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. Why is Mattie Leaving?

2. Why does Mattie think that the bugs are bothering them at the beginning of Chapter 11?

3. Under which famous political figure did Mattie's grandfather serve?

4. Why does Mattie have to rewash the tablecloths?

5. How often does Mattie's mother need to be bathed?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Grandfather want Mattie to do with the money he gives her?

2. How many people have been predicted to die?

3. What did Grandfather find when he returned home to the coffeehouse?

4. Why does Eliza feel that Philadelphia is the best city for free African Americans to live?

5. Who are the horsemen that stop the wagon?

6. What is the soldier's trick for finding water that Mattie uses?

7. How does Mattie try to catch fish in the stream?

8. Who is Mr. Stephen Girard?

9. What do Mattie and her mother argue about at the end of Chapter 3?

10. How would you characterize Mattie's feelings toward Nathaniel Benson after reading Chapter 5?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Mattie and her mother's relationship develops and their bond is strengthened through absence.

1) Describe their relationship at several points in the novel.

2) Explain how their relationship changes.

3) Analyze why this change happens. What causes it to happen?

Use evidence from the novel to support your ideas.

Essay Topic 2

There are several characters who influence the person that Mattie becomes. Select the two characters who you believe have the greatest impact on her development and:

1) Describe each character's actions or beliefs as they relate to Mattie.

2) Discuss the impact of this character on Mattie's life and personality.

3) Discuss why you selected each particular character. What about each character made him/her more of an influence on Mattie than others?

Cite several specific examples from the novel to support your ideas.

Essay Topic 3

The coffee shop is an important setting in the novel. Discuss the significance of this setting focusing on its impact on plot and character development. Then discuss how the story would be different if the story were set elsewhere. Be sure to cite several examples from the novel to support your ideas.

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 647 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample