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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. During haying season, who employs Jick?

2. How does Paul show his trust in Mac and the new firefighting strategy?

3. How many fish had the deceased person caught, before he died?

4. Because the crop looks so favorable in the summer of 1939, how does the "Gleaner" describe the local ranchers?

5. What is Jick's job on the hay crew?

Short Essay Questions

1. Who are the members of Pete's hay crew at the beginning of the 1939 season, and what are their assigned duties?

2. Why is Cyrus better known by the nickname, "Wisdom?"

3. Shortly after the death of Mac, what big question does Lisabeth ask of Jick?

4. What is the first breakfast Stanley and Jick prepare for the firefighters?

5. What do Stanley and Jick notice about the grassy slope opposite to the fire, when they hike over?

6. Describe the decorating project Jick undertakes, to keep himself occupied in the heat of August.

7. At the end of Part 3, what ominous announcement is made, and by whom?

8. When Jick and Lisabeth eat dinner alone, while Mac fights the forest fire, what news does Lisabeth share about Leona?

9. Describe the final moments of Mac's life.

10. In the final scene of "English Creek," when Jick tells Stanley he's sorry about the way things went after the Phantom Woman fire, how does Stanley respond?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Consider the important role fire, along with the threat of fire, plays in the novel. How does fire drive characters apart? How does it unite them? How does the uncontrollable nature of fire, ultimately controlled by man with proper planning, support Doig's view of man's relationship with nature?

Essay Topic 2

When Mac is summoned to Missoula for fire danger classes, he rails against regulations and "desk jockeys." Why does Mac value experience and instinct over rules and training? Why, given his attitude, does he want Alec to go to college rather than face life head on and gain experience?

Essay Topic 3

How does Doig use nature, particularly detailed narratives about the beauty of the Two Medicine National Forest in Montana, as a major presence in the novel, almost to the point where nature could be considered a character?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 809 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample