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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 is the clearest purpose of describing the plainclothes officer as "submerged in his overcoat" (621)?
(a) Developing characterization.
(b) Providing foreshadowing.
(c) Amplifying conflict.
(d) Establishing atmosphere.

2. Why did Bob leave New York?
(a) He was wanted by the police.
(b) He and Jimmy got into a fight.
(c) He fell in love with a girl from Chicago.
(d) He hoped to make money in the West.

3. What reason does Bob give for falling out of touch with Jimmy?
(a) He was moving around a lot.
(b) He was depressed.
(c) He lost Jimmy's address.
(d) He was too busy.

4. On page 621, how does the reader learn that the first police officer was actually Jimmy?
(a) The plainclothes officer refers to him as "Patrolman Wells."
(b) Jimmy himself explains his identity.
(c) The plainclothes officer reveals his true identity to Bob.
(d) The narrator describes "the patrolman" waiting around the corner as his "oldest friend" is arrested.

5. Why are there so few people on the streets?
(a) There are no open businesses nearby.
(b) There is a curfew.
(c) It is very late.
(d) The weather is unpleasant.

Short Answer Questions

1. What is the only reason that Bob can imagine Jimmy not showing up?

2. What is logical to infer about the officer asking about Bob's identity "doubtfully" (621)?

3. What does Bob's nickname turn out to be?

4. What is the first thing that Bob notices about the plainclothes officer he thinks is Jimmy?

5. What is the name of the restaurant that used to be in the spot where the man is waiting?

Short Essay Questions

1. How is Bob characterized by the accessories that he carries?

2. What is amusing about the plainclothes officer's answer to Bob's question about whether he is doing well in New York?

3. What is the significance of the similarities and differences in the ways that Bob's and the plainclothes officer's faces are revealed?

4. In the story's beginning, what evidence is there that Jimmy takes pride in his job?

5. How did Bob and Jimmy know one another, 20 years ago?

6. What is ironic about the way that Bob describes his old friend to the "policeman" he encounters?

7. Describe the story's opening moments, including its setting.

8. When the plainclothes officer tells Bob "We'll go around to a place I know of, and have a good long talk about old times," (621), what does he mean, and what does Bob likely think he means?

9. What surprises Bob about the appearance of the man that he thinks is his old friend, and how does the man explain away Bob's doubts?

10. What does the note from Jimmy explain to Bob?

(see the answer keys)

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