Characters in the Novel Rudolf Rassendyll - Rich English gentleman - Twenty-nine years old - Well-educated, travels a lot - Fluent

in German and English, good at French - Good swordsman and horseman - Falls in love with Princess Flavia - Looks like King Rudolf the Fifth King Rudolf the Fifth - The rightful King of Ruritania - Waiting to be crowned as King Rudolf the Fifth - Jovial gentleman and friendly - Looks like Rudolf Rassendyll Princess Flavia - Beautiful Princess of Ruritania - Cousin of the King to whom she is engaged - Caring, warm and gentle person - Loves Rassendyll - Dutiful and honest Colonel Sapt - Adviser and friend of the King - Brave warrior - Loyal and honourable person - Concern over the Kings well-being - Advises Rassendyll on court affairs - Always around to assist Rassendyll Fritz Von Tarlenheim - Adviser and friend of the King - Brave warrior - Loyal and honourable person - Interested in Count Helga and marries her - Always around to assist Rassendyll - Meets Rassendyll once a year to exchange news Duke Michael of Strelsau - Younger brother of King Rudolf the Fifth - Interested in becoming King - Has black hair and is called Black Michael - Loves Princess Flavia - Enemy of Rassendyll and the King - Has six evil followers called The Famous Six Antoinette de Mauban - Rich and beautiful French widow - Lives in Paris - Loves Black Michael - Gives information to Rassendyll
Max Hoff - One of Black Michael men - Guards the Castle of Zenda - Is killed by Rassendyll

The Famous Six - Six loyal followers of Black Michael - Would kill anyone including the King for the Black Michael i) Rupert of Hentzau (Ruritanian) - Leader of the Famous Six - Cold- blooded killer - Selfish and wishes to be rich and powerful - Attempts to kill Rassendyll - Murders Black Michael in a fight ii) Lauvengram (Ruritanian) - Evil person iii) Kaufstein (Ruritanian) - Evil person iv) Detchard (Englishman) - Evil person v) Bersonim (Belgian) - Evil Person vi) De Gautet (French) - Evil person
Other Characters in the novel: Marshal Strakencz - Chief of the Ruritanian Army - Loyal to the King Bernenstein - A friend of King Rudolf - Loyal to the King Inn- keepers daughter - Helps Rassendyll - Loyal to the King Johann Holf - Brother of Max Hoff - Black Michaels forest guard

The Prisoner of Zenda is an adventure novel by Anthony Hope, published in 1894. The king of the fictional country of Ruritania is abducted on the eve of his coronation, and the protagonist, an English gentleman on holiday who fortuitously resembles the monarch, is persuaded to act as his political decoy in an attempt to save the situation. The villainous Rupert of Hentzau gave his name to the sequel published in 1898, which is included in some editions of this novel. The books were extremely popular and inspired a new genre of Ruritanian romance, including the Graustark novels by George Barr McCutcheon.

Plot summary
The narrator is the Hon. Rudolf Rassendyll, twenty-nine year old younger brother of the Earl of Burlesdon and a distant cousin and look-alike of Rudolf V, the soon-to-be-crowned King of Ruritania, a "highly interesting and important" Germanic kingdom somewhere imprecisely between the German and Austrian Empires. The reason for this was because a great-great

grandfather of both Rudolfsalso named Rudolfhad an affair with an English noblewoman. He acknowledged the son that resulted from this union and provided for them. Ruritania is, like Germany and Austria-Hungary at that time, a monarchy. The red-headed Rudolf Elphberg, the crown prince, is a hard-drinking playboy, unpopular with the common people, but supported by the aristocracy, the Catholic Church, the army, and the upper classes in general. The political rival to this absolute monarch is his younger half-brother Michael, the dark-haired Duke and Governor of Strelsau, the capital. Black Michael has no legitimate claim to the throne, because he is the son of their father's second, morganatic marriage in other words his mother was not of royal blood, and the next in line of succession is the beautiful and popular Princess Flavia. Michael is regarded as champion of Strelsau's working classes, both the proletariat and the peasants, and of what Hope refers to as the criminal classes. The novel seems sympathetic, however, with those who would support the dissolute monarch, King Rudolf. When Michael has King Rudolf drugged, Rassendyll must impersonate the King at the coronation, and then when the King is abducted and imprisoned in his castle in the small town of Zenda, until he can be rescued. There are complications, plots, and counter-plots, among them the schemes of Michael's mistress Antoinette de Mauban, and those of his dashing but villainous henchman Rupert of Hentzau, and Rassendyll falling in love with Princess Flavia, the King's betrothed. In the end, the King is restored to his thronebut the lovers, in duty bound, must part forever. Synopsis
A young English gentleman travels to Ruritania to witness the coronation of King Rudolf the Fifth. He finds himself in the centre of a conspiracy to prevent the rightful King to be crowned the King of Ruritania. There are many secrets in Zenda. Who is the prisoner in Zenda Castle? What can Rudolf Rassendyll do? Will Rudolf Rassendyll, Capt Sapt and Fritz save the King of Ruritania? Will Black Michael succeed Rudolf the Fifth as King of Ruritania? Will Princess Flavia marry Black Michael and become the Queen of Ruritania? Find out the answers to the above questions. Get to know what honour means to Rassendyll and Flavia. Learn what loyalty means.

Literature Form 2 - The Potato People

1. Lesson that can be learnt There are many lesson that can be learned from the novel, Potato People. Perhaps the most important is that we should never give up hope. Patrick Flynne was a young orphan in Ireland during the time of great famine. He had to fend for himself. All around him were people suffering from the effects of the famine. Some of this people were nasty and took advantage of weaker people, but others were good. Patrick, like many other people, ate whatever he could find. Once he had to eat the rotten meat of a dead dog. Patrick saw his home in his village destroyed and burn down. He saw his best friend, Sean, being arrested. He dream of escaping to Amerika. We should never give up hope and must strive for a better life. 2. Enjoyed reading the novel? Yes, I have enjoyed reading the novel, Potato People. The story is interesting, and it has an important message. The story tells about the food famines during the Irish potato blight in 1840s. Its message is that we must control our destiny and work hard towards achieving a better

life, like Patrick and Marie. They persevered and never gave up hope for a better life. In the end they settle down in California and became cattle ranchers. I am inspired by the story of their success. 3. Enjoyed reading the novel Potato People The story is interesting and tells about the food famines during the Irish potato blight in 1840s. Many Irish wanted to migrate to the new world. Its message for it readers is that we must work hard towards achieving a better life, like Patrick and Marie. In the end, they settled down in California and became cattle ranchers. I am inspired by the story of their determination and success. 4. Message of Love Potato People highlights the message of love. Sean showed his love for Patrick by turning up with the money for the ship tickets after having gone to great lengths to obtain the money. Patrick and Marie struggle together in a new country. Love blossomed between them for they shared difficult as well as happy times. Patrick showed his love for the poor and hungry when he welcomed them at his home in California. These characters portray the value of selfless love. 5. Brave Character The character in Potato People who is brave is Patrick. He showed a great courage by leaving Ireland for a new life in Amerika. Life was full of hardship. He endured the struggle and even joined the Union Army to fight against slavery. His courage paid off when he was promoted to the rank of Captain and had the respect of the people. After the war, he travelled a lot, experiences many dangers and finally, settled down in California. 6. Theme of Perseverance and determination Patrick and Marie show perseverance and determination to achieve a better life in America. Life in the new country was tough. Often, they had to go hungry. However, they persevered for they never gave up hope for a better future. After so much hardship, they settled down in California. Patrick married Marie and became a wealthy cattle rancher. 7. Lesson that I have learnt I have learnt an important lesson from Potato People. It is the effort taken in working towards a better future. During their early years in America, Patrick and Marie had to endure many years of hardship. However, the hope or a better life in a new country made them persevere. Their perseverance paid off for life become much better many years later. I have learnt that if one is determined to struggle, one can achieve ones dreams for a better future. 8. The character I like most The character I like most in Potato People is Marie. She is intelligent, cheerful and determined. She remained cheerful despite the widespread hunger an uncertainty. Her intelligence save her and Patrick when she stopped him from revealing their identity to the soldiers. In New York, she was determined to make a better life for herself. Her struggle finally paid off when she married Patrick and they both settled down in California. 9. The character that u like I like the character Sean. I think that he was very loyal to his village and he love the people very much. Although he stole from Mr Greystone, he did it because he felt that Mr Greystone was greedy and unfair by burning the village down. The money that he stole, he gave to Patrick and

Marie so that they could go to America to lead a better life, a live that he could not live. He was punished for stealing the money, but he did it because he could not bear injustice. 10. Message of loyalty for it readers The novel Potato People has the message of loyalty for its readers. Sean and Patrick were loyal in their friendship with one another. Sean did not reveal the identity of Patrick and Marie to the soldiers. This was to save their lives. When Patrick saw Sean being led away in chains, he wanted to approach Sean, showing his loyalty. Fortunately, Marie saved his life by stopping him from doing so. Like them, we too, must be loyal to our friends. 11. Brings attention to the value of love The novel Potato People brings attention to the value of love. Sean showed his love for Patrick by turning up with the money for the ship fare. Patrick and Marie struggled in the new country, sharing the hope for a better future. Love blossomed between them as they shared their hardships with one another. Patrick showed his love for the poor and hungry when he welcomed them at his ranch in California. 12. The title Potato People is relevant to the novel The title Potato People is relevant to the novel. The story is about the potato blight in Ireland in the 1840s. the people who were victims of this famine were called the Potato People. They fed on whatever they could find, even decayed meat of dead animals. These people, like Patrick and Marie, saw emigration to the New World as an escape from the starvation and national chaos. 13. Interesting incident In the novel Potato People I especially find the incident in the chapter The Feast somewhat intriguing. When Patrick following Marie into the house full of food on the table, it seemed like they had wandered into a dream. This experience was somewhat exciting, yet was dangerous. Had they been caught, the story would have surely ended differently. Strangely, they found humour in narrowly escaping danger. This was both exciting and thrilling to me. It has taught me to strive hard to achieve my dreams