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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 was the first stop for the initial band of men on the insurrection?
(a) Jeremiah Cobb's plantation.
(b) The Barnett plantation.
(c) Joseph Travis's farm.
(d) Benjamin Turner's homestead.

2. What did Marse Samuel propose to Nat when they rode together to Jerusalem?
(a) That Marse Samuel would find a wife for Nat.
(b) That Marse Samuel would send Nat to secondary school.
(c) That Marse Samuel would eventually free Nat.
(d) That Marse Samuel would put Nat in charge of the mill.

3. What does Nat find in Mrs. Whitehead's library that furthers his plans for a slave uprising?
(a) A map of Southampton County.
(b) A book about famous murderers.
(c) A sharp knife.
(d) A Bible lying open to Judges 15:14, where Sampson kills a thousand men.

4. What does the traveling salesman ask Nat to spell?
(a) Petunia.
(b) Daffodil.
(c) Rose.
(d) Columbine.

5. Who tries to take over the insurrection from Nat?
(a) Hark.
(b) Sam.
(c) Will.
(d) Nelson.

Short Answer Questions

1. What type of bird does Nat watch from his hiding place immediately after stealing the book?

2. What upcoming event does Nat take as his new "sign" to start his insurrection?

3. Who was Nat's owner when Nat was about twelve?

4. What were Marse Samuel's "grander plans" for Nat?

5. What is camphene?

Short Essay Questions

1. In Part 3, when Nat is owned by Thomas Moore, he says that he fell into the kind of save work that he had believed before could "not ever become my lot, not in a thousand lifetimes." Yet now it had become his lot. How did Nat react to that? How does this turning point relate to his earlier childhood and education, as well as his eventual killing spree?

2. As the book progresses, the descriptions of white slave owners grow worse and worse, until we reach Nathaniel Francis, introduced in Part 3. Why did Styron make each owner he described, whether the owner of Nat or other slaves, an uglier, meaner character than the one before?

3. After Nathaniel Francis forces Will and Sam to fight, Nat feels called to preach for the first time. Why do you think that was the event that brought Nat out in public as a preacher? Quote at least one reason from the book.

4. When Nat talks with Mrs. Whitehead in Part 3 after tracing the map, she alternately praises him and treats him as property, stating that she'd offered one thousand dollars for him. How did that make Nat feel?

5. In Part 2, Nat tells of Little Morning spying on him as a jealous response to the realization that Nat could read. This is the first time Nat tells of a negative reaction to his reading and learning. Why might Little Morning have reacted like this?

6. After Nat's fast in Part 3, he said there were two events that helped him interpret his vision of the fighting angels as a mandate to kill whites. What were those two events?

7. Miss Nell calls Nat "you smart little tar baby" in Part 1. Please explain what is meant by that name, and how it compares to what a white child would be called for the same reason.

8. Early in Part 2, the traveling salesman asks Nat to spell a word. This is the second time in the book that a spelling request has frightened Nat. What are some of the reasons Nat gives for his terror?

9. When Nat preaches in town in Part 3, he does not use proper English. Why do you think he does that?

10. In Part 3 when Nat goes on his five-day fast, he begs the Lord to give him a sign and believed the Lord answered his request. What does Nat describe as being the answer to his request of the Lord?

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