In chapter 8 Master Benedict becomes very angry with Christopher and hits him. He also calls him “useless”. Did this surprise you about Master Benedict? Why or why not? What evidence is in the text that can back up your response?
The Blackthorn Key
Work from the bottom up--Response 1 first and Response 13 last.
When master Benedict slapped Christopher and then called him useless it did really surprise me. On page 20 it says, “This was normally the time when the apprentice-in this case, me-would receive a solid, heartfelt beating. But in the three years that I’d lived with Master Benedict, he’d never hit me, not once. This was so usual that I’d passed a whole year under the care before I realized he really was never going to hit me.” So when Master Benedict hit Christopher I was really confused.
ReplyDeleteI had the same reaction, Gabby. I actually didn't buy into Benedict's reaction at all. I thought he was slapping Christopher for a reason beyond being cruel like some other masters were.
DeleteIn chapter 8 Master Benedict hits Christopher and knocked him on the floor. I was very surprised by this action of Benedict's because he has always been nice to Christopher. In the book it says,” ‘ Magnificent boy. Well done.’ “ Before Master Benedict bolted out the door he was so happy and amazed with Christopher. When Master Benedict returned to they shop he looked happy.But when he came back from checking the stock he was mad and hit Christopher.I am very surprised about Benedict's actions toward Christopher.
ReplyDeleteMaiya Swan
ReplyDeleteOnce I read chapter eight in the book, The Blackthorn Key, I was very surprised when Master Benedict hit Christopher and then called him “useless”. These actions don’t add up to anything Master Benedict would do, so then I re-read the chapter and found out that I wasn’t surprised by Master Benedict's actions at all. On page 98, the author states, “I tried to see what he was looking at, but there was a customer blocking the window: a stocky boy around the age of sixteen,”. Later on that page it also says, “When he returned, a minute later, he looked pale.” This shows me that Master Benedict was trying to protect Christopher by having him run off somewhere because something awful was going to happen at the shop. I believe Master Benedict would keep Christopher safe because they have a closer connection than many other Masters and apprentices.
Can you imagine how hard it would be to hurt someone you care about because you think you're protecting them? I agree, though, Maiya. Master Benedict isn't a cruel man if we go by what we've read about him.
DeleteIn chapter eight Master Benedict became angry with Christopher. While angry with Christopher, Master Benedict hit him and called him “useless.” This surprised me a lot. On page 20 it says “This normally would be when the apprentice in this case me would receive a solid, heartfelt beating. But in the three years I’d lived with Master Benedict, he’d never struck me, not once.” This shows that Master Benedict never hit Christopher. While living with Master Benedict, Christopher has done much worse things then not collecting someone's account. Overall, it surprised me when Master Benedict hit Christopher.
ReplyDeleteYes, this indeed surprised me about Master Benedict in chapter 8. I think he would never thoughtfully hit and call Christopher useless on purpose. There must be more to it because in the text on chapter , page 101 Christopher ran from the shop. Evidence from this states "I wanted to go, back, talk to him, plead with him to tell me what I'd done. But he'd ordered me not to return." This surprised me even more when Christopher returns with Master Benedict murdered.
ReplyDeleteI was very surprised when Master Benedict became angry with Christopher and hit him. He had also called him useless. I was very surprised because in all the three years that Christopher had lived with Master Benedict he had never hit him. He had only used his words to punish him. If Benedict had a problem with Christopher then why would he have given him such a nice gift for his birthday. On pg. 99 Master Benedict had said, “And did I not ask you-twice-to collect his account next time she came?” Christopher had told his Master that he did not remember him saying that so then that’s when Christopher was hit. After Christopher was hit he knew that something was wrong with Benedict, but he didn’t know what.
ReplyDeleteJaylee, I like your quote. I think when Master Benedict said that he was probably hiding the truth and just needed Christopher out of there for some reason. Great job!
DeleteI was extremely surprised when Master Benedict hit Christopher and called him useless. Christopher was an apprentice for three years with Mr. Benedict and he didn't hit him once. Mr. Benedict only used words when he got mad. Mr. Benedict asked Christopher to collect the mans account. Mr. Benedict knew that someone was coming after him so he made a scene and hit Christopher so he would leave. Later I realized why.
ReplyDeleteIt was a surprising twist, for sure, Brayden! Were you surprised to find out why?
DeleteIn chapter 8 there was an unexpected twist. When Master Benedict slapped Christopher and called him useless it made me very confused but it also made me wonder. On page 20 it says, “This would be when the apprentice--in this case, me-- would receive a solid, heartfelt beating. But in the three years i'd lived with Master Benedict, he’d never struck me, on once.” I’m wondering what had changed in the split second to make Master Benedict slap him if he hadn't done it for three years, I feel like maybe there is a greater reason behind it. If i’m wrong this chapter still made me very confused because I have no Idea why Master Benedict would hit Christopher after three years of holding back.
ReplyDeleteLola, your term "unexpectwed twist" is exactly right here. I think it describes the scene perfectly. Benedict had always been kind, but firm. Using physical force isn't something he engages in.
Delete
ReplyDeleteRachel B.
After reading chapter 8 it surprised be a lot that master benedict hit Christopher. On page 20 it says, “This would normally be when the apprentice-in this case me-would receive a solid, heartfelt beating. But in the three years I’d live with master Benedict, he’d never struck me, not once.” Why has all the sudden has master Benedict decided to strike Christopher when he has never done it before? I think that he had a reason behind it. I think there is a reason Master Benedict hit Christopher. The question now is why? I think that Master Benedict might have hit Christopher to flee him away from the shop. To make it seem like he was super mad. I think that Master Benedict knew he was going to die and did not want Christopher to be there when it happened.
Nice questions and predictions, Rachel! I hope this piece of action made you want to read further!
DeleteIn chapter 8, Master Benedict hits Christopher and calls him useless. This really surprised me but it also made me wonder if Master Benedict did that to protect Christopher. On page 98 it says, "My master, standing behind the counter, stared past her out the front of the shop. I tried to see what he was looking at, but there was a customer blocking the window: a stocky boy of around sixteen, wearing his own blue apron, smirking at the still-unrepaired bear in the corner." Later on the same page, it continues with, "When he returned a minute later, he looked pale." And that is when it happened, Master Benedict hit Christopher. I think Master Benedict knew that something bad was going to happen to him, and that is why after he hit Christopher, he ordered him to not return until he had natron. Master Benedict did not want Christopher to see him get hurt.
ReplyDeleteIt's amazing what people do to protect the ones they love, right, Lainee? Great response!
DeleteIn chapter 8 Master Benedict hits Christopher. This surprised me about Master Benedict. In the book on page 20 it states, “This would normally be when the apprentice-in this case, me-would receive a solid, heartfelt beating. But in the three years I’d lived with Master Benedict, he’d never struck me, not once. This was unusual that I’d passed a whole year under his care before I realized he really was never going to hit me.” This really surprised me. Hearing that last sentence of that quote made me think hard about what had just happened. Master Benedict didn't come across to me to be the kind of Master to hit Christopher. This part really surprised me, but I was also a little confused.
ReplyDeleteI was very surprised and shocked when Master Benedict slapped and called Christopher useless. Master Benedict was always kind and loving towards Christopher. It said in the beginning that Master Benedict had never beaten or even hit Christopher. He was strict but never abusive. When I read this part I thought that that couldn't be Master Benedict. But he was acting really strange.
ReplyDeleteJosh Bloomfield
ReplyDeleteMaster Benedict is usually very kind; so yes, it does surprise me that he would hit Chris and then call him “useless”. My first reason behind being surprised is that on page 20 when Chris shoots a cannon indoors at Master Blackthorn’s shop he explains that. “ This would normally be when the apprentice--- in this case me--- would receive a solid heartfelt beating. But the three years I’d lived with Master Benedict, he’d never struck me once.” In three years of living with Master Benedict, an apprentice who does relatively stupid things such as making gun powder and then firing a cannon indoors using said gunpowder yet the most Chris gets from that is a stern yelling. Seems just a little bit fishy, but Benedict is a smart man and maybe if a certain Cult of the Archangels were to be after him and Benedict decided to hit Chris, call him “useless”, and then send Chris to the market for ingredients that he couldn’t find that day. This would get Chris out of Blackthorn and protect him from a possible murder. Now that I could see Master Benedict doing.
This surprised me because at the beginning of the book Christopher said the Master Benedict never hit him. At first I suspected he was under some kind of influence, but I later found out Benedict was actually saving Chris.
ReplyDeletePosted By Gavin Bracken under my mother's account.
DeleteJerek-
ReplyDeleteWhen Master Benedict hit Christopher and called him useless I was surprised, because Master Benedict had always been nice to him. To back this up; the book says, “In the three years that I’d lived with Master Benedict, he’d never struck me, not once. This was so unusual that I’d passed a whole year under his care before I realized he really was never going to hit me.” One time Christopher shot his bear with a cannon and Master Benedict didn’t hit him, but instead made him clean the entire house and fix the bear. Another reason this surprised me was, because the bond between Master Benedict and Cristopher was strong. On Christopher’s birthday he had gotten him an Antimony puzzle cube he created. I was also kind of expecting Christopher to get hit because Master Benedict wasn’t feeling well.
In chapter 8 when master Benedict hit Christopher it surprised me because had always been nice to Christopher. It also surprised me when he called him useless because he was very kind. In the beginning of the book it said that Master Benedict had never hit Christopher. Master Benedict only used words when he was angry. This was all a surprise to me because the bond between him and Christopher was so strong it was like they were family. I think the resin he hit Christopher was because he was under a spell but I later found out he was keeping Christopher safe.
ReplyDeleteWhen Master Benedict hit Cristopher I was surprised at first. Master Benedict had seemed a little agitated earlier in the day and I thought he was just kind of taking out his anger or frustrations on Christofer. On page 99 it says, “ He really didn’t look well. I tried to catch his eye, but he barely glanced at me.” Then Master Benedict hit Christopher. I was very surprised at his actions. But then I started thinking that there had to be some reason for him to hit Cristopher. On page 20 it says,”But in the three years I’d lived with Master Benedict, he’d never struck me, not once.” I realized that there would be no reason for Master Benedict to hit Cristopher unless he had a good reason.
ReplyDeleteIn the 8th chapter, Master Benedict hit Christopher and and then proceeded to call him useless. This surprised me a lot. Much of why it shocked me is because in the book, it also states, “But in the three years I’d lived with Master Benedict, he’d never struck me, not once.” It was very out of Master Benedict’s usual behavior to hit anyone. I continued to think this until it occured to me that possibly Master Benedict knew that he was going to get hurt and he decided it was for Christopher’s own good to get Christopher out of the shop. Master Benedict didn’t want Christopher to see him get hurt so he sent him out after hitting him. The hitting was to assure Christopher stayed out as long as Master Benedict was getting hurt.
ReplyDeleteI like your deeper thinking here, Eliza. Instead of focusing on the fact that Benedict hit Christopher, one could ask WHY did Benedict hit Christopher?
DeleteI was thoroughly shocked when Master Benedict slapped Christopher. This behavior was previously determined non-existent when Christopher told us that "This would normally be when the apprentice-in this case, me- would receive a solid, heartfelt beating. But in the three years I'd lived with Master Benedict, he'd never struck me, not once. This was so unusual that I'd passed a whole year under his care before I realized he was never going to hit me." As for Master Benedict calling Christopher useless, that pulled a similar response from me. While reading this book, I became a fly on the wall, just watching and listening to everything said and done, and I had learned that this was not something Master Benedict would think of doing. He was so kind to Christopher, that calling him useless and hitting him was practically unthinkable. However, When I found out that Master Benedict did that to protect Christopher from seeing his Master harmed, and possibly being harmed himself, I recovered from my shock fully. Master Benedict had taken these precautions to ensure Christopher's safety.
ReplyDeleteWhen Master Benedict hit christopher I was so shocked. In the text it says "But in the three years that I'd lived with Master Benedict, he'd never hit me, not once." This text I think is very powerful. I think its powerful because for three years Master Benedict didn't hit christopher and out of know where he hits christopher .Also when Master Benedict called christopher "useless" I was really shocked cause that was not like Master Benedict at all.Also in the text it says "This was so usual that I'd passed a whole year under the care before I realized he really was never going to hit me." I picked this piece of text because christopher knew that Master Benedict wouldn't hit him. So when Master Benedict hit christopher it surprised christopher too.
ReplyDeleteHunter Arends
ReplyDeleteIn chapter 8, when Master Benedict hit Christopher and called him "useless" I was surprised. Everything Benedict had done before this told a different story. In the text it states, "Something had to be wrong. I'd seen Master Benedict angry before, made him angry before, but never like this." This quote show that Master Benedict is normally not angry and he has never been angry enough to hit Christopher before. This means that something bad is about to happen in the book. Master Benedicts strange behavior also means he has something to do with it or just knows what it is.
Derrick Caldwell,
ReplyDeleteIn chapter 8, when master Benedict hits Christopher and calls him "useless" I was surprised. I was surprised because in the book earlier Christopher say i'v never seen him so mad. That would mean that his master has something wrong with him. He was acting strange when he was with Christopher. I think he was poisoned because he did not do this before.
Master Benedict hitting Christopher came to me has a little bit of a surprise. Christopher states on page 20 "But in the three years I'd lived with Master Benedict, he'd never struck me, not once." The action of hitting Christopher would be his Master's first time, but we also know from Christopher that his Master did things for a bigger purpose. This is shown when his master asks him what he had learned after performing certain tasks, and at first Christopher thinks of an obvious answer but Christopher knows his Master wants more. I believe that Master Benedict hit Christopher to have a reason to send him away and protect him. The action of hitting Christopher doesn't seem like something he would do, and his strange behavior could be because of him knowing he's in danger.
ReplyDeleteWhen Master Benedict slapped Christopher and calls him "useless" surprised me because Benedict was always nice to Christopher. Benedict always said to Christopher "well done." On page 20 in the book it said " But in the three years that I’d lived with Master Benedict, he’d never hit me, not once." So when Benedict did this it surprised me a lot. I would have never guessed that Benedict would ever hit Christopher. I thought Benedict was a really nice master that would never hit Christopher. So this was a huge surprise to me.
ReplyDeleteTrinity H.-
ReplyDeleteWhen Christopher was slapped by Benedict and insulted, this genuinely shocked me. Christopher stated, on page 20 it says, "But in the three years that I’d lived with Master Benedict, he’d never hit me, not once." This shows that this is extremely out of the ordinary for Benedict, and against his personality. I think that he had to have done this for a reason, or was threatened into doing it. I'm excited to see why Benedict had to do what he did.
Tayler Felton-
ReplyDeleteWhen I read chapter eight in the book, The Blackthorn Key, I was surprised when Master Benedict hit Christopher and called him “useless”. These actions did not add up to how Master Benedict acts, but when I re-read the chapter, I wasn’t surprised by Master Benedict's actions at all. On page 98, the author states, “I tried to see what he was looking at, but there was a customer blocking the window: a stocky boy around the age of sixteen, wearing his own blue apron, smirking at the still-unrepaired bear in the corner.” Later, the page also says, “When he returned, a minute later, he looked pale.” This shows Master Benedict was trying to save Christopher by having him leave and go somewhere because something terrible was going to happen. I believe Master Benedict would try and keep Christopher safe because he has have a stronger bond Christopher.
Jesse P.
ReplyDeleteWhen Master Benedict hit Christopher and called him useless I was surprised. On page 20 Christopher is telling the readers that Master Benedict never in his three years of spending time with Christopher he never hit Christopher. When Benedict hit Christopher and called him "useless" I was expecting Master Benedict to be a nice guy. When this happened I was really surprised and confused. Im sure Benedict is hiding something and wanted Christopher out of the shop. or he just wanted to mean, but I dosent make sense Benedict gave Christopher a present on his birthday.
I was extremely surprised when Master Benedict hit Christopher and called him useless. I was surprised because in all the time that Christopher has been an apprentice to Master Benedict, Master Benedict never hit him. Master Benedict gets all angry out of the blue. Then on page 99, the author states , “'And did I not ask you-twice-to collect his account next time she came?' Had he? 'I'm sorry, Master, I don't remember-'" That's when Benedict hit Christopher and told him that he was useless.
ReplyDeleteI think the murder or murderers are killing off apothecaries because the person wants power the person thinks if all the other or most of the competition apothecaries are gone there will be no one to stand up to that murder. My reasoning for thinking this is because the shops are all in a little competition, with who gets the most sales or who is the most popular. If a lot of the apothecaries were killed there would be less stores to go to leaving their store one of the few left. Which would boost there stores popularity.
ReplyDeleteEllie S.
ReplyDeleteI was very surprised when Master Benedict hit Christopher and called him useless. Throughout the whole book leading up to this point Master Benedict had been a kind master and not a cruel one. On page 101 Christopher says, “Something had to be wrong. I’d seen Master Benedict angry before, made him angry before, but never like this.” Christopher was shocked himself, Master Blackthorn never treated him like that. He never thought that Master Benedict would hit him, and neither did I. It was a major twist in the story.
When Master Benedict hit Christopher I was very surprised. It is not like him at all. Most of the time Master Benedict is very patient with Christopher even when he makes a mistake. It also surprises me because this seems like such a small mistake compared to other mistakes I have read about Christopher making. In the text it states, ““This was normally the time when the apprentice-in this case, me-would receive a solid, heartfelt beating. But in the three years that I’d lived with Master Benedict, he’d never hit me, not once. This was so usual that I’d passed a whole year under the care before I realized he really was never going to hit me.” This is why it surprised me when Master Benedict hit him.
ReplyDeleteJoshua Youles
ReplyDeleteMaster Benedict hitting Christopher really surprised me. I say this because Christopher always said that Master Benedict was nice and kind to him. When Christopher was taken out of the orphanage and put into the apprentice council he was very scared when he met Master Benedict. Christopher thought the first thing he did wrong his master would hit him but instead his master didn't hit him or yell at him instead he taught Christopher how to do it better. When Christopher met Master Benedict it would later on change his life. Master Benedict really cared for Christopher and treated him like one of his own.
In chapter 8, Mr. Benedict calls Christopher useless and hits him. This did not surprise me. In the text it says, "I went around the counter. My master no longer looked ill. He looked furious" p100. When he is angry he hits people. It also did not surprise me because I read it before I responded.
ReplyDeleteIn chapter 8, Mr. Benedict calls Christopher "useless" and hits him. This really shocked me. This shocked me because in the text it states that "This was so usual that I'd passed a whole year under the care before I realized he really was never going to hit me." The text states that even though he has been there for a year know Master Benedict hasn't hit him. Reading this piece of information made me think that Master Benedict was not going to hurt Christopher.
ReplyDelete^^^^I had also thought that Christopher wasn't ever going to get hit when he was with Master Benedict.
ReplyDeleteIn chapter 8, when Master Benedict hit Christopher and called him "useless" I was extremely surprised because Master Benedict had always been very friendly to him. During the whole book, up to this point, Master Benedict had always been very affectionate and not harsh at all. On page 101, Christopher says, “Something had to be wrong. I’d seen Master Benedict angry before, made him angry before, but never like this.” Christopher was very surprised by Master Benedict's actions toward him. He never thought that Master Benedict would ever become so angry at him to hit him. Master Blackthorn never did anything like that to Christopher, so it was big surprised to him when Master Benedict did it. I'm in much curiosity as to why Master Benedict did this. This was a plot twist I did not see coming.
ReplyDeleteIn chapter 8, Master Benedict hit Christopher and called him "useless". This really surprised me. On page 20 it says "But in the three years I'd lived with Master Benedict, he'd never struck me, Not once." On page 20 it also says, "This was so unusual that I'd passed through a whole year before I realized he really was NEVER going to hit me." This was a huge surprise to me I never thought Master Benedict would do some thing like that and it leaves me wondering why he did it.
ReplyDeleteIn chapter 8 when Benedict hit Christopher I was shocked since he was always so nice to Christopher and had never hit him before, but on page 98-99 Benedict went to look at something that had been seen through the window and once he returned he looked ill and then scolded and hit Christopher. That's when I realized he had a bigger reason to hitting Christopher. It says on page 98 that Benedict went to check stock after staring at something through the window that Christopher couldn't see because of a teenage boy blocking the window, and once he returned he looked ill then became furious and hit Christopher. This means he saw something that could hurt Christopher so he didn't hit him because he was mad but to protect him from danger. I knew that Benedict wouldn't hit Christopher without a reason since there is lots of evidence to back up that he was really nice to Christopher like on his birthday when he got him a puzzle cube.
ReplyDeleteMaster benedict's actions did not come as a surprise to me, for every one has a breaking point. Although, Master Benedict seems to have a very even temper I believe that he was embarrassed. When people are embarrassed they tend to lash out, or do things that are out of the norm. For example calling Christopher “useless”. Seems unlike Master Benedict but when reading page 100 of The Blackthorn Key it says "I went around the counter. My master no longer looked ill. He looked furious" Master Benedict uses hitting as a way to let out his anger.
ReplyDeleteIn Chapter 8 Master Benedict becomes very angry with Christopher and hits him. Master Benedict claims that he asked Christopher to collect on Baron Cobley's account twice. He also calls him "useless" and tells him "do something right" "for once". Master Benedict hitting Christopher did surprise me but also confused me. Although Christopher was making contiuous mistakes Master Benedict never hit him before. Even when in the beginning of the book, when Christopher made Master Benedict so angry and furious and Master Benedict said through grinding teeth and after much sarcasm "you could explain why in God's holy name you shot my bear."
ReplyDeleteMaster Benedict's actions in chapter 8 surprised me because earlier in the book Christopher states that his master has never hit him in his years of working there. When master Benedict slapped Christopher and yelled harsh things i was in complete shock. This scene in the book definitely shook me up.
ReplyDeleteCailan M
ReplyDeleteIt was very surprising when Master Benedict hit Christopher and called him “useless.” This is surprising because earlier in the book, Christopher talked about how Master Benedict had never hit him, even though every other master would hit their apprentices. On page 20 it says “But in the three years I’d lived with Master Benedict, he’d never struck me, not once.” This shows how unusual it was when Master Benedict hit Christopher. I think Master Benedict had many frustrations bottled inside, and the last straw led to him hitting Christopher. Although, I really don’t think that Master Benedict thinks that Christopher is “useless.” I think it was just something he said in a time of anger.