The Eagle of the Ninth 1
Study Guide Questions for Ch. 1 “Frontier Fort”
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Virtues/Vices/Great Ideas: (Find them in the Text)
Wilderness vs. Civilization, Coming of Age, Arrogance, Death, Family,
Grammar Questions: (The Information of the Text)
What is happening as the story begins? Where is Marcus?
What new role has Marcus just acquired within the Roman military?
What became of Marcus’ father?
Where did Marcus live after his mother passed away and what was it like there for him?
What did Marcus hope to learn about by being stationed in Britain?
What does Marcus hope will be the case about his uncle, Aquila?
What is the “shining goal” of Marcus’ military hopes?
What object from his youth did Marcus still carry with him?
Describe Marcus’ new surroundings in Britain.
What was Quintus Hilarion’s primary advice to Marcus?
Logic Questions: (Interpreting, Comparing/Contrasting, Reasoning)
Marcus’ father told his mother, “A man’s first legion is apt to hold chief place in his heart ever after, be it’s name good or bad.” What does he mean by this?
Why might Marcus desire high rank in the Roman military?
Why did Quintus Hilarion desire to get “out of the wilds”? What kind of thing does he really desire which is unavailable to him in his current location?
Why are the Druids particularly dangerous to the Romans interests in Britain?
Quintus Hilarion said that “we lived a month or two on Vesuvius”. What did he mean by that?
Rhetoric Questions: (The Analysis of Ideas in the Text)
Marcus is described as being full of pride about his first command. Is pride good or bad? Make your case.
The story tells us that Marcus and the uncle he lived with, after his mother passed away, “saw everything with different eyes. Marcus came of a line of soldiers – one of those Equestrian families who, when the rest of their kind had turned from soldiering to trade and finance, had kept to the old way of life, and remained poor but held their noses high in consequence.” Do you think Marcus’ family were more noble for keeping to their traditional way of life or do you think they were perhaps foolish for remaining poor when they could have done otherwise? Explain your answer with reason.
Which is more dangerous, firmly believing in a false religion or rejecting the existence of any moral truths? Explain your answer with reason.
Theological Analysis: (Sola Scriptura)
Read Matthew 8:5-13. How did the centurion’s position within the Roman military help him understand the authority which Jesus wielded as the divine Son of God?