Guy de Maupassant (1883) — an old farmer picks up a small piece of string, and the whole town turns against him
Original version available: read this lesson at B2/C1 level →
This is a famous short story, told here in simple English. Read each part, then stop and talk about the questions. The end is very sad — read slowly and do not jump ahead.
It was market day in a small town. Lots of people came to buy and sell things. There was a lot of noise. There were many animals.
An old farmer walked through the town. His name was Hauchecorne. He was careful with his money. He never threw anything away.
On the ground, he saw a small piece of string. He picked it up. But another man was watching him. This man did not like the farmer. They had a fight a long time ago, and they were still angry.
The farmer felt a little embarrassed. He quickly put the string in his pocket. Then he walked away.
Later that day, the people heard some news. A man had lost his wallet. There was a lot of money in it. Everyone talked about it.
Then the police came to the farmer. They took him to the mayor.
The mayor said: "You were seen this morning. You picked up the wallet."
The farmer was shocked. "No! I only picked up a little piece of string!" he said. He took the string out of his pocket to show them.
But the people did not believe him. The man who did not like him told everyone: "I saw him take the wallet!" The mayor let the farmer go, but he was not happy.
The next day, there was good news. Another man found the wallet and gave it back. The money was all there. The farmer never took it.
The farmer was very happy. Now everyone will believe me, he thought. He went and told the news to everybody.
But the people still did not believe him. They said: "He is clever. He gave the wallet back to a friend. He is telling a lie." They laughed at him.
The farmer was very upset. He told his story again and again, to everyone. But no one listened. Slowly, he became ill and weak.
At the end, he was very ill in his bed. He was still saying the same sad words: "It was only a little piece of string... only a little piece of string."
Ten useful words. Tap each card to see what it means and an example sentence.
1. The man ______ his wallet on the road. 2. He only picked up a piece of ______. 3. The people did not ______ him.
In this story, many things "are done" to the farmer. He does not do them. For this, we use the passive.
Active: a person does the action. Someone lost a wallet.
Passive: we put the thing first. We use was / were + the past verb. A wallet was lost.
We use the passive when we do not know who did it, or when it is not important who did it.
More examples from the story: The wallet was found. The farmer was seen. The string was picked up.
1. Someone lost a wallet. → A wallet . (lose)
2. A man found the wallet. → The wallet . (find)
3. Someone saw the farmer. → The farmer . (see)
1. was lost
2. was found
3. was seen
1. The string up from the ground. (pick)
2. The money in the wallet. (keep)
3. The farmer to the mayor. (take)
1. was picked
2. was kept
3. was taken
Remember: was / were + the past verb. For one thing we use "was"; for many things we use "were" (The wallets were lost).
This story has a very sad end. The writer wants us to feel angry and sad. Here is the big idea, in simple words.
We think: the wallet is found, so now the people will believe the farmer. But they do not! This is the surprise. The good news does not help him. It makes things worse.
A rumour is a story that people tell each other. It may be true or false. In this story, one man tells a lie. The lie becomes a rumour. Soon, everyone believes the rumour. They do not believe the real farmer, even when he shows them the truth.
At the start and at the end, the farmer says the same words: "only a little piece of string." This makes us feel very sad. He is saying the truth, but no one listens.
Do all three. Use the timer and try to keep talking. The sentence starters can help you begin.
Now tell the story again in your own words. Use short, simple sentences. Try to use four or five words from the Words tab, and tell the events in order.
These steps will help you: a farmer picks up a small piece of string at the market · an enemy says he took a lost wallet · people do not believe him · the wallet is found, but they still do not believe him · he becomes ill and sad, still saying "only a piece of string".
Talk about a time when someone told the truth, but people did not believe them — you, someone you know, or a person from a book or film. What happened? How did they feel?
The people believe a rumour, not the truth. Is this fair? What can we do when people believe a lie? Say what you think.