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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What has Mary Todd been doing while Lincoln entertains his guests?
(a) Listening at the door.
(b) Hemming a dress.
(c) Throwing a tantrum.
(d) Making tea.

2. What is Mary Todd Lincoln's response to her husband's suggestion that she go home?
(a) She laughs and insists she's staying until the bitter end.
(b) She becomes hysterical and says her husband hates her.
(c) She turns silently and leaves the room.
(d) She bursts into tears and slaps him.

3. What are the issues on Lincoln's mind as he addresses the crowd?
(a) His wife's mental health.
(b) A strike by factory workers in New Jersey.
(c) The cost of maintaining the railroads.
(d) The break-up of the Union because 11 states have promised to secede.

4. What is it about the Gale family's plans that seems most important to Lincoln?
(a) The care they have for the nation and the possiblity they will abandon America if slavery spreads.
(b) The success they've achieved with the dry-cleaning business.
(c) Their big dreams for their son's future.
(d) The relationship they've developed with Gobey.

5. What legal case established that slaves should be considered property?
(a) Dred Scott v. Sandford.
(b) The Slaughterhouse Cases.
(c) Marbury v. Madison.
(d) Brown v. Board of Education.

6. How does Lincoln describe Douglas' verbal skills?
(a) He juggles bullets.
(b) He slings arrows like Zeus.
(c) He uses smoke and mirrors.
(d) He keeps 10 daggers flashing in the air.

7. What happens when Seth Gale's boy takes a turn for the worse before the doctor arrives at the end of Act 2, Scene 7?
(a) Jack Armstrong applies a mustard paste to the boy's chest.
(b) Lincoln breaks down in tears at the injustice.
(c) The boy's mother gives him mouth to mouth resuscitation.
(d) Lincoln says a prayer for the boy's recovery.

8. Douglas accuses Lincoln of having sympathy for slaves but no sympathy for another suffering group of people. Who are they?
(a) Windsurfers in Hawaii.
(b) Seamstresses on the East Coast.
(c) Textile workers in the North.
(d) Auto workers in Detroit.

9. How does the playwright describe the appearance of Stephen Douglas as he takes the stage to debate Lincoln?
(a) "He is a titan, with a voice that rolls like thunder."
(b) "He is a brief but magnetic man, confident of his power."
(c) "The judge is an elfin man, with a voice to match."
(d) "Muscular and tall, Judge Douglas commands attention with his merest glance."

10. How does Lincoln frequently begin a sentence after his election?
(a) "Whatever..."
(b) "If I live..."
(c) "Funnily enough..."
(d) "As I live and breath..."

11. What plans are afoot in South Carolina in case of a Lincoln victory?
(a) Emancipation of slaves in the state.
(b) A Republican victory celebration with fireworks.
(c) A 10,000-man march on Washington.
(d) Secession from the Union.

12. Where does Seth Gale intend to settle his family?
(a) Oregon.
(b) New Mexico.
(c) Texas.
(d) Nevada.

13. What's the first thing one of the guests in Act 3, Scene 10 does after sitting down in the Lincolns' parlor?
(a) Congratulates Lincoln on the beauty of the house.
(b) Offers Lincoln a job running his company.
(c) Asks permission to smoke a cigar.
(d) Spills tea on the sofa.

14. Who is the moderator of the debate between Lincoln and Douglas?
(a) Elizabeth Edwards.
(b) Bowling Green.
(c) Whoopi Goldberg.
(d) Ninian Edwards.

15. Seth Gale tells Abe he's feeling "pretty scared" about his son's health. What does Lincoln tell him?
(a) He urges Gale not to be scared, that he is doing a "big thing" and shouldn't let anything beat him down.
(b) He agrees Gale should be scared and urges him to turn back.
(c) He offers to burn some incense and herbs to smoke out the boy's fever.
(d) He tells Gale that he, too, is scared but he will go West with the Gale family.

Short Answer Questions

1. Asked how he'll feel if he loses, how does Lincoln predict he will feel?

2. What does Jack Armstrong tell Seth Gale about Lincoln while they wait for Lincoln's arrival in Act 2, Scene 7?

3. In the debate, Lincoln accuses Douglas of pandering to both sides of the slavery issue. What does he mean?

4. What causes Lincoln to change his mind about his future?

5. What is the sentence that Lincoln tells his farewell crowd is true and appropriate for all times and occasions?

(see the answer keys)

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