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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. On what date did Richmond, Virginia, the capital city of the Confederate States of America, fall to Union forces?

2. After John Wilkes Booth crossed the bridge, he turned to look for his co-conspirators. Whom did he see?

3. Worried that Lewis Powell or other assassins might return to the house, what action did Fanny Seward take throughout the night after the attack?

4. What was the cause of William Seward's injuries that caused him to be healing in bed when the assassination attempt on his life was made?

5. Though Dr. Samuel Mudd did not know about John Wilkes Booth's recent plan to assassinate the President, of what previous abandoned plot was Mudd aware?

Short Essay Questions

1. What action did David Herold take at the scene of William Seward's home that James L. Swanson imagines to have inspired the ire of John Wilkes Booth?

2. How did Mary Todd Lincoln's letter to the Ford Theater's proprietors unwittingly help Abraham Lincoln's would-be assassins complete their goal?

3. What are two themes touched upon within Abraham Lincoln's inauguration day speech of 1865?

4. In what ways is Lewis Powell portrayed as a pathetic character after his attempt to take William Seward's life?

5. What tone does James L. Swanson use in second paragraph of Chapter I when he writes, "The very next day, the tyrant Abraham Lincoln had visited his captive prize and had the nerve to sit behind the desk occupied by the first and last president of the Confederate States of America, Jefferson Davis"? (2)

6. What qualities of William Seward's situation caused him to chosen by the assassins as the third target in the assassination plot, in addition to Abraham Lincoln and Andrew Johnson?

7. How does James L. Swanson use the words of Mary Todd Lincoln's dressmaker, Elizabeth Keckley, to foreshadow the coming death of Abraham Lincoln?

8. How was Frederick Seward injured during Lewis Powell's attempt to assassinate Secretary of State William Seward?

9. What is the author's purpose in relating the events of Mary Lincoln Todd's and Abraham Lincoln's afternoon together on the date of the assassination?

10. What was the main goal of the plot to assassinate the Union's top governmental leaders all in one night?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss how poets such as Walt Whitman gave a voice to Americans in a time of grief over Abraham Lincoln's assassination and what overall effect their works had a country in mourning. Choose at least two poems by Walt Whitman and include concrete details from the poems and from the book in order to back up your points.

Essay Topic 2

What is the author's treatment of race relations within the events of the book? How does he get across to the reader the complexities of the country's conflicts without devoting entire chapters to the topic of race? Craft a specific and clear claim regarding the author's treatment of the race relations theme and use textual details to support your claim.

Essay Topic 3

How is the theme of crafted performance portrayed within the book? Examine James L. Swanson's treatment of actors and their professions, the antagonist's acting career, and the theme of appearance versus reality throughout the novel. Support your points with concrete details from the text.

(see the answer keys)

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