View a FREE sample

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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What words does Father Schwartz use when listening to Rudolph's confession?
(a) Sir and young man.
(b) Baby and Infant.
(c) Buddy and pal.
(d) Son and boy.

2. What is something that saddens Father Schwartz at the start of "Absolution"?
(a) He works so late he does not sleep.
(b) He feels unable to obtain perfect union with God.
(c) The noise outside his window makes it hard to read.
(d) He does not get along with his housekeeper.

3. What concerns Rudolph at the start of Chapter 2?
(a) He worries his confession will anger the priest.
(b) He worries his father will listen to his confession.
(c) He worries Father Schwartz will not be in the confessional.
(d) He worries someone will be able to hear his confession.

4. What did Rudolph do after his father had told him to go to confession?
(a) He played with some friends.
(b) He went to confession.
(c) He locked himself in his bedroom.
(d) He helped his mother cook supper.

5. What is Rudolph's father's occupation?
(a) Cleric.
(b) Freight agent.
(c) Teacher.
(d) Housekeeper.

6. What does Rudolph tell Father Schwartz when he asks Rudolph if he has told any lies in his confession?
(a) I can't say.
(b) No.
(c) I'm not sure.
(d) Yes.

7. What does Father ask Rudolph about the kinds of thoughts he confessed to having?
(a) If he has told anyone else about them.
(b) How often he has had them.
(c) If he enjoys them.
(d) Why he finds them problematic.

8. Who is the author of "Absolution"?
(a) F. Scott Fitzgerald.
(b) Franz Kafka.
(c) Ernest Hemingway.
(d) T.S. Eliot.

9. What scent makes Father Schwartz's heart ache as he walks the streets on Saturday night?
(a) Baking bread.
(b) The impending rain.
(c) Suppers cooking in the homes he passes.
(d) Cheap toilet soap.

10. What does Father Schwartz first do when Rudolph arrives at the start of the story?
(a) He tells him he should not come to his house.
(b) He pretends to be busy.
(c) He prays with him.
(d) He asks him to come back later.

11. What is another "easy sin" Rudolph confessed to Father Schwartz in Chapter 2?
(a) He talked back to his teacher.
(b) He was mean to an old lady.
(c) He cheated on a test at school.
(d) He skipped church the week before.

12. What does Father Schwartz ask Rudolph if he has done when he first visits?
(a) He asks if he has lied.
(b) He asks if he has killed someone.
(c) He asks if he has committed theft.
(d) He asks if he has used the Lord's name in vain.

13. Where is Father Schwartz when Rudolph Miller comes to visit him at the start of "Absolution"?
(a) At church.
(b) At home.
(c) At a cafe.
(d) In the library.

14. When does Chapter 2 begin?
(a) The Sunday before the story begins.
(b) Saturday, three days before the story begins.
(c) Saturday, three days after the story begins.
(d) The Sunday after the story begins.

15. Who is waiting to see Father Schwartz at the start of Chapter 2?
(a) Carl.
(b) Father Schwartz housekeeper.
(c) Rudolph.
(d) Rudolph's friend.

Short Answer Questions

1. What does Father Schwartz tell Rudolph he should have done about the situation in the barn?

2. How does Rudolph plan to avoid taking communion the day after he confesses to Father Schwartz in Chapter 2?

3. How did Rudolph feel when his father told him to go to confession three days earlier?

4. What does the carpet in Father Schwartz home bring to mind when he looks at it to avoid the sun?

5. What word is used to describe how Rudolph felt about telling Father Schwartz his true sins?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 645 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample