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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 Peter's punishment when he gets into trouble with his money?
(a) He is locked in the coal hole with the rats.
(b) He cannot have supper for two days.
(c) He has to work extra hours for his mother.
(d) He is grounded.

2. Why is Mr. O'Neill called "Dotty?"
(a) He is round, like a dot.
(b) He is small, like a dot.
(c) His middle name is "Dot."
(d) He has a large birthmark on his face.

3. When Michael is sick, how does Frank's father save him?
(a) He sucks the mucus out of his nose so that he can breathe.
(b) He and Angela take the boy to church to be blessed.
(c) He rushes him to the doctor.
(d) He gives the boy a drink of beer to clear his sinuses.

4. What is wrong with Paddy's father in Chapter 6?
(a) He works too many hours.
(b) He has consumption.
(c) He has left Paddy's mother.
(d) He has pneumonia.

5. How does Frank earn money from Mr. Timoney?
(a) He cleans Mr. Timoney's home.
(b) He brings Mr. Timoney books.
(c) He reads to Mr. Timoney.
(d) He delivers coal to Mr. Timoney.

Short Answer Questions

1. How does Frank envision heaven at the end of Chapter 2?

2. What is Angela's last resort for feeding the children in Chapter 9?

3. What does Frank do with the raisin he finds in his pastry?

4. Who is Frank excited to see when he is hospitalized the second time?

5. Why does Angela slide into a deep depression?

Short Essay Questions

1. Describe why Frank is ridiculed in Chapter 3 by his classmates when coming home from the butcher, and what this says about the children he goes to school with.

2. What does Grandma's attitude towards first communion and first confession in Chapter 4 tell you about the role of Catholicism in their lives?

3. Describe the scene in town on Fridays in Chapter 3 when work is finished. What is the overall atmosphere? How are Angela's feelings different than those of the other women in town?

4. Why is Frank so reluctant to take dance lessons in Chapter 5, and why is his mother so insistent that he take them?

5. Describe the circumstances that lead the McCourt family back to Ireland in Chapter 1.

6. Discuss Malachy's attitude towards work in Chapter 3.

7. In Chapter 9, why is the family shamed when no telegram arrives?

8. In Chapter 6, Paddy Clohessy's father has consumption. What does this tell you about their living situation?

9. In Chapter 7, Frank gets and loses two jobs. Reflect on what this shows about the stability of his life.

10. Chapter 1 begins the pattern of Malachy losing his jobs. To what extent do you believe he is responsible for this pattern? Is he a victim of fate, or do his actions cause these negative consequences?

(see the answer keys)

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