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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. One of Lincoln's clients can't pay her bill; why does Lincoln think she is right not to pay?
(a) Lincoln defended her husband unsuccessfully and he was hanged.
(b) She is a poor widow and Lincoln doesn't take money from widows.
(c) He believes she is going to inherit a lot of money, so he can wait for payment.
(d) Lincoln took a horse from her late husband in payment.

2. Who gave the speech that Lincoln's teacher has him read?
(a) George Washington.
(b) Daniel Webster.
(c) Alexander Hamilton.
(d) James Madison.

3. What advice does Josh Speed give Lincoln regarding his mental health?
(a) He prescribes anti-depressants.
(b) He suggests Lincoln see a doctor.
(c) He thinks a good night's sleep will work wonders.
(d) He suggests a lobotomy.

4. Who is Elizabeth Edwards?
(a) Mary Todd's sister and Ninian Edwards' wife.
(b) The wife of a one-time presidential candidate.
(c) The woman Abe Lincoln loves and wants to marry.
(d) The author of two memoirs.

5. What excuse does Ninian Edwards give for getting himself and his wife out of the parlor so Lincoln can be alone with Mary Todd?
(a) He feigns an injury and asks his wife to help him upstairs.
(b) He takes his wife dancing.
(c) The two have to hear their children's bedtime prayers.
(d) He doesn't give an excuse, just grabs his wife's arm and hustles her off stage.

Short Answer Questions

1. When Lincoln suggests he wants to die in Act 1, Scene 3, how do his friends respond?

2. Why can't Lincoln bring himself to shoot a deer?

3. In Act 2, Scene 5, Lincoln mentions a woman "foxing" his pants--what does that mean?

4. What does Lincoln see on the boat from Quincy to Alton that shocks him?

5. Who wrote the poem that Lincoln's teacher gives him to read?

Short Essay Questions

1. Josh Speed and Bowling Green are longtime friends of Lincoln's; they have urged him for years to seek higher political office. In Act 2, Scene 4, what is their attitude toward Lincoln's reluctance to run for an important elected position?

2. How desperate is Lincoln and what is the event that seems to have caused his emotional outbreak?

3. Act 1, Scene 2 portrays Lincoln's first step toward a political destiny. The audience (or reader) knows that Lincoln will become one of the country's great Presidents. What symbols does the author use in this scene to heighten that feeling of political destiny?

4. When Josh Speed burns Lincoln's letter to Mary Todd, Lincoln tells him the real reasons he doesn't want to go through with the marriage. What are his real reasons?

5. At the beginning of Act 2, Scene 5, Elizabeth Edwards is responding to a bit of news which surprises her--even though she might have seen it coming. What is the news and who brought it to her attention?

6. At the end of Act 2, Scene 4, Lincoln is about to attend an event that will change his life. Where is he going and what is going to happen there?

7. What is Webster reacting or responding to in the speech Lincoln reads in Act 1, Scene 1?

8. What is Josh Speed's opinion of Lincoln's personality and prospects, now that Lincoln is in the State Assembly?

9. How does Nancy Green describe Lincoln's fear of falling in love in Act 1, Scene 3?

10. By Act 2, Scene 4, it is clear that Lincoln's friendship with Ninian Edwards (the governor's son) has advanced. What evidence does Lincoln offer of his popularity?

(see the answer keys)

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