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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 do Sissie and Jerry wait in the second summer chapter?

2. In the second summer, what type of insect is described as hovering around tables?

3. Who joins Sissie's family as they sit in the first summer?

4. According to Sissie, what color does her father's face turn as he drinks?

5. Which of the following indicates that time has passed between the first two parts of the book?

Short Essay Questions

1. What message about marriage does Sissie pass on?

2. What has changed in Sissie's life between the first two summers narrated?

3. Why might it be difficult to write from Sissie's perspective?

4. How is the idea of life and death explored in the text in part 1?

5. What is Sissie afraid of in Part 1?

6. Why is Sissie horrified when she sees the bird stuck in the scum on the water?

7. Describe the narrator's clarity in the first part of the story.

8. Is Sissie comfortable being around her father in Part 2? Why or why not?

9. Why is Sissie self-conscious of herself by Part 3?

10. Why do Sissie's parents argue in Part 3? How does it make Sissie feel?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

How can the reader tell the differences between each narration? How does the reader know that the narrator has matured between sections? How does diction change? How does Sissie's comprehension change?

Essay Topic 2

What is the central conflict in "Four Summers"? Is the conflict in the story physical or emotional? How does the reader know this?

Essay Topic 3

What role does the idea of image versus reality play in the book? What does Sissie imagine the world to be? In truth, how does the world differ? How does this affect Sissie's life?

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