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This test consists of 15 multiple choice questions and 5 short answer questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Why is Ann's death such a setback to Lincoln?
(a) Ann wrote his speeches; without her, he has nothing to say.
(b) He fears any woman who loves him is doomed to an early death, like his mother.
(c) He depended on Ann's connections to the politically powerful in Washington.
(d) He doesn't feel he will be taken seriously as a candidate if he is single.

2. Ninian Andrews arrives at Lincoln's office and learns about a sad event. What is it?
(a) Seth Gale's mother is dead of malaria.
(b) Lincoln's dog, Rufus, has been killed in a hunting mishap.
(c) Jack Armstrong is in jail for murder.
(d) The death of Lincoln's friend, Bowling Green.

3. Who is President during the time represented in Act 2, Scene 4?
(a) Harrison Ford.
(b) Thomas Jefferson.
(c) Martin Van Buren.
(d) Winston Churchill.

4. Why does Bowling Green call Lincoln "an artful dodger" in Act 2, Scene 4?
(a) Lincoln is an accomplished amateur boxer who never takes a blow to the chin.
(b) Lincoln has left a number of women at the altar.
(c) Lincoln manages to slip away from debt collectors just when they are closing in on him.
(d) Lincoln continually evades running for any office that would require him to take a public stand on slavery.

5. What does Mary Todd's sister predict if she marries Lincoln?
(a) A life in a quaint cabin, stitching buckskin clothing and raising a passel of children.
(b) A wanderer's life, as Lincoln can't seem to hold a decent job.
(c) A life in a miserable cabin, without servants and without decent clothing.
(d) A glittering life in the nation's capital, dancing with elegant Europeans.

6. What is Mary Todd's lifelong dream for herself?
(a) That she will live a simple life, raising children.
(b) That she will marry the President of the United States.
(c) That she will be able to nominate Supreme Court justices.
(d) That she will become President of the United States.

7. How does Lincoln surprise Ann Rutledge while she is clearing tables during Act 1, Scene 2?
(a) By declaring his love for her.
(b) By bursting into song when she agrees to talk with him.
(c) By delivering a package from her fiance.
(d) By asking her to dance on the bar.

8. In Scene 2, Act 4, Lincoln receives a letter from his old friend, Seth Gale. What is Gale worrying about?
(a) His wife's increasingly bizarre behavior.
(b) Gale's property taxes are going sky-high to pay for liberation of the slaves.
(c) The prospect of his father's death and the debts he will inherit.
(d) The possible annexation of Texas, which would result in the extension of slavery through all the territories.

9. How does Mary Todd respond to Lincoln's proposal at the end of Act 2, Scene 5?
(a) First she acts surprised, then meekly agrees with a timid "yes."
(b) She doesn't--the scene ends with the lights fading before he pops the question.
(c) She grabs his hands, looks deeply into his eyes and whispers the word "yes."
(d) She laughs and laughs, then says she'll think it over seriously and get back to him.

10. Why can't Lincoln bring himself to shoot a deer?
(a) Because he prefers bow-hunting.
(b) Because he once saw one running across his mother's grave.
(c) Because his mother was an anti-gun lobbyist.
(d) Because of the scene in "Bambi," in which his mother was killed.

11. What is the setting of Act 2, Scene 5 and what does it convey about the occupants?
(a) The setting is a grand ballroom and it conveys the gala celebration of political victory.
(b) The setting is the parlor of Ninian Edwards' home and it conveys a comfortable upper-class life.
(c) The setting is Ninian Edwards' home and it conveys a sense of genteel poverty.
(d) The setting is Lincoln's log cabin and it conveys a feeling of bachelor solitude.

12. In Act 2, Scene 5, Lincoln mentions a woman "foxing" his pants--what does that mean?
(a) Sewing buckskin around the lower legs to keep them from being shredded by underbrush.
(b) Something so scandalous that Mary Todd showed Lincoln the door before he could explain.
(c) The woman was flirting with him outrageously.
(d) Attaching foxskins down the legs as a means of camoflauge.

13. What is the purpose of Edwards' visit to New Salem in Act 1, Scene 2?
(a) To announce his own run for the presidency.
(b) To bring law and order to New Salem.
(c) To look at the Rutledge Tavern as an investment.
(d) To recruit Lincoln to run for the State Assembly.

14. Why is Mary Todd so sure that Lincoln will be a success, and not stop to tell jokes, as her sister predicts?
(a) She doesn't care if he's a success; she has a huge inheritance that will support them both.
(b) Because Lincoln has confided his dream of becoming a successful merchant and moving to New York.
(c) Because she is strong enough to make sure he moves along the road of success without stopping.
(d) Because she knows that Lincoln is not very good at telling jokes and has a strong streak of ambition.

15. What is Josh Speed's understanding of Lincoln's personality?
(a) Lincoln is a great fool with an odd understanding of the law.
(b) Lincoln is obsessive-compulsive and can't stop counting fence posts.
(c) Lincoln can't control his manic-depressive episodes and constantly makes a fool of himself.
(d) Lincoln is a hopeless hypochondriac who reads Hamlet.

Short Answer Questions

1. What is the true reason Lincoln wants to end the engagement with Mary Todd?

2. What is the weather, as the Greens sit in their parlor, waiting for Abe to return from Ann Rutledge's home?

3. In a poem that Lincoln reads in the first scene, what is it that the poet finds strange about people?

4. Who have Bowling Green, Ninian Edwards and Josh Speed come to New Salem to see?

5. In Scene 2, Act 4, what office is Lincoln seeking?

(see the answer keys)

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