The Wild Robot

Chapters 1-10

Reading Check

1. A cargo ship (Chapter 1)

2. An otter (Chapter 2)

3. The mountain (Chapters 8-9)

Short Answer

1. Roz explains to the animals that she can complete tasks, communicate, and learn. Her interactions with the animals are automatic as she introduces herself to each of the creatures she meets. She was programmed to find safety as shown by her desire to move away from the ocean and cliffside. The narrator clarifies that though Roz cannot experience emotions in the way animals do, she experiences curiosity about her surroundings. The narrator is useful because he is able to clarify details about Roz that would otherwise be unknown. (Chapters 1-10, including Chapter 4)

2. The animals that encounter Roz move away from her because they are afraid and believe Roz is a monster. Roz notices the way the animals move and learns about her environment. For example, after seeing a crab, Roz mimics its movements to climb the side of a cliff more efficiently. (Chapters 1-10, including Chapter 7)

3. Roz is unaware of her origins, why she left the ship, and how she came to be on the island. Additionally, Roz does not know that she does not belong on the island with the animals. (Chapter 10)

Chapters 11-20

Reading Check

1. A thunderstorm (Chapter 11)

2. Camouflage (Chapters 17-18)

Short Answer

1. Roz first tries to communicate with the bears, but when they continue to advance on her, she jumps into a tree. Roz realizes the tree has pinecones, so she uses her previous experience with the pinecones to throw them at the bears. (Chapters 11-20, including Chapter 15)

2. No matter what Roz does, she is unable to find a place where she belongs. First, she lives on a mountain but encounters rain and lightning. Next, she tries to live in a cave but is chased by bears. Then when she attempts to stay in a tree, she is covered in bird droppings before the branch breaks. Roz is unable to find a safe place because she does not belong in the wild. She takes steps to resolve this problem when she camouflages herself and learns how the animals communicate. (Chapters 1-10, including Chapter 20)

Chapters 21-30

Reading Check

1. The dawn truce (Chapter 21)

2. Mama (Chapter 27)

3. Brightbill (Chapter 28)

Short Answer

1. Roz is rejected by the animals in the forest because they are unsure of what she is. The animals suspect Roz wants to eat them, but she explains she does not eat food. Despite this, the animals want Roz to go away and have unfriendly discussions about her. The narrator believes it is good Roz cannot experience human emotions because the rejection from the animals would hurt her feelings. (Chapters 21-30, including Chapter 22)

2. Roz feels compelled to observe the geese because she is curious about life and how it works. When Pinktail teaches Roz about her ability to play dead and smell rotten, Roz attempts to pretend as though she is alive. She adopts performance as a living thing as her new survival technique on the island. (Chapters 21-30, including Chapter 26)

Chapters 31-40

Reading Check

1. Tawny (Chapter 32)

2. Swimming Day (Chapter 35)

3. Chitchat (Chapters 37-38)

Short Answer

1. The animals, recognizing that Roz is no longer a threat, agree to help her by leaving droppings around her garden. Their proximity to Roz and her willingness to share in her bounty allow the animals to develop a relationship with her and give her advice. (Chapters 31-40, including Chapter 33)

2. Roz, being a robot, is unable to take care of Brightbill in the way his real mother would. When Brightbill attends swimming day, he is threatened by Rockmouth, a big fish, and Roz, unable to get wet, cannot go out to protect him. Later, Brightbill discovers the joy of flying and is saddened that Roz is unable to enjoy the experience with him. (Chapters 31-40, including Chapter 39)

Chapters 41-50

Reading Check

1. To the robot gravesite (Chapter 45)

2. Mr. Beaver (Chapter 48)

Short Answer

1. Roz first experiences adolescent behavior when Brightbill wrestles with the concept of having a robot parent. He wants to see the dead robots that washed up on the island when Roz first arrived. Roz refuses, believing Brightbill is too young. Brightbill becomes angry and flies off to the gravesite without permission. Roz does not fully understand adolescent behavior because she was not born, but Loudwing explains that it is normal. Later, the adolescent bears Nettle and Thorn attack Roz and Roz recognizes it is because of their age. (Chapters 41-50, including Chapter 46)

2. The adolescent bears Nettle and Thorn attack Roz and tell her to leave the island. Roz attempts to scare the bears away, but they attack her and rip off her foot. Mother Bear attempts to intervene, but Thorn falls off the cliff’s edge while attacking Roz. Roz, realizing the bear is hanging onto the cliff’s edge, rescues Thorn. She extends forgiveness to Nettle and Thorn and to the mother who apologizes for their behavior. (Chapter 46)

3. Roz’s observations about her environment allow her to recognize what makes birds fly. She instructs Brightbill on the correct method of flight and he becomes the best flier of the goslings. Brightbill is a leader of the goslings because of his adeptness at flying, though he has a robot mother. (Chapters 41-50, including Chapter 49)

Chapters 51-60

Reading Check

1. Roz (Chapter 53)

2. Rockmouth (Chapter 60)

Short Answer

1. Roz becomes inactive because Brightbill’s departure and the animals’ hibernation leave her with little to do. She runs low on power but awakens because of a sunbeam of light. After waking up, she discovers the animals on the island were overtaken by a terrible cold front and allows the animals to join her to keep warm. She later resolves to create shelters and teach the animals to build fires to help them in the cold winters. (Chapters 51-60, including 54)

2. Crag, an ancient turtle, describes the island as once being a great mountain that has since been subject to flooding. The animals worry the waters will continue to rise on the island. Crag describes the weather as becoming colder in the winters and warmer in the summers. (Chapter 58)

3. Roz, unlike the animals, is willing to help and shelter those in need. The animals reflect that they often act out of selfish desires. For example, Digdown says she spent all her time digging tunnels but only for herself. Roz eventually concludes her purpose is to help others. (Chapters 51-60, including Chapter 60)

Chapters 61-67

Reading Check

1. The party truce (Chapter 65)

2. An airship (Chapter 67)

Short Answer

1. Roz becomes wilder because she believes the animals prefer it when she behaves as though she is wild. Her intention is to blend in with the animals to become more like them. (Chapters 61-67)

2. Brightbill discovers other robots on his journey. He attempts to speak with them, but they do not know how to communicate. This sets the robots apart from Roz, who is able to communicate and understand animals. Brightbill also points out that Roz is the most likable robot he has ever seen, realizing how special she is in comparison to the other robots. (Chapters 63-64)

3. Roz explains that the party is to mark the one-year anniversary of when she arrived on the island. The party is significant because Roz thanks the animals for teaching her how to truly live. This is an important statement because, up to this point, Roz has wondered what it means to be alive. (Chapter 66)

Chapters 68-80

Reading Check

1. RECOS 1, RECOS 2, and RECOS 3 (Chapter 68)

Short Answer

1. The RECO robots expect Roz to follow their instruction without question. Roz continues to ask questions and refuses to get on the ship as commanded. As a result of her defiance, the RECO units tell Roz she is defective. (Chapter 69)

2. The animals, having been aided by Roz all winter, see Roz as one of their own now. The animals attack the robots to give Roz time to escape. They begin by trapping RECOS 3 in the mud and Broadband kicks his head off. RECOS 2 is attacked by Nettle and Thorn and is smashed on the rocks over the waterfall. RECOS 1 is killed by a rifle when vultures drop the rifle to the shore and the otters shoot it. All the animals in the forest work together to save Roz, either by causing a distraction—and aiding other animals—or directly killing the robots. Roz’s friends and family are important to her because just as she aided them in their time of need, they succeeded in aiding her when she needed it. (Chapters 68-80)

3. Roz’s final sacrifice for the animals is to leave the island to prevent further damage, which may be inflicted by the RECOS robots on the island. As RECOS 1 dies, she tells Roz—who is badly damaged—that RECOS will continue to infiltrate the island as long as Roz is on the island. The robot also informs Roz that the company will repair the significant damage inflicted on Roz’s body. Roz is missing arms and legs because of the battle with RECOS 1. Roz’s decision is likely the correct one, because she will be able to save her friends on the island and her body will be restored to its former function. But she risks being reset and losing her memories and feelings toward the animals on the island, and there is a possibility she will never see her animal friends again. (Chapters 68-80)