View a FREE sample

This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. Who is impatient to cross the river with the wagon and get it over with in Chapter 34: “Darl”?

2. What does Cash describe stopping to borrow in the house in Chapter 59: “Cash”?

3. Where is Cash riding in the wagon in Chapter 44: “Vardaman”?

4. Vardaman says that Jewel does not have what anymore in Chapter 47: “Vardaman”?

5. Samson believes that Anse's stubbornness is a byproduct of what?

Short Essay Questions

1. How is the river accident described through Vardaman’s perspective in Chapter 35: “Vardaman”?

2. What conflict almost arises in Chapter 52: “Darl”? Why?

3. How does Cash react to his pain and injuries in Chapter 44: “Vardaman”? Where does the family stop for medicine?

4. How do Jewel and Cash Bundren differ in their approach to the problem in Chapter 34: “Darl”?

5. How is the timeline of the Bundren children described in Chapter 40: “Addie”?

6. What suggestions are made for crossing the river in Chapter 31: “Tull”? How are the suggestions received?

7. What is foreshadowed through Cora and Addie’s conversation in Chapter 39: “Cora”?

8. What is foreshadowed through Anse’s actions in Chapter 53: “Cash”?

9. How is Anse Bundren’s selfishness illustrated in Chapter 43: “Armstid”?

10. What happens between Dewey Dell Bundren and MacGowan in Chapter 55: “MacGowan”?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss the character arc of Anse Bundren in As I Lay Dying. How does Anse feel about his wife's death in the beginning of the novel? What are Anse's family relationships like? What does the reader discover about Anse in the end of the novel?

Essay Topic 2

Discuss the theme of identity in As I Lay Dying. How does this theme relate to Darl, Jewel, and Cash? How does this theme connect to Dewey Dell? How does it relate to Anse Bundren?

Essay Topic 3

Discuss the author's use of symbolism and imagery in As I Lay Dying. What are some of the predominant symbols in the novel? What do they represent? What characters in the story have symbolic significance? How?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 719 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample