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

2. How many candidates are seeking the presidency?
(a) Four.
(b) Two.
(c) Five.
(d) Three.

3. How is the crowd outside receiving voting results?
(a) A crier shouts the results from the roof of the State House.
(b) By images flashed by a magic lantern outside the State House.
(c) Through their Twitter accounts.
(d) Announcements are made by loudspeaker.

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

5. What causes Lincoln to change his mind about his future?
(a) After meeting Seth Gale, Lincoln realizes his destiny is in national service, as Mary always said.
(b) He fails as a farmer and sees he must return to politics.
(c) After seeing Seth Gale's son, Lincoln realizes how much he wants children.
(d) He understands he's not getting any younger or better looking, so it's time to settle down.

Short Answer Questions

1. How does the playwright describe the appearance of Stephen Douglas as he takes the stage to debate Lincoln?

2. What is the mood of the crowd surging around Lincoln at the railroad station?

3. What legal case established that slaves should be considered property?

4. What song does the band play as Lincoln departs?

5. At the beginning of Act 3, Scene 10, Lincoln is sitting in his parlor with his sons. How many did he have?

Short Essay Questions

1. Almost at the moment he learns of his election, Lincoln's life changes in a way he doesn't like. In the play, who or want is the sign of this change? And which of the play's themes does this change fit into?

2. Until he was elected, Lincoln was clean-shaven. But, as he heads to Washington to take office, he is bearded. Why did he grow a beard?

3. As he waits for the election results, Lincoln calls the evening a "death watch." What are Lincoln's feelings about winning the election?

4. Despite Mary Lincoln's and Josh Speed's entreaties that Lincoln treat his visitors seriously because they are influential, Lincoln can't help but give them a little of his backwood's humor. How does he respond when Henry D. Sturveson says they have come to see if Lincoln will be a suitable candidate?

5. As he is leaving Springfield, what is Lincoln's hope regarding his future?

6. Lincoln tells Mary Todd that his encounter with Seth Gale a few days earlier was the spur that brought him to her door. What was the decision Lincoln made while visiting with Gale and how does the playwright convey Lincoln's ambivalence about that decision?

7. Mary Todd accepts Lincoln's return in Act 2, Scene 8 without much resistance. She extracts a promise from Lincoln that he'll never leave again, then declares her love for him and her determination "to fight by his side" until death parts them. Does Mary Todd truly love Lincoln or is she using him?

8. Lincoln has an outburst of his own, in response to Mary. What are his complaints against her?

9. Stephen Douglas takes the position that "each state should mind its own business," says Lincoln in the debate. It might seem like the safer course, he argues, but there is a danger to following that advice. What is the danger that Lincoln foresees?

10. While Lincoln asserts that he submits to the will of God, he doesn't belong to any church. What are his objections to organized forms of worship?

(see the answer keys)

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