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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. Where does Nat hide the stolen book immediately after taking it?

2. What did Marse Samuel state he couldn't advocate freeing saves without?

3. On Marse Samuel's plantation, how were the slaves awoken in the morning?

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

5. What does Nat see as a good omen right before he returns to the farm from his "sanctuary" after revealing his plans to his core group of followers?

Short Essay Questions

1. Nat's vision in Part 3 involves a white angel and a black angel fighting. The black angel wins, casting the white angel down. When Nat questions this vision, he says he received no answer at all "save the answer in my brain." What did he interpret this vision as, and why?

2. In Part 2, when Nat baptizes Willis, he feels he's on the brink of great things, that great possibilities in his life are opening up. Yet soon after, his life changes as the slaves and eventually the plantation, including him, are sold. Is it possible that this had an effect on Nat's eventual decision to kill the whites? Why?

3. 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?

4. After Nat spells the word columbine, he lies awake that night thinking about it. He says it's a dream filled with 'inchoate promise'. What does he mean by that? How can one word be a promise?

5. Much of Part 2 is taken up with items from Nat's past. Why was so much of the book spent on the early times in Nat's life, rather than on his planning for the rebellion?

6. In Part 2, Nat talks about Samuel Turner's tampering with a slave's destiny by educating him. Immediately afterward, he talks about what his life might have been like if he had not been the subject of Marse Samuel's "experiment." What do you think of this description of his might-have-been life? Is it something that appeals to him?

7. Why might Part 3 be titled "Study War"? Is it appropriate?

8. 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.

9. 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?

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

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

The book opens and closes with Nat's vision of a white building on a cliff, bathed in sunlight. What do you think the white building represents? Why is it next to the sea? Nat referenced hearing about the ocean from other slaves, but never got the chance to view it himself. How does this vision of an unattainable building tie in with Nat's life and his rebellion?

Essay Topic 2

Nat's thoughts in Styron's prose are educated, descriptive, and use proper English. Yet his speech toward white people is completely different. Why do you think that is? Does his speech change again when he speaks with other slaves? Why or why not?

Essay Topic 3

What event or events in the book were a "turning point" for Nat that led him toward rebellion? Describe the event(s) from the book that you identify, and explain why you believe it or they moved Nat down the path toward killing whites.

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