln (by shooting him) and assault/attempted murder of Major Rathbone (by attacking him with a large knife after being grabbed).

2. Summarize (What is this part of the text mostly about? Underline the most important details on pages 14–15. Then summarize these two pages.)