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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. What is Mary Todd's mood when she finds out--at the last minute--that important men are coming to talk to her husband?

2. What distinction does Lincoln draw between the slaves and downtrodden workers in the North?

3. What is Lincoln wearing as he arrives for the train to Washington?

4. What are Mary's first words to Abe when he arrives after a two-year absence?

5. What is the name of President-elect Lincoln's bodyguard?

Short Essay Questions

1. 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?

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

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

4. 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?

5. What is the effect on Lincoln of Gale's idealism, his vow to denounce his American citizenship if the government doesn't ban slavery?

6. 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?

7. Lincoln, says Douglas in the debate, is stirring up rebellion against authority. What is the danger that Douglas foresees? And what is the solution he proposes?

8. Where is Gale taking his family as he meets with Lincoln in Act 2, Scene 7? Why is he going?

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

10. 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?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Seth Gale and his family are moving West, accompanied by Gobey, a free negro who works for them. What route West does Gale choose? What was happening in the nation that caused him to choose that route and to want to settle in Oregon?

Essay Topic 2

Based on the scene in the tavern with Ann Rutledge and later scenes with Mary Todd Lincoln, compare and contrast the personalities of the two women. In your opinion, which woman would have been the best wife for Lincoln? Base your reasons on aspects of their personalities as described in the play. Would Lincoln have become President if he had been married to Ann Rutledge rather than Mary Todd?

Essay Topic 3

Ben Mattling, the hard-drinking Revolutionary War veteran in Rutledge's Tavern, tells Lincoln to stay out of politics: "You have no place in that den of thieves that's called government," he says. What is going on in the country (as described or implied in the play) that has so enraged Mattling about government? Why does he think Lincoln is unsuited for elected office?

(see the answer keys)

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