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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. What does John's father offer him in the ruins of the burned-down church?

2. What does the Union soldier indicate he knows to John's father?

3. What does John state happened the next day after he heard the story about the wounded Union soldier from his father?

4. How did John's father die?

5. What does John say was the most thrilling thing that ever happened in his life?

Short Essay Questions

1. What is the contrast between John's father and his grandfather's views on war?

2. How does John explain death to people who ask what it is like?

3. What three things does seeing Jack playing catch with John's son remind him of?

4. What are some of the key aspects of John's life that he recounts to his son?

5. What are John's thoughts on the Lord's Supper? How does his son figure into this account?

6. What are John's feelings about baseball, and what incidents contributed to those feelings?

7. Briefly recount the story John's grandfather and his friends used to tell about the citizens of a little abolitionist town.

8. Describe John's brother, Edward.

9. What is the significance behind the story of the farmer who was murdered with a bowie knife, and what does that have to do with John's grandfather?

10. How does John describe being "imperishable"?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

John and Jack have an extended conversation on pages 160 - 173. Discuss the nature of this conversation, the different points raised in the course of the conversation, while highlighting the presence of thematically important conflicts. Note, too, any significance to the fact that the conversation took place in the church - which seems to make conversations difficult.

Essay Topic 2

Several important truths about Jack Boughton are revealed on pages 217 - 233. Identify these truths, and discuss how it is shown that Jack might be developing some sense of character.

Essay Topic 3

John is a pastor, as was his father and grandfather before him. The pastorate is obviously linked to the church, and more often than not, the church is identified with a building. Discuss how the church building is a metaphor of the limitations placed on the three generations of Ames men, and how the aging church building in the book is tied to the state we find John in.

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This section contains 859 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample