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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 is the suitor that is pursuing Mattie in the beginning of the novel?

2. What exams do Mattie and Weaver take in Chapter 11?

3. Mattie has earned the money that she spends at the grocery store/lending library in Eagle Bay by picking what plants?

4. Where does Weaver Smith hope to move to attend college?

5. When was the historical figure, Grace Brown, born?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Mattie discover through Grace Brown’s letter in Chapter 16? What does this clue indicate to Mattie?

2. What promise does Uncle Fifty make to Mattie after he arrives? What gifts does he give to the Gokey children?

3. How is Minnie Compeau’s character described in Chapter 2?

4. How is the character of Royal Loomis described in the novel? How is his relationship with Mattie characterized?

5. How is the character of Lawton Gokey described in the novel? How have Lawton’s actions influenced Mattie’s situation?

6. Why has Uncle Fifty left in Chapter 12? How does his departure affect Mattie?

7. How is the character of Weaver Smith described when he is introduced in Chapter 2?

8. What is Aunt Josie’s reply when Mattie asks her for financial assistance in Chapter 8?

9. How is Mattie’s father described in the novel? What are his principle concerns in the beginning of the story?

10. Why does Mattie ask her Aunt Josie for financial help in Chapter 8?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Analyze and discuss the character of Uncle Fifty in the novel. Where does Uncle Fifty live? How is his lifestyle different than that of his brother, Mattie’s father? What does Mattie think of her uncle?

Essay Topic 2

The narrative of A Northern Light rotates between two different timelines. Discuss the linear structure of the plot and the author’s reasons for developing the plot in this way. How do the events in the two timelines relate to one another? How does the author develop tension using this narrative style?

Essay Topic 3

Discuss the early feminist movement and the suffrage movement in the United States. When did women begin to demand the right to vote and when was the right granted? What are some examples of early feminist authors, and what were their main causes at the turn of the century? How does author Jennifer Donnelly depict this movement in the novel?

(see the answer keys)

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