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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. Who created a written record of every date, establishment name, and individual name associated with the Community Service activities supervised by Harper?

2. As Clayton Smith rode with the man who had given him a ride, he imagined a posse looking for him with which character "at the head" (150)?

3. In what kind of location in Tallahassee had Jaime liked to hang out with his friends before his stint at Nickel?

4. In what year did Elwood move to New York City?

5. For what moving company did Elwood work before starting his own moving company?

Short Essay Questions

1. What quality did Harper name as the most important one for a Community Service work detail member to possess?

2. What happened to the money Elwood had saved up for college?

3. What happened on Christmas Day that caused the Nickel boys to feel "like boys from nice houses in nice neighborhoods" (116)?

4. What bad news did Harriet deliver to her grandson Elwood in Chapter 12 when she came for a visit after missing one due to illness?

5. Who was Chickie Pete and for what purpose does Whitehead devise his character?

6. Which staff member at Nickel did Elwood name as the man he would like to poison?

7. How was Griff punished for his mistake in the boxing match?

8. What does the set of "Chipwick's British Classics" (84) symbolize within the novel?

9. How did Elwood discover that Griff had been instructed by Superintendent Spencer to throw the boxing match?

10. For what reason did Elwood become angry at Chickie Pete during their reunion?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Examine the role of Elwood's grandmother Harriet within The Nickel Boys. How does Whitehead use Harriet's role to highlight themes included within the overall narrative?

Essay Topic 2

What techniques does Whitehead use to mislead the reader throughout the narrative of The Nickel Boys and for what purpose does he enact these instances of misdirection?

Essay Topic 3

Discuss Whitehead's purpose for juxtaposing at least two different locations in a particular way within the text of The Nickel Boys. Examples could include locations such as the white side of the Nickel campus versus the black side of the Nickel campus or Marvin Griggs Technical College versus Nickel's ancient schoolhouse.

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 1,159 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample