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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 did John say he dreamed about after his visit to the graveyard?

2. When John and his father visited the graveyard, his father said, "I would never have thought this place could be ..."

3. What was John's mother's name?

4. What is Tobias's father's name?

5. Who put up the swing for John's son?

Short Essay Questions

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

2. Describe the moment of communion John experiences in the ruins of the burned-out church.

3. How does John view Jack Boughton prior to his coming?

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

5. What does John learn about his grandfather and his encounter with a Union soldier?

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

7. How does John describe himself as a younger man?

8. Why does John feel that his memories of fleeting incidents are so vivid to him?

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

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

John's grandfather's personal belongings - specifically, the gun and the two shirts - can be considered potent symbols. Discuss what these items might be symbolic of, how other family members respond to them. Consider especially John's mother and father's response.

Essay Topic 2

In the section encompassing pages 86 - 104, an image of communion is presented, as it is throughout the novel. Consider the significance of this ritual outside the walls of a church. Discuss what the implication of this event is, especially in light of the theme of the relationship between fathers and sons outside the realm of religion. Factor in, too, the relationship between John and Jack.

Essay Topic 3

C. S. Lewis wrote a partial autobiography, "Surprised by Joy," in 1955. This same concept, of being surprised by feelings of joy, elation, or even peace, is a common thread in "Gilead." Describe evidences in John's life that show that many times he was "surprised by joy," and how this gives understanding into both his character and how he responds to various situations in the book.

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