‘I am David’ Answers to booklet

Chapter 3 Chapter 3 1.At this point in the story, it is not clear as to why ‘the man’ in the camp helped David to escape. Who do you think ‘the man’ might have been? Come up with possible reason as to why he helped David to escape. 1.At this point in the story, it is not clear as to why ‘the man’ in the camp helped David to escape. Who do you think ‘the man’ might have been? Come up with possible reason as to why he helped David to escape. The man was probably a guard and someone who was quite superior. He said that he was leaving and would have no control over what happened to David once he had left. Perhaps he had felt sorry for David as he was a small child when he came to the camp and had looked out for him. Perhaps he had developed some kind of attachment to David and just didn’t want to see him hurt after all that he had done to look out for him.

2. Why did David find it necessary to choose a God? What comfort did having a God bring him? When David loses his compass, he cries out, “Oh God.” He then realises that he needs to have someone/something else to get him through his journey. He feels that God may help him in some way. 3. On page 63, David becomes confused and cannot distinguish between someone showing him kindness and someone “deliberately trying to ensnare him”. Describe the incident that leads to this confusion (you’ll need to read the previous pages and comment on why you think David has so much trouble understanding the difference between kindness and evil intentions. The woman from England seems to feel that it would be wrong to let David go – he’s in some kind of trouble and she would like to help him. However, David feels that once he’s “caught”, he’ll end up back in the camp. He has trouble understanding the difference because he’s only ever known the camp and has learned not to trust those he doesn’t know.

4. David refuses to take the money that the man offers him. Why does he do this when he really could do with the money? David has very strong principles. He knows that the American couple were suspicious of him and thought he was trying to steal. David knows he would never steal. To prove a point, he elects not to take the money. This is after he had proven that he was not a thief when he left his precious bundle behind. 5. It seems strange that a boy would be unable to smile, but David does not seem to have any idea of what smiling involves. Why do you think this is so and what does this tell us about David? David’s experiences at the camp would have been very difficult and a great source of unhappiness. It would have been very rare to see anyone smile, so David probably hasn’t really felt the happiness that allows us to smile.

6. What are two things that David believes will make him happy and that he badly wants? (p68). How does this compare to two things that you badly want and believe will make you happy? David believed that if he had freedom and a country where he could live in safety that he would be happy. We already have these and probably take them far too much for granted. Happiness for me would mean having a loving family and good health. 7. Throughout this chapter, we learn a great deal about David’s character – what he believes and the values that he holds. Make a list of these things by using a concept web. David’s beliefs/values: believes in God; honesty; earning your money; happiness is about freedom and safety, not material possessions.

8. Given the kind of living conditions that David had experiences for most of his life, how do you think David came to be the person he is and to have the beliefs and values that you outlined in the previous question? Johannes seems to have had a very big impact on David. We know this because David recalls many things that Johannes had taught him. Because David had lived such a terrible life and didn’t have much, money and material possessions mean little to him. He knows that he just needs enough to survive and that immaterial things are much more important.