Quicksilver
By Parker Dixon
Summary: Anthas
She never looked back, even though she will never see her parents again. At age six Anaxandra is taken captive by King Nicander, the proud king of the island of Siphnos. Anaxandra is the main character, daughter of a minor chieftain named Chrysor in an island in the Aegean Sea. Anaxandra is too young realize she will never see her parents again, and is eager to have an adventure she doesn't know will never end. Nicanader is taking her to be company to his disabled daughter, Callisto. Her original purpose was to be a hostage until her father doubled his tribute(taxes). Anaxandra happened to brag about her skill of being able to swim underwater, even to “Father’s Caves, where he keeps all of his treasure.” Nicander takes the gold and jewels and then takes her just to be friend to Callisto.
The men of the twisted fish will pay. All Anaxandra’s life her homes are destroyed by others seeking gold and treasure, all to whom Anaxandra feel loathing towards. Her least favorite are the group of pirates who stormed Siphnos, and their ship’s flag was a blue, twisted fish. There are two types of conflicts in the story. One is Anaxandra’s first conflict in the story is Character vs. Character, when King nicander takes her captive, and that group of pirates storm Siphnos. The second is Character vs. Self, where Anaxandra decides to lie to King Menelaus of Sparta and say she is Callisto in order to survive.
“My soldiers, beat these invaders into the sea!!” roars the future king of Troy. The war begins. This war is taking place to take beautiful Helen of Troy back to Sparta, and take Troy with it. The Greek warriors of Sparta and its allies are are led by King Menelaus and the Roman warriors of Troy and its allies are led by Prince Hector of Troy, the oldest son of the elderly King Priam.
On the second day of the war Anaxandra sneaks by the troops of her new home in Troy and brings baby Pleisthenes, son of Helen of Troy and Menelaus of Sparta back to his father, and when Menelaus promises Anaxandra anything she wants, she admits herself to being Anaxandra and although she lied first “earned” back the property of Siphnos. For the safety of the new real princess, they sail Anaxandra to Lemnos, the island of a friend of hers, the king of Lemnos, who previously had given her a puppy named Anthas, or “flower”. Anaxandra’s life isn’t so bad after all. Anaxandra wishes them well and sets sail.Character Traits: Anaxandra
Turning Points: How to be Medusa
Sailing forever
This picture symbolizes Anaxandra, sailing away from her parents at age six. She doesn’t know they are taking her hostage, and she thinks she will only be gone until sunset. It is a ship sailing. It is a turning point because she is leaving her home forever.
Medusa
This photo symbolizes Anaxandra as a young girl. It shows the time she put an octopus on her head and pretended to be Medusa. She wanted to scare off the pirates who attacked Siphnos, and who killed her foster father, Nicander. It is a turning point because she finds her courage for the first time.
Walking through a desert
This picture symbolizes Anaxandra taking the place of Hermione, the daughter of King Menelaus of Sparta and Helen of Sparta. To save her life, she must walk across a desert to get to the port and sail to Troy. It is a turning point because she risks her life for someone she has spent so little time with.
Spotlight on History: Ophion
FACT #1–Page number: #24
It says, “The orchard man dropped his bucket of water-precious scarce water-and ran for the safety of the town, pausing only to scoop a toddler into his arms” In this part of the book Siphnos is being robbed, and an orchard man gives up water to save his life. Its importance to the plot is that because of this attack, Anaxandra is found and taken to Sparta, where great Helen of Sparta abandons Sparta for Troy, a much more wealthy city, where the climax happens.FACT #2–Page Number:#57
It says, “King Menelaus said,”What treasure have you found, my little princess?”
“A magic jar,” I told him.
“It is not magic, but glass. It comes from Egypt. I have sailed there twice and met their king. They are a very strange people.”, said Menelaus.” In this scene Anaxandra is walking through a marketplace in lower Sparta, and happens to find a glass jar. Glass is a strange thing to her, and although she was not introduced to it in her youth, others were not either. Glass was a treasure to some who had not heard of it before, showing that if glass still wasn’t well known, it was early in the advancement of civilization.
FACT #3-Page Number: #63
It says,“On my birth island, there had been one or two carts. Their wheels were always jouncing over stones, so everyone preferred donkeys. On Siphnos, there had been several carts, whose proud owners painted them in vivid colors. But wheels remained a problem, for the punishment taken by the wheels quickly destroys them.” Here Anaxandra is walking in upper Sparta, to the palace of Menelaus. Anaxandra notices the strength of wheels at a young age, as if it was a normal thing, and we have stronger tires and never think twice about them, unless they break.
FACT #4–Page Number: #192
It says, “Riding a donkey or mule is merely a slow and bumpy way to get somewhere without using our legs. But riding a horse is an act of grace.” It shows that although, for us, horseback riding is a fun activity to do, to them it is a privilege, a great skill,and those who can master it, are greatly skilled people.