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Question 1: Who appears when Perseus is sitting alone and trying not to cry?

Sample student answer: Responses may vary, as long as they reflect the text. For example:

• A stranger appears.
• Quicksilver appears.
• A strange young man appears.

Question 2: Describe Quicksilver’s

Sample student answer: Responses may vary, as long as they reflect the text. For example, students may respond that Quicksilver helps Perseus carry out his mission of cutting off Medusa’s head.

Question 3: Who appears when Midas is sitting alone in his treasure-room and playing with his gold?

Sample student answer: Responses may vary, as long as they reflect the text. For example:

• A stranger appears.
• A young man appears.

Question 4: Describe the stranger’s role in the story.

Sample student answer: Responses may vary, as long as they reflect the text. For example, students may respond that the stranger gives Midas the power of the Golden Touch and later tells him how to get rid of it.

Question 5: What is similar about the way the stranger looks in each story?

Sample student answer: Responses may vary, as long as they reflect the texts. At minimum, students should recognize that the stranger has the appearance of a young man in both stories. All the better if students note other parallel details, such as the stranger’s cheerful look.

Question 6: How is the role of the stranger in each story similar? Support your answer with examples from the stories.

Sample student answer: Responses may vary, as long as support from the stories is provided. For instance, students may respond that in each story the stranger helps the main character do something important. In “The Gorgon’s Head,” the stranger helps Perseus on his mission to cut off Medusa’s head. In “The Golden Touch,” the stranger helps King Midas realize that his daughter is more important to him than gold.